Do’s and Don’ts of Extending Maintenance Intervals

Several truck manufacturers recently announced extended service intervals for diesel particulate filters and diesel engine oil and filter changes for late-model trucks.

“Using data from our EPA 2010-compliant trucks, we’ve been able to verify that our newer engines produce significantly less particulate matter, enabling us to expand the service window for DPFs and engine oil and filter changes,” said Roy Horton, director of product marketing for Mack. 

However, Mack emphasizes that extended intervals are only for certain vehicles with certain engines. If you plan to extend your maintenance intervals on older trucks, there are a few tips you should know.

Do’s

• Follow manufacturer recommendations: Be careful about exceeding the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance intervals so you don’t void warranty coverage.
• Extend intervals slowly: Make changes in 25% increments supported by fluid analysis results. For example, if you currently change oil at 30,000 miles and want to extend that to 50,000 miles, start by moving the oil change to 35,000 miles and monitor engine performance. If the fluid and engine are still performing well at the new mileage level, extend the interval out another 25%.
• Understand the history of the vehicle: Compile all the data you have about a vehicle or class of vehicles to give you a full understanding of their service history and problem areas. Knowing a vehicle’s history allows you to spot changes in the way a vehicle normally performs.
• Use oil analysis and coolant analysis to monitor performance: Regular fluid analysis provides a gold mine of information about the health of a truck. Take samples at each PM and review the results.
• Inspect the vehicle every time it’s in the shop for other service: If the vehicle is in for a repair or recall, take time to do a PM inspection and ensure that everything is operating as they should.
• Use extended life products: Some products like synthetic oils and lubes are designed to last longer than their conventional counterparts. When extending maintenance intervals, select products known to give long life. Invest in high-quality products too. If you are saving money on fewer oil changes, you can budget for more premium products.
• Make changes based on vehicle’s duty cycle and age: Consider the age and duty cycle of the truck when making a decision to extend maintenance. Trucks operating in severe-duty environments are not good candidates for extended maintenance intervals.
• Work with your OEM: Seek input from your truck manufacturer before extending maintenance intervals. They have access to a wealth of information that can help you determine just how far you can extend maintenance.
• Monitor compliance: Make sure you have a system in place to track PM schedules and compliance so you don’t miss any maintenance appointments.

Don’ts

• Use the same maintenance schedule for all your assets: All trucks are not created equal. Using the same PM schedule for a seven-year-old truck as you do for a one-year-old truck is courting disaster. Older trucks tend to need maintenance on a more frequent basis than newer trucks.
• Miss scheduled maintenance appointments: Since you’re already extending maintenance intervals, you’re guaranteeing maintenance issues for your truck if you fail to bring it in for each and every scheduled maintenance appointment.
• Skip oil and fluid analysis: It’s short sighted to think you can extend maintenance intervals without having a system in place to report on the health of the truck. Read more about the benefits of oil analysis here. [ADD LINK TO PEAK STORY]  
• Use the lowest cost products: Less expensive products tend to not last as long and may not make it through an extended maintenance interval.
• Ignore recommendations: Truck manufactures have compiled their maintenance recommendations based on data from thousands of trucks. Take time to at least look them over before tossing them out the window.