Preventative Maintenance

[Big_Geek]

After my last off-road trip, I went through a bit of PM and inspection on my vehicle, but I'm sure there are some things I didn't think about checking. I found this list on the web that I thought was pretty good:

http://www.4x4now.com/4whtpm.htm

Any opinions on things that should be added? I'd really like to come up with a list of things to check or change before a trip and another for after a trip.

 

[teotwaki]

After my last off-road trip, I went through a bit of PM and inspection on my vehicle, but I'm sure there are some things I didn't think about checking. I found this list on the web that I thought was pretty good:

http://www.4x4now.com/4whtpm.htm

Any opinions on things that should be added? I'd really like to come up with a list of things to check or change before a trip and another for after a trip.

It is worth cleaning your truck well before you go on a trip. Before and after cleaning be sure to look for seeping fluids, excess rust, dents in critical spots and so on. Get all of the mud, dirt and dust off of it. Make sure to get on the creeper and roll underneath. Grab and tug things, look for anything that seems loose, cracked, damaged, different or unfamiliar.

Check your spares and other items. Make sure that the rubber parts are still good, that fluids have not seeped out of their containers or that "borrowed" spares were replaced.

 

[crawler#976]

That's a good list.

I have a bolt tightening party after every hard core run. That includes checking motor/tranny/transfer mounts and tie down chains, steering knuckle studs, u-bolts, steering gearbox, shock mounts, hub studs, and lug nuts. In general I find at least one of those items loose. In addition to that, I check front wheel bearings, and readjust'm as needed. At least once a year I pull the whole front end down to lub birfields and bearings and to check for other damage. I also check rear axle shafts for runout - they seem to get bent every now and then...

For general wheelin' I check the same items when I do my normal chassis lub. The miles of heavy washboard roads takes it's toll on the hardware too.

and,

Welcome to the board!

Mark

 

[mountainpete]

It is worth cleaning your truck well before you go on a trip. Before and after cleaning be sure to look for seeping fluids, excess rust, dents in critical spots and so on. Get all of the mud, dirt and dust off of it. Make sure to get on the creeper and roll underneath. Grab and tug things, look for anything that seems loose, cracked, damaged, different or unfamiliar.

Very much in agreement. A clean truck is a happy truck. A happy truck is a reliable truck.

To me there is no better step then washing your vehicle by hand. That may mean a bucket and washcloths, but it could also just be the local pressure wash station and a fist full of coins. You can't help but closely inspect everything when you wash by hand and that's when you start to notice things. Dents, leaks, rust, cracks, etc. It all starts there.

Pete

 

[FortyMileDesert]

A Dirty Truck Is A Happy Truck!

- - preventive maintenance is a good thing; however, I can't remember ever finding a loose fastener on any of the twenty-something rigs that I've owned in the past fifty plus years.....

 

[mountainpete]

I agree that a dirty truck is happy on the trail - but just like a little kid I feel it's best to put it to bed clean.

A while ago while cleaning up the truck I found that my roof rack cross bars were vibrating loose from the canoe. From there I found the canopy clamps came loose. Probably wouldn't have caught it unless I had specifically cleaned the roof.

Big thing for my area is rust. If you want to keep for any length of time you have to keep it clean. In the winter, that means very regular washings to take the salt off.

Pete

 

[Grim Reaper]

I don’t understand why more people don’t get this. A high percentage of trail failures I have seen were lack of maintenance.

If you go through deep water or Mud you should be checking for contamination in wheel bearings within 24 hours. You let it go past that you can kiss the bearings good by. I had a buddy managed to drive 50 miles on a contaminated wheel bearing and go to the meeting point. The hub was smoking when he got off the hwy. We tried to take it apart to see if we could fix it and there was no hope. The bearing actually seized once he stopped and the truck had to be trailer back. He ended up having to cut the hub apart with a torch.

Same thing with u-joints. About 50% of the failed U-joints IO have helped people change on the trail were contaminated or dry from lack of maintenance.

The worst offenders are those with dedicated trail rigs that trailer them. Flog the hell out of them. Get them on the trailer. Let them sit for a week. Pressure wash them on the trailer and never do a lick of maintenance till something fails.

Watch out with pressure washers. You need to be very careful around anything with a seal. A pressure washer can blow water in 10 times faster then running a mile in 2ft of water. NEVER hose down an alternator either. You will do in the brushes and if its hot you can crack insulators and diodes in the regulator. The PO of my Suburban managed to kill 3 alternators in 72K because of his pressure washer. I had to rebuild it right after I bought the truck. Got the starter as well.

GA is already under a out door water ban. My one day where I can give it a good cleaning is Saturday before 10am. My truck is sitting in the parking lot here at work waiting for the rain to wash it off. I have inspected tires and given it a lube though as it is my DD.