The only thing worse than a broken truck part is further damage done in the repair shop. To keep repair professionals safe, aide in faster diagnosis, and prevent unnecessary mistakes on their behalf, Mitchell 1 has shared a few tips and reminders on its ShopConnection Blog.
For both veteran repairmen working with new materials and those just learning the tricks of the trade, greater awareness of these warnings and cautions regarding service information can help prevent future headaches.
But associate product manager Jake Schell said that the cautions and warnings are often are skimmed or skipped completely because of the sheer volume and time commitment.“And sometimes — well maybe often — they get skipped over in order to get right to the service information,” he said. “Granted, many warnings are well known, and it just takes a quick glance to be reminded of a potential danger. However, every once in a while there will be a warning that comes as a surprise.”
Intermittent electrical faults can provide an unexpected challenge because there are multiple potential culprits, Schell wrote in Tips for Diagnosing Intermittent Electrical Issues.
“Now, I can’t tell where every vibration may originate, and I don’t have some magic formula to solve it,” he said. “However, an awareness that vibration can be a problem gives the tech one more thing to look for.”
Knowledge of a variety of potential causes can help a repair professional diagnose the problem more quickly and efficiently, Schell explains.
This not only saves time, but avoids cost associated with creating further damage to the truck, Schell wrote in Tricky Transmission Leak Detection. “In general, the simplest approach is to be aware of all the potential leak points in surrounding components.”
Oftentimes, the error is greater for technicians than for the vehicle.
The example Schell gives pertains to inspecting a faulty seal. The safety information notes the importance of gloves, but without reading the warning, a technician may proceed without the necessary protection and become severely burned.
“A few seconds of reading often mundane material is a small pay off for not getting injured,” Schell wrote in Safety First: Pay Attention to Warnings and Cautions.
This warning, among many others, is included in Mitchell 1’s TruckSeries truck repair information software.
