{"id":47164,"date":"2025-05-01T18:32:07","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T22:32:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/?p=47164"},"modified":"2025-05-01T18:32:11","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T22:32:11","slug":"pay-attention-to-it-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/2025\/05\/performance-zone\/pay-attention-to-it-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Pay Attention To It All"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Every once in a while, something unusual rolls into the shop, and today was one of those days.  On April 4th, one of our mechanics walked into my office and said, \u201cYou\u2019re going to want to hear this one.\u201d  The truck?  A car hauler.  The problem?  A small air leveling valve.  The damage?  Nearly $13,000!  Here\u2019s what went down.<\/p>

While hauling over the road, the driver had a malfunction in the air leveling valve located at the rear of the truck.  At first glance, this might seem like a minor issue, but that single component failure set off a catastrophic chain of events.  The valve\u2019s failure caused the rear suspension to drop while the truck was in motion.  This drop changed the driveline angle.  Instead of transferring power smoothly to the rears, the driveline began forcefully pushing into the transmission.<\/p>

This pressure didn\u2019t just stop there.  The force continued through the entire drivetrain \u2013 the transmission was pushed forward into the clutch, the clutch then jammed into the clutch fork and pressed into the flywheel and pilot bearing, as well.  Each part along the way took damage, and as any experienced driver or mechanic knows, when the driveline starts applying force where it shouldn\u2019t, you don\u2019t just replace one component \u2013 you replace a whole series of them.  But the story doesn\u2019t end there.<\/p>

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When our team removed the transmission to assess the damage, they found something even more alarming: the transmission cooler had also failed and it was leaking coolant into the transmission oil.  If you\u2019ve ever seen oil contaminated with coolant you know the damage it can do.  In this case, it was bad enough to destroy the transmission bearings and damage the gears.  The result?  Sparkly oil \u2013 that dreaded glitter that tells you the internal components have been ground to dust.<\/p>

So, what ended up having to be replaced?  The transmission, the transmission cooler, the clutch, the clutch fork, the flywheel housing bearings for the fork, the flywheel and the pilot bearing \u2013 it was a complete overhaul.  While the customer could have opted for a cheaper rebuild, he decided to replace everything with brand-new parts.  At that level of damage, he wanted a clean slate and peace of mind.<\/p>

So, what can we learn from this cautionary tale?  First and foremost \u2013 never underestimate a small part.  Something as simple as a leveling valve can lead to thousands of dollars in damage when it fails at the wrong time.  Second \u2013 preventative maintenance matters.  We know truckers are busy.  The job is demanding, and downtime means lost income.  But five minutes of inspection before a trip can be the difference between a profitable load and a $13,000 shop bill.<\/p>

Always check your suspension \u2013 watch for air leaks and listen for unfamiliar noises.  If something feels off, trust your instincts.  A part that looks \u201cgood enough\u201d might not be.  It could be the one thing standing between you and a long, expensive detour.<\/p>

We are not saying that you can prevent every breakdown.  Sometimes, things can go sideways no matter how careful you are.  Trucking is tough, and fluke incidents happen.  But if there\u2019s even a small chance that a pre-trip or regular maintenance can prevent a disaster like this, it\u2019s worth every second.  Whether you\u2019re running local or cross-country, hauling cars or freight, let this be a reminder \u2013 stay sharp, stay ahead of issues, and take nothing for granted.  Because when one small part fails, it can take a whole drivetrain with it!<\/p>

Thanks to my sharp Marketing Manager Jordan Greathouse for providing this month\u2019s informative article.\u00a0 My guys are the best, and they really care about helping you get down the road safely.\u00a0 If you have questions or concerns about your truck, stop by our shop in Saxonburg, PA or call us at (724) 360-4080.\u00a0 To see all our available parts and services, visit www.pittsburghpower.com<\/a> anytime.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Every once in a while, something unusual rolls into the shop, and today was one of those days.  On April 4th, one of our mechanics walked into my office and said, \u201cYou\u2019re going to want to hear this one.\u201d  The truck?  A car hauler.  The problem?  A small air leveling valve.  The damage?  Nearly $13,000! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":47168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-47164","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-performance-zone"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47164"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47169,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47164\/revisions\/47169"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}