No matter if you have a small landscaping business, a rental car business, a trucking company, or a personal fleet of vehicles, routine maintenance is important to managing your fleet. Without proper maintenance, vehicles will break down more frequently and face long-term expensive mechanical issues. Let’s take a closer look at the importance of maintaining your fleet vehicles.
Prevents Costly Downtime
Surely you’ve heard the saying “time is money”. That applies to your fleet. One of the most important reasons to maintain your fleet is to prevent roadside breakdowns and costly downtime. If one of your vehicles breaks down, that means it will not be able to be used for operations. This can delay production or even halt operations completely. You can prevent this from happening by keeping your fleet well-maintained. That way, an auto mechanic can spot issues early on and allow you to schedule repairs around your business needs.
Keeps Drivers Safe
Driver safety is an important aspect of any operation. It’s up to you, the overseer of the fleet, to take all the necessary steps to ensure that the risk of preventable road accidents is reduced. That includes keeping up with every vehicle’s maintenance needs. If you don’t stay up-to-date on the fleet’s maintenance needs, it can lead to things like accidents, breakdowns, injuries, and more.
Lower Fuel Costs
Your fleet is there to help your bottom line. Why would you want to cut into profits by having to put more fuel into the vehicles? That’s exactly what can happen if you don’t keep up with routine fleet maintenance. Simple things like clogged air filters, dirty oil, and improperly inflated tires can significantly increase fuel consumption. If you stay up to date with fleet maintenance and correct all these simple things, it can improve your fleet’s fuel economy by as much as 40%.
Remain Compliant with Regulations
Fleet maintenance is required by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Some of the things they require are:
- Systemic inspection, maintenance, and repair of all motor vehicles subject to its control
- The safe and proper condition of all parts and accessories at all times
- Pushout windows, emergency doors, and emergency door marking lights to be inspected at least every 90 days
If a business fails to adhere to the FMCSA’s regulations, it can result in a hefty fine. So be sure to keep up with fleet maintenance so your business can remain compliant with regulations.
Improve the Longevity of Vehicles
Vehicle maintenance is one of the best ways to make sure your commercial vehicles last as long as possible. Work trucks, SUVs, cars, and vans are put through a lot and as a result, can accelerate their deterioration. Routine maintenance will not only keep your fleet operational but will also ensure that your vehicles will be able to operate longer. This is beneficial for your business since vehicle maintenance is a lot cheaper than replacing vehicles.
Maintain Your Fleet with Pit Shop Auto
The mechanical experts at Pit Shop Auto Repair are here to maintain your fleet. With routine maintenance and convenient repairs, there’s no wonder why so many businesses in Illinois are choosing Pit Shop Auto Repair to be their trusted fleet maintenance provider.
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