Caring For Your Truck: A Complete Truckers Guide

Posted by thecarguy in Aug, 2020

Here are three easy steps to help make your truck-care easy and low cost, as well as making you an expert on your own vehicle.

Engine care

Trucks get a lot of hard use; whether it’s off-roading, harsh weather, or tough terrain. This means your engine takes a beating. All the dirt and grime you don’t want in your engine is caked all over it, and it’s that kind of dirt that causes the expensive repairs down the line. A simple and easy way to keep your truck’s engine in top shape is to clean it! This isn’t something you need to do on a monthly basis, but depending on how much use your truck gets, every three months will do. But remember, only do this if you’re confident with your truck and check with a professional that these steps are right for your kind of truck.

For this kind of regular care, it’s best to buy the equipment you need now, and it’s a great investment because you’ll use it again and again. All you’ll need is a bucket for water, big sponges, a small power washer, detailing brushes, cleaning sprays for cleaning, degreasing and protecting, and an old towel. Here’s how to do it:

The first and most important step is to remove your truck’s battery. It’s the safest way to clean your engine, for you and your truck. Then make sure that any inlets to the air intake box are covered, which you can do with a plastic bag or cover. This is to make sure no water can get in and cause any unnecessary problems! The go-ahead and get in there with your power washer! Get all the grime off that you can, and don’t forget under the hood!

Give everything a once over with the big sponges and cleaning spray to get rid of any dirt the power washer couldn’t. Once you’ve finished that, get your detailing brushes and get in all the gaps, nooks, and crannies to really make sure it’s clean. Make sure to get the valve cover really clean because a lot of greases can settle there. This is where you use the degreasing spray. Anywhere the dirt is really sticking, grab your sprays and make your life easier.

Another great thing about cleaning your engine is that you can get familiar with how it looks. This means if any problems were to arise, you’d be more likely to notice before it caused any issues. So while you’re cleaning, give everything a look over and check if everything seems right!

Once you’ve finished with the nitty-gritty cleaning, take your towel and soak up any big puddles of water. You don’t want those sitting there when you start your engine!

Now, spray everywhere with a layer of protection spray – this means dirt is less able to stick to your engine bay and makes its easier to clean next time.

Leave the engine bay open to properly and thoroughly dry for as long as it takes. Once it’s completely dry, put the battery back in. Wasn’t that easy? Do be sure you’re confident to take these caring steps for your truck and check with a professional that they’re the best for your truck.

Check your brakes

One of the most important systems in any vehicle is its brakes. They’re more important than the car running; if you don’t have brakes but you can drive the car, well, that just spells disaster. In trucks especially, however, brakes are even more important because of the size and weight of trucks. The brake systems in trucks are also different from most other vehicles. Here’s why:

In trucks, the brakes work through a mechanism called a compression brake system, or more colloquially, an engine brake. It works by the closing of the intake and exhaust valves, the ascension of the piston, compressing the air and forcing it into the cylinder. At the height of the stroke, fuel is injected and the superheated air burns it quickly, which pushes against the piston on its way down. A little complicated, but that’s all there is to it!

To look after your truck breaks, make sure to keep a close eye out for these things: any kind of leaking means its time to take your truck in and get the parts replaced! If the air is escaping from the compression system, the brakes won’t work as well as they need to. Worn hoses; again, if a part of your brake system is worn, it’s not working at peak efficiency. Get them replaced. It’s that simple! Check and replace.

Truck shocks

The final thing you should keep an eye out for on your truck is the shocks. All the use your truck is getting means its shocks have to be the best! They have to keep you comfortable and make that off-road smooth. The best shocks for trucks are gas-charged, which means they have a faster response time than most others available. Zinc-plated shocks mean they’re more durable, with a longer life, and are more weather resistant and therefore may need to be changed less frequently.

They may be small, but truck shocks can change everything about how your vehicle drives.

These are the three best ways to care for your truck that take make your vehicle last longer, run better, and make you more knowledgable about your truck.