One thing I would add is, keep a maintenance record, paper or electronic, and keep it updated whenever you do anything to your vehicle, especially if you are responsible for multiple vehicles.
I have a spreadsheet where I keep track of the date and mileage of any services and repairs, how much they cost, where I got the parts or work done, and any notes about the parts or process (warranty details, part numbers, etc). I also have a section with all the fluid types and quantities and maintenance intervals
I created a contact in my phone for my truck and just keep repair & maintenance history in the notes. Also handy when you occasionally need tire or wiper blade size or VIN and the truck isn’t nearby.
I bought a used Peterbilt with 1,090,000 miles on it in 2003., drove it a few years and finally had to rebuild it at 1,400,000. The mechanic told me that was the original 12.7 Detroit motor. Yeah, with maintenance motors can last. I changed oil and filters at 10k in the summer and 12k in the winter. Antifreez every 2 years, trans and rears ends every 3 years and power steering fluid between 1-2 years. Preventative maintenance is golden.
DOT pre and post trip inspections. That brings me back to working for a tree company. I did it everyday until my manger and boss took me to their office l told me not to because I kept finding things wrong on the fleet😂 ….I left that company a few weeks later
yeah, because it is much better to break down right in the middle of a job, I had a guy come to trim my tree and his truck leaked hydraulic fluid so bad he carried a tray to stick under the truck while using it and still had fluid all over the road when done.
Hi Eric One of the thing's you missed is that some vehicles have a transmission brake drum that is either cable or rod operated, it is one part of a vehicle that is overlooked by not only owner's but equally overlooked by mechanics too. The transmission brake is your hand brake or emergency brake operated by a hand leaver inside the car that in most countries people don't use when they have a automatically operated gearbox vehicle, but in some case's with manual gearbox vehicles. Here in Britain you are taught to always use the handbrake/ emergency brake when parking or holding the vehicle on a slope to help when powering the vehicle to exit a junction or stop sign, light control or police control junction or if sitting in a flow of traffic that is not moving for any length of time to release pressure of the gearbox, clutch and flywheel / torque convertor and engine bearings.
Great tips!!! Sharp eyes and due diligence prevails. Costs of new and used vehicles are high, so just take care of what you have. Trusted shops or dealers are the key if you can't do it yourself. At least know your vehicle!
Only thing I would suggest. Prior to changing any fluids, make sure that the fill plug comes out. It would not be a good day if you drain the diff, transfer case or even your oil, then not be able to refill them. Good tips for preventative maintenance and visually inspecting for any issues which haven’t made themselves known yet.
This is soo cool, finally we get to see you often which is great😍 Really this channel must continue after soo many years of great content, this gap is just not finishing, hopefully you will keep up the pace👍🏻 Wish you all the Best👍🏻
Two things you forgot. 1, grease your driveshafts if they have the zerk fittings...newer trucks might not have them because brands like to lie that their cars have less maitenance and make gimmicks like "lifetime fluids" which arent real. that leads me to number 2, replace your "lifetime fluids". For example, car brands are now making their transmissions with "lifetime" fluids, it is a lie, change the fluid at the proper interval.
Hello Eric I have questions. 1. Do I need to replace the timing belt every 15KM? 2. Do I need to replace the Glow Plugs every 20KM? 3. Do I need to replace the Brake pads every 30KM? 4. What is your preferred tire gauge? When on a long drive? Does it need to be hard or soft when driving on roads? 5. If I were to replace the car coolant. Do I need to purchase the expensive brand or just the generic brand? 6. Do you clean the trucks exhaust pipes? 7. Would you recommend Engine Detailing?
As a mechanic that works at an independent shop in a semi rural area that sees a lot of trucks, I can say it’s very rare to see a truck more than 5 years old that isn’t run into the ground with worn chopped tires, blown suspension, leaks everything from everywhere, frames rotted in half or very close to it, no oil on the dipstick with no oil change sticker, the inspection takes 2 hours any they only approve the door latch to be repaired lol
Not all brake fluids turn to shrek piss when old. My cars brake fluid was about 10 years old and it was still yellow. I got the car used at 70,000km replaced brakes at 160,000km. Now I doubt the first owner rode the brakes to the point they needed replacing at 70,000km.
did you check it for water in the fluid? it can be yellow but full of water all brake fluid absorbs water from the air. unless you live in a desert.@@IIGrayfoxII
I feel deja vu. Is this a repost? Swear I just saw the cardboard thing.. not sure if I dreamt it or saw it on some other social but I could have sworn dad's truck had made it's prodigal return home..
