True or False: Federal and state inspectors also may inspect your vehicles.
True
Why should you do a vehicle inspection?
Safety is the most important reason.
A vehicle defect found during an inspection could save you problems later.
Federal and state laws require that drivers inspect their vehicles.
What will a Federal or state inspector do if they judge your vehicle to be unsafe?
They will put it “out of service” until it is fixed.
What are the three types of vehicles inspections that you should do?
Pre-trip inspection
During a trip
After-trip inspection and report
What type of inspection should you do during a trip?
- Watch gauges for signs of trouble
- Use your senses to check for problems (look, listen, smell, feel).
- Check critical items when you stop:
- Tires, wheels and rims.
- Brakes.
- Lights and reflectors.
- Brake and electrical connections to trailer.
- Trailer coupling devices.
- Cargo securement devices.
What type of inspection should you do after a trip?
You should do an after-trip inspection at the end of the trip, day, or tour of duty on each vehicle you operated. It may include filling out a vehicle condition report, listing any problems you find. The inspection report helps a motor carrier know when the vehicle needs repairs.
What should you look for during a vehicle inspection?
- Tire problems
- Wheel and rim problems
- Bad brake drum or shoes
- Steering system defects
- Suspension system defects
- Emergency equipment
- Cargo (trucks)
What type of tire problems should you look for?
- Too much or too little air pressure.
- Bad wear (You need at least 4/32-inch tread depth in every major groove on front tires. You need 2/32 inch on other tires. No fabric should show through the tread or sidewall.)
- Cuts or other damage.
- Tread separation.
- Dual tires that come in contact with each other or parts of the vehicle.
- Mismatched sizes.
- Radial and bias-ply tires used together.
- Cut or cracked valve stems.
- Regrooved, recapped, or retreaded tires on the front wheels of a bus. These are prohibited
How much tread should you have on your tires?
You need at least 4/32-inch tread depth in every major groove on front tires. You need 2/32 inch on other tires.
True or False: It is acceptable to use regrooved, recapped, or retreaded tires on the front wheels of a bus if they are all that is available.
False, these are prohibited.
What type of wheel and rim problems should you look for?
- Damaged rims.
- Rust around wheel nuts may mean the nuts are loose–check tightness. After a tire has been changed, stop a short while later and re-check tightness of nuts.
- Missing clamps, spacers, studs, or lugs means danger.
- Mismatched, bent, or cracked lock rings are dangerous.
- Wheels or rims that have had welding repairs are not safe.
What should you do after a tire has been changed?
Stop a short while later and re-check tightness of nuts.
What type of brake problems should you look for?
- Cracked drums.
- Shoes or pads with oil, grease, or brake fluid on them.
- Shoes worn dangerously thin, missing, or broken.
What type of steering system problems should you look for?
- Missing nuts, bolts, cotter keys, or other parts.
- Bent, loose, or broken parts, such as steering column, steering gear box, or tie rods.
- If power steering equipped, check hoses, pumps, and fluid level; check for leaks.
- Steering wheel play of more than 10 degrees (approximately 2 inches movement at the rim of a 20-inch steering wheel) can make it hard to steer.
