Utility Fleet Maintenance Woes

Keith Browning · February 29, 2020

It appears that PSE&G in NJ has no clue how to maintain their fleet. This has been going on for years but recently we have had 4 trucks on our lot with low mileage failed engines with high engine hours at the same time. Two Dodge 5500's with blown Cummins 6.7L, A F550 with a bad 6.8L that the right camshaft walked so far forward it ground the CMP sensor and a Transit with a knocking 3.7L. All engines are sludged. You explain about maintenance requirements and engine hours it's like you are speaking a different language. These vehicles are coming from three different locations so it must be a corporate thing. And you wonder why your utility charges are so high? I also had a City of Trenton F750 with a clogged CCV filter and failed turbocharger and an exhaust aftertreatment system full of oil... 4900 hours and four oil changes. NJNG with medium duty trucks, 3-4 years old, over 50,000 miles and over 3000 engine hours and the factory Cummins filters still on the engine covered in Red engine paint and rust. Same scenario. I just don't get it.

Bruce Amacker · March 1, 2020

Fleets are no different than any other customer, some know/do what they should and some don't. Doing primarily fleet training for the last 20+ years I've seen it all, from the good fleets to the ones who pay us to train but won't change an air filter until it's a no-start. (One fleet we've done several classes at has had multiple units towed to the dealer for clogged air filters) Many times it's not the fleet but the local manager, I've seen dramatic differences within the same fleet but at a different district. I've also seen where budget cuts eliminated all PM in a school bus fleet because they could only spend money on getting them to pass the annual safety inspections. I mean NO PM- no oil changes, do nothing unless it's safety related.

Yep, I've seen IH engines with 40K and blue filters. One of our local news channels looked at the CPD records to find some cars had 3 oil changes in nearly 200k. This was a budget problem again.

Some fleet "managers" still do LOFs by miles when the average MPH was 2.7 when we checked it, and they didn't understand why they were losing so many engines (1400ish hours between services)

Shit happens.

Fredsvt · March 4, 2020

Keith, it's not just utility fleets. Environmental companies that do a lot of water sampling, just got a 2015 F150 3.5 non-turbo, just over 100k on the odo, 7700 total hrs, 4700 idle hours.

Also, some DIY customers are just plain, well, ignorant. Just finished brakes on a 2012 F150 5.0, owner complained of "oil leak". No leak, when he changed filter in December, he never attempted to clean around the filter, not that it's easy, so there's oil all over the rack, frt diff and forward cross member. But, the biggie, I just added 4.5 quarts of oil to the motor. When asked how much oil he puts in it at changes, he states, "5 like all V8s take". UGH.

Keith Browning · March 5, 2020

I know Fred, there is a lot of ignorance out there. I just find it really odd that our utility companies that have been operating for decades can't properly maintain their fleets. And don't tell me that is has to do with budgeting because a few years of replacing expensive engines should change that thinking. At least you would think. PSE&G in the last 6 months has had to fork over nearly $80K for repairs due to insufficient maintenance. $80K would pay for a LOT of oil changes. The really sad part is, YOU AND I are paying for it! The flip side is many items on these truck that are over serviced. They always seem to have new brakes and tires don't they.

The other part of the equation is the drivers. They either ignore the mileage, the engine hour meters or the built in maintenance messages on the dash. I have heard that some drivers simply don't bring them in as some are permitted to take the trucks/vans home and commute with them and it's too much of an inconvenience. What? Why is that shit permitted? And in any normal company they would be reprimanded for turning off the warnings and failing to have the trucks serviced. Buuuuut we do have those fucking unions protecting these dolts. Unions - protecting the stupid, enabling the greedy and promoting mediocrity.

Fredsvt · March 5, 2020

Stupidity isn't just a union issue, I'm no union fan, but stupid seems to be contagious these days. I'm honestly surprised about NJNG as their headquarters are about 3 miles from our shop. I see them doing some kinds of work on their trucks in the garage there, but I guess not enough.

The enviro company I see routinely, they had a guy that handled the fleet, and went through ARI (sometimes good, and bad). They let him go, and the trucks are going anywhere if anywhere, they nearly have to die before they get even a regular service. For that fleet, the intervals are set by ARI at 3 mo/4k, regardless of engine, vehicle and usage. Not that we see them on time/mileage.

We are forbidden to do any trans/transfer case or axle fluid changes, even on 6.7 trucks running severely overweight and over driven (fast). Spark plug changes are forbidden unless they cause a driveability issue, and ONLY the affected cylinder. Their reasoning is, if the vehicles makes it to 200k, they dispose of it anyway. All of their ecoboost 3.5 F150s are gone prematurely, due to turbo failures and oil and coolant leaks, from the excessive hours. Repairs on them were refused by ARI or the company.

The '15 F150 I mentioned the hours on, it came in with "no heat and excessive blower motor noise". Well, no coolant, and the radiator fans at hurricane force do tend to be noisy. Had it not been cold, the driver would have kept going. These are the same dolts that are GIVEN a code reader/clearer, when a check engine light causes a de-rate, they repeatedly clear the codes to keep the trucks moving. A few years ago, they had 4 utility body F350s, 6.4, guy came in, with it coding cooling system performance, and leaking rad. He couldn't leave it, I filled it, he went up the turnpike clearing codes as it derated, after about half a dozen clearings, the motor let go, rather spectacularly.

They blew the motors in the other 3, for various reasons, all clearing codes with their "readers".

I'm sure we pay for this, when the gov't foots the bills for clean ups.

lmorris · March 11, 2020

I should have taken a picture...I actually had a fleet truck in for an inspection that had the service interval sticker in engine hours. Quite a surprise to see. They are a rare breed around here as well. Most trucks have just as much, if not more, idle time time compared to drive time. And they come in over due for services based on mileage only. We have one fleet that I have personally replaced 3 engines on. All gas.

DieselD · March 31, 2020

This is why I have a job!

Managing a fleet of about 190 units currently and I can confirm even with gps tracking mileage, hrs, and upcoming services they still get ignored by the local area managers until I call to check up and ask about it or it slips through the cracks. When I started with the company our trucks barely made 3-4yrs and 100k miles. Today we have increased that to 7-8yr average and 300k miles. I spent countless hrs educating our managers and service techs on proper maintenance, importance of engine hours vs mileage, writing pdf service charts etc. Its paid off in the end but it takes someone educating and maintaining it on a daily basis. We only only do repairs locally and everything in other locations goes offsite for service unless its a major repair then it comes back to us for repair.