Yea! Semi-trucks (tractor trucks) last a long time. They usually get a total engine rebuild at 500,000 miles. A driver that runs coast to coast can rack up a couple a million miles.
Eric I ask same question to various mechanics and never got the answer. Why Differential don't have drain plug. Is that to force people to check condition of gears when they change oil or there is some other reason?
I love your videos. You explain things on a level that I can understand. I have a question for you if you don't mind. I hate to ask this, because I think I know what the answer is going to be. I recently put a re-ring kit in a 350. While I had it apart, I also upgraded the cam, replaced timing chain, lifters, push rods. and rocker arms. I put it back in the car, and with a little playing with the timing, it fired right up, and sounded pretty good. After a while I noticed what I thought was excessive lifter noise. I removed the valve cover from the drivers side. On number 3 cylinder, exhaust valve, the rocker arm was completely sloppy. I couldn't even tighten it down far enough to take the slop out. Although the lifters are new, do I have a bad lifter, or something worse? Thanks for any help you can give me.
All the preventative measures for the mechanical aspect of the truck are great, however, when they intentionally engineer the frames and bodies to rust away, that alone limits the overall longevity of having the truck.
Hi Eric I have a 2014 Ram 1500 5.7L. Bought it with 60k miles 4.5 years ago. I now have 85,000 miles, don't know if previous owner changed the ATF, should I take the chance of changing it? Trans is running fine, just want to give it maintenance
I personally believe the owners manuals are a little too soft on maintenance. My personal opinions are oil every 3-5k, trans every 30-60k (depending how aggressively you drive), PSF every 30k, brake fluid every 30k, diffs & t case every 30k. Never listen to claims of “lifetime” fluid and never listen to 10k oil changes. Just my 0.02 as someone who has had many trouble free high mileage vehicles.
Hi EricTheCarGuy, This is Kristina from ANCEL. I am reaching out to see whether you are interested in reviewing our OBD2 diagnostics scan tool? Looking forward to your reply.
Speaking of lights car or truck for god sake people get your lights aligned please. So many vehicles with badly aligned lights blinding the crap out of me. I’m sick of it.
what is with the people who have like 4 or six headlights on the front of their truck and modify wiring to have fog lights and high beams on at same time. chevy pickups look like the family truckster from vacation movie with 4 headlights.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
As a diesel fleet mechanic, this makes a ton of sense. Why not treat my pickup like a semi? It works for them.
One thing I would add is, keep a maintenance record, paper or electronic, and keep it updated whenever you do anything to your vehicle, especially if you are responsible for multiple vehicles.
Excellent suggestion!
I keep a small notpad and pencil in the glovebox of all my family vehicles with all repairs and maintenance that are done
I have a spreadsheet where I keep track of the date and mileage of any services and repairs, how much they cost, where I got the parts or work done, and any notes about the parts or process (warranty details, part numbers, etc). I also have a section with all the fluid types and quantities and maintenance intervals
can also use a sharpie marker to write on item changed when was done
I created a contact in my phone for my truck and just keep repair & maintenance history in the notes. Also handy when you occasionally need tire or wiper blade size or VIN and the truck isn’t nearby.
I bought a used Peterbilt with 1,090,000 miles on it in 2003., drove it a few years and finally had to rebuild it at 1,400,000. The mechanic told me that was the original 12.7 Detroit motor. Yeah, with maintenance motors can last. I changed oil and filters at 10k in the summer and 12k in the winter. Antifreez every 2 years, trans and rears ends every 3 years and power steering fluid between 1-2 years. Preventative maintenance is golden.
Always loosen the Fill Plug on the rear differential BEFORE You take the cover off to make sure it will come out........;)...........
Solid, simple info, Eric. At 8:28, I can appreciate the “Reverse Scotty” maneuver.
DOT pre and post trip inspections. That brings me back to working for a tree company. I did it everyday until my manger and boss took me to their office l told me not to because I kept finding things wrong on the fleet😂
….I left that company a few weeks later
yeah, because it is much better to break down right in the middle of a job, I had a guy come to trim my tree and his truck leaked hydraulic fluid so bad he carried a tray to stick under the truck while using it and still had fluid all over the road when done.
@@ranger178 people can make fun or complain abour the german TÜV but at least they wouldnt allow vehicles like that to be on the road.
This happened when I worked at FedEx.
Hi Eric
One of the thing's you missed is that some vehicles have a transmission brake drum that is either cable or rod operated, it is one part of a vehicle that is overlooked by not only owner's but equally overlooked by mechanics too.
