Bendix Tech Tips: Bumper-To-Bumper Winter Preparation – Top 12 Tips To Be Ready For Cold Weather
ELYRIA, OH… Technically, no – winter’s not here yet. But in the practical sense, the season’s dropping temperatures, snow, and ice are already impacting large parts of North America, so it’s time to make sure trucks and fleets are prepared. This installment of the Bendix Tech Tips Series offers 12 pieces of air system, electronics, and wheel-end advice to help keep your vehicle in good operating condition as things get frosty.
Air Systems (Tips from Richard Nagel, Bendix
director of marketing and customer solutions, Charging)
1) Keep it dry: Moisture in the air system can condense
and freeze, increasing the odds of brake and valve malfunctions. If the air
dryer cartridge hasn’t been replaced lately, now is the time to do it. Bendix
recommends oil-coalescing cartridges like the PuraGuard®, since oil
aerosols passed into the system can be particularly harmful.
2) Check the dryer’s purge valve for corrosion or grit accumulation and
replace it if necessary. Corrosive road chemicals can damage the
purge valve, and putting in a new one as a safeguard is a relatively quick and
simple bit of preventive maintenance.
3) Manually drain the air tanks to start the season: Today’s
vehicles use compressed air for more non-braking functions, including automated
manual transmissions (AMTs), advanced safety systems, and emissions controls.
Draining every three months is generally sufficient for typical line haul
trucks, but more often – monthly or even weekly – is recommended for vehicles
with high air demand, like vocational trucks.
4) Unless it’s an emergency, avoid using de-icing solutions on an air
system: They can corrode O-rings and valve
seals. (If one must be used, limit the exposure to as small an area as possible
and keep an eye on the affected parts.)
Electronics and Controls (Tips from Fred Andersky, Bendix director of marketing and
customer solutions, Controls)
5) Remember that driver assistance technologies – like stability and
collision mitigation – rely on maintenance of lower level systems like tires
and the brakes to ensure performance in the field. Maintaining
these systems is especially critical in winter when electronic systems may be
called on more often to help mitigate crashes. Check tires for adequate tread
depth and proper wear, and wheel-ends for tight bolts and cracks.
6) Run a diagnostic check to make sure tire pressure monitoring systems are
operating properly. Internal and external temperature
swings, along with slick road conditions, make running on the right tire
pressure exceedingly important in the winter.
7) Keep external cameras and radar sensors – forward-mounted collision
mitigation units, for instance – clear of snow and ice by
checking them immediately prior to getting on the road.
8) Check connections to ensure they are secure and water tight. Salt
and other road chemicals can cause corrosion, which can ruin connectors and
components.
Wheel-Ends (Tips from Keith McComsey, Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake director
of marketing and customer solutions, Wheel-End)
9) Check air brake chamber housings for corrosion –
or damage that could allow corrosive materials to take hold – and ensure that
dust plugs are properly installed.
10) On
drum-braked wheel-ends, lubricate the automatic slack
adjusters, clevis pin connections, cam tubes, shafts, and bushings. Lubrication
is an effective tool for combatting corrosion, since it keeps moisture at bay.
11) On wheel-ends
with air disc brakes, check the guide pins and inspect the
boots for tears or punctures that could permit corrosion of the caliper within.
Replace any pins or boots as needed. Verify that the shear adaptor cover is in
place and fully seated.
12) Ensure free
movement of air disc brake pads in the carrier – remove
them and clean the carrier surface with a wire brush, if necessary – and make
sure that the brake moves freely on its guidance system.
Winter hazards can ruin a driver’s or
fleet’s day – and they don’t always take the form of things like blizzards or
icy roads. But maintenance and upkeep efforts in the shop and on the road can
keep vehicles running smoothly and safely.
Information
in the Bendix Tech Tips series can be found in the Bendix multimedia center
at knowledge-dock.com. Further instructional
videos and interactive training on air systems, electronics and controls, and
wheel-end technologies are available at the Bendix On-Line Brake School, www.brake-school.com. For more information on wheel-end
and air dryer maintenance, contact the Bendix Tech Team at 1-800-AIR-BRAKE.
About the Bendix Tech Tips Series
Bendix, the North American leader in the development and manufacture of leading-edge active safety and braking system technologies, is committed to helping keep commercial vehicles on the road and in good working condition. The Bendix Tech Tips series addresses common commercial vehicle maintenance questions and issues concerning the total range of components found within foundation and air brake systems, as well as advanced safety systems.