Ensuring the longevity and peak performance of your engines is essential to maintaining the safety and efficiency of your fleet. Routine engine maintenance not only extends vehicle lifespan but also improves reliability and minimizes downtime. By following proven best practices, you can keep your fleet on the road smoother and longer.
Factors leading to engine wear
Engine wear is one of the most critical factors in maintaining best practices for maximum performance of your vehicles – here’s why:
- Worn engines run less efficiently, using more fuel and producing less power.
- As engine components degrade, the risks of breakdowns and repairs rise.
- Neglecting engine wear leads to more severe damage, which is far more expensive to fix than regular preventive maintenance.
- A poorly performing engine may also fail to meet emissions standards, creating regulatory issues.
It’s important to identify factors leading to engine wear to mitigate potential risks. These factors include:
- Contamination: Contaminants play a significant part in engine wear. Dust, dirt, and metal particles can infiltrate the engine, leading to abrasive wear and damage to vital components.
- Engine oil condition: The condition of the engine oil plays a pivotal role in engine wear. Over time, engine oil can deteriorate, losing its effectiveness and ability to provide proper lubrication and protection.
Essential maintenance best practices for fleet performance
Following key maintenance best practices ensures that your engines operate at their best and contributes to their longevity—helping to lower operational costs across your fleet.
- Follow regular inspections
- Schedule routine checks: Regular visual inspections can help you identify leaks, wear, and unusual noises in your vehicles.
- Fluid levels & oil analysis: Monitor oil, coolant, and other fluid levels regularly. Monitoring oil levels and conducting oil analysis can help assess the engine oil's condition and identify any potential issues early on. Regular oil analysis can detect contaminants, assess oil condition, and pinpoint any potential issues or abnormalities within the engine.
- Schedule regular maintenance: Check OEM guidelines and adhere to the recommended service intervals for oil changes, filter replacements, and other maintenance tasks. Conduct regular oil changes and filters at recommended intervals to prevent contamination and maintain oil quality.
- Select the right lubricant: Follow OEM recommendations and consider your vehicles’ operating conditions.
- Engine oil: Choosing the right oil with the appropriate SAE viscosity grade and API designation is critical for matching the specific needs of your engines. Consider lower viscosity engine oils for emissions standards compliance and for their advancements in additives. The benefits of using lower-viscosity oils include cost savings, improved engine durability, and flexible formulation.
- Grease: Temperature affects how grease flows and pumps, which helps determine how often it needs to be reapplied. Also, check if the grease is “NLGI Certified.” The NLGI Consistency Grade Scale indicates the grease’s hardness and consistency, allowing you to select the right grease for your specific application and temperature.
- Use quality products: Consider high-quality products like Citgo Citgard premium engine oils and Mystik greases. Citgard offers a wide product range for multiple engine types: gasoline, diesel, and mobile natural gas engines. These oils are engineered to provide improved engine durability and performance, and protection in old and newer engines. They are guaranteed to reduce total operating costs, improve fuel efficiency, and reduce carbon footprint. Concurrently, Mystik greases are engineered for peak performance in the toughest conditions and designed to meet the demanding needs of on-highway vehicles.
- Monitoring systems
- Use advanced diagnostic tools and technology: Invest in advanced diagnostic and predictive tools and technology to streamline maintenance processes. These tools can help to quickly identify issues, perform accurate diagnostics, and optimize maintenance schedules. Preventative maintenance tools, like Citgo LubeAlert Fluid Condition Monitoring Service, can identify trends in a variety of equipment, providing valuable insights into equipment condition and conveniently helping you plan your vehicle's maintenance activities. LubeAlert makes fluid analysis simple by collecting data samples while in the field and submitting them using the LubeAlert mobile app or logging from a desktop. Using Citgo LubeAlert Fluid Condition Monitoring Service can help increase operational efficiency and production, and decrease maintenance costs and unexpected downtime, among other great benefits.
- Real-life example: Foodliner/Quest Liner, one of the largest bulk food-grade and specialty chemical carriers in the U.S., significantly boosted fleet performance, reduced downtime, and extended maintenance intervals by partnering with Citgo —achieving a 24.3% increase in oil drain intervals (from 48,000 to 90,000 miles) and reducing regreasing frequency across its fleet. Operating over 240 tractors and 400 specialized trailers across a range of extreme conditions, Foodliner/Quest Liner sought to improve efficiency and oil drain intervals while supporting CNG engine technology. Through a successful trial of Mystik JT-6 Heavy Duty SynBlend 460 #2 grease and Citgard 700 MFE Synthetic Blend Heavy Duty Engine Oil 10W-30 in both hot Houston summers and North Dakota winters, Foodliner/Quest Liner saw superior fifth-wheel adhesion, improved fuel economy, and better alignment of maintenance schedules. Support from the Citgo technical team and LubeAlert Fluid Monitoring Service enabled a seamless transition and measurable benefits for both local and long-haul operations.
- Vendor supplier relationships
- Establishing strong relationships with your vendors and suppliers who specialize in maintenance for engines and equipment can ensure timely access to expertise and technical support specific to each vehicle type. By contacting your supplier about choosing the right heavy-duty engine oils that will work for your needs, such as the premium line of Citgo Citgard premium engine oils and Mystik premium lubricants, you can significantly enhance the performance, safety, and lifespan of your fleet operation.
When you follow these best practices, you’ll optimize fleet operations, streamline maintenance schedules, reduce costs, and, ultimately, keep your vehicles on the road longer.
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