The transmission brake is your hand brake or emergency brake operated by a hand leaver inside the car that in most countries people don't use when they have a automatically operated gearbox vehicle, but in some case's with manual gearbox vehicles.
Here in Britain you are taught to always use the handbrake/ emergency brake when parking or holding the vehicle on a slope to help when powering the vehicle to exit a junction or stop sign, light control or police control junction or if sitting in a flow of traffic that is not moving for any length of time to release pressure of the gearbox, clutch and flywheel / torque convertor and engine bearings.
Excellent suggestion, sorry I missed that.
Great tips!!! Sharp eyes and due diligence prevails. Costs of new and used vehicles are high, so just take care of what you have. Trusted shops or dealers are the key if you can't do it yourself. At least know your vehicle!
Only thing I would suggest. Prior to changing any fluids, make sure that the fill plug comes out. It would not be a good day if you drain the diff, transfer case or even your oil, then not be able to refill them. Good tips for preventative maintenance and visually inspecting for any issues which haven’t made themselves known yet.
Excellent suggestion.
Absolutely!
I've heard of some people who drained their transmission fluid, only to find out their fill plug was seized in place.
When theyre both seized you wont have that problem 😂
True! @@JohnSmith-zt7qo 😂
Thx, am rehabbing my 1988 isuzu pickup.❤❤
This is soo cool, finally we get to see you often which is great😍
Really this channel must continue after soo many years of great content, this gap is just not finishing, hopefully you will keep up the pace👍🏻
Wish you all the Best👍🏻
Awesome combo. Eric and TRQ! Both reliable!
Thanks for the info eric, i got my trq wheel bearings years ago and still going
Thank you Eric!
Glad to see "Classic" ETCG content again. IMO the channel went off the rails with the Fairmont project.
Spray your truck 🛻 with fluid film or pb blaster surface shield every year to keep it from rusting away 😉
Thank Eric The Car Guy and TRQ! 🙂👍
Two things you forgot. 1, grease your driveshafts if they have the zerk fittings...newer trucks might not have them because brands like to lie that their cars have less maitenance and make gimmicks like "lifetime fluids" which arent real. that leads me to number 2, replace your "lifetime fluids". For example, car brands are now making their transmissions with "lifetime" fluids, it is a lie, change the fluid at the proper interval.
Speaking the truth in every video. Love it
Great video Eric. God bless you
Hello Eric I have questions.
1. Do I need to replace the timing belt every 15KM?
2. Do I need to replace the Glow Plugs every 20KM?
3. Do I need to replace the Brake pads every 30KM?
4. What is your preferred tire gauge? When on a long drive? Does it need to be hard or soft when driving on roads?
5. If I were to replace the car coolant. Do I need to purchase the expensive brand or just the generic brand?
6. Do you clean the trucks exhaust pipes?
7. Would you recommend Engine Detailing?
Great video Eric
Good Guide
As a mechanic that works at an independent shop in a semi rural area that sees a lot of trucks, I can say it’s very rare to see a truck more than 5 years old that isn’t run into the ground with worn chopped tires, blown suspension, leaks everything from everywhere, frames rotted in half or very close to it, no oil on the dipstick with no oil change sticker, the inspection takes 2 hours any they only approve the door latch to be repaired lol
Great to see you again 😅
Good morning Eric!
Glad to see you in a shop and with your cool dad truck lol
Good job Erick lets get back to the good days
@ericthecarguy0 is any body win it yet? Good luck to the guy who dit
You are the best I being watching your videos since you started
A brake fluid tester pen is a nice tool to have since brake fluids are hygroscopic.
Not all brake fluids turn to shrek piss when old.
My cars brake fluid was about 10 years old and it was still yellow.
I got the car used at 70,000km replaced brakes at 160,000km.
Now I doubt the first owner rode the brakes to the point they needed replacing at 70,000km.
did you check it for water in the fluid? it can be yellow but full of water all brake fluid absorbs water from the air. unless you live in a desert.@@IIGrayfoxII
Thanks Eric!
Muchas gracias to TRQ
You’re the man! Thank you!
Thank you!
Cool Tanks Bro 😊
I feel deja vu. Is this a repost? Swear I just saw the cardboard thing.. not sure if I dreamt it or saw it on some other social but I could have sworn dad's truck had made it's prodigal return home..
I'll be honest i use to do this for my truck and car inspect it at least once a week but now i dont as much i need to pick that habit back up
Notification squad Have a nice weekend!🔥🔥🔥
Yea! Semi-trucks (tractor trucks) last a long time. They usually get a total engine rebuild at 500,000 miles. A driver that runs coast to coast can rack up a couple a million miles.
I like to wash the car with undercarriage wash to get rid of winter salt and road grit eating away at brake lines gas lines and the frame in general.
Make sure you fluid film your truck 🚚
I am amazed that so many people don't even check their oil.
Thank you to TRQ. This is a great video for the beginners. Do you have any good maintenance tips for using an older (mid 2000s) for towing?
the laugh at the end 🤣
Instead of wasting money on wiper blades you can clean them while hand washing your car and dry them also.
Eric I ask same question to various mechanics and never got the answer. Why Differential don't have drain plug. Is that to force people to check condition of gears when they change oil or there is some other reason?
I love your videos. You explain things on a level that I can understand. I have a question for you if you don't mind. I hate to ask this, because I think I know what the answer is going to be. I recently put a re-ring kit in a 350. While I had it apart, I also upgraded the cam, replaced timing chain, lifters, push rods. and rocker arms. I put it back in the car, and with a little playing with the timing, it fired right up, and sounded pretty good. After a while I noticed what I thought was excessive lifter noise. I removed the valve cover from the drivers side. On number 3 cylinder, exhaust valve, the rocker arm was completely sloppy. I couldn't even tighten it down far enough to take the slop out. Although the lifters are new, do I have a bad lifter, or something worse? Thanks for any help you can give me.
All the preventative measures for the mechanical aspect of the truck are great, however, when they intentionally engineer the frames and bodies to rust away, that alone limits the overall longevity of having the truck.
I was looking for a break change on Acura 1999 TL I could have swore you made a video for that , I can't find it ?
Eric the truck guy
On a site note.
You can do the maintenance on time or even before its due and it still fail due to it being defective by design.
Hi Eric
I have a 2014 Ram 1500 5.7L. Bought it with 60k miles 4.5 years ago. I now have 85,000 miles, don't know if previous owner changed the ATF, should I take the chance of changing it? Trans is running fine, just want to give it maintenance
Do you have any info about the headlights and tailights on this truck?
I don't have a truck but I'm a Eric is the dude
On all trucks today, change oil every 3,000 miles.. oil is cheaper the a motor
Thee coolest mechanic on RUclips,wheres my fkn cake!😏👊✌️🤘😎
I personally believe the owners manuals are a little too soft on maintenance. My personal opinions are oil every 3-5k, trans every 30-60k (depending how aggressively you drive), PSF every 30k, brake fluid every 30k, diffs & t case every 30k. Never listen to claims of “lifetime” fluid and never listen to 10k oil changes. Just my 0.02 as someone who has had many trouble free high mileage vehicles.
My trucks (2 total) don't have a user manual. Is there a place I can download it from by chance please?
That's a lot of rust under that truck. I would paint that with a direct-to-rust black paint.
ERIC, TRANS MANUAL 5 SPD WHAT TYPE OF GM DELCO FLUID s10 4.3
What if my owners manual says lifetime transmission fluid ? Should I really listen to that ?
Yes, but I would research your model to see if there are any specific issues with the system to look out for.
My 2002 Silverado has 267,660 miles and still runs like a scolded dog. It can live forever with the availability of aftermarket parts.
Try my 2003 Silverado 275,000 mile , still riding.
If you drive a truck, get your headlights aligned, please. Those of us in cars will thank you at night instead of telling you you're #1.
I'm curious why you singled out trucks? 99.5% of this can also be applied to cars & SUVs.
SEO
Hi EricTheCarGuy, This is Kristina from ANCEL. I am reaching out to see whether you are interested in reviewing our OBD2 diagnostics scan tool? Looking forward to your reply.
Maybe we need to discuss more details of our collaboration.@ericthecarguy0
Don't rotate your tires-Scotty Kilmer.
"Or supposed to..." 😂 Someone knows a truck driver or two!
I bet you 20k that the air line on the fuel tank blocked or bent …
Or the transfer blocked
Speaking of lights car or truck for god sake people get your lights aligned please. So many vehicles with badly aligned lights blinding the crap out of me. I’m sick of it.
what is with the people who have like 4 or six headlights on the front of their truck and modify wiring to have fog lights and high beams on at same time. chevy pickups look like the family truckster from vacation movie with 4 headlights.
You missed a check! The linkage between the brain 🧠 and steering wheel..
Eric I have 1.6 million on my cat 🐱 engine No rebuild
You are a very good RUclipsr, can I get a comment heart?
Mygmc is been sitting for 4 the battery is dead can I just recharged