Product Innovations

Replacing Truck Mirrors and Brackets

It’s easy to underestimate the importance of your side mirrors until they need to be replaced. Like all of your truck’s operational systems, your mirror system consists of multiple individual parts that work together to make sure you can have a clear, crisp, wide and unobstructed field of vision while on the road.

Whether you’ve got cracked glass or the whole mirror system is barely holding on by a thread, there are a few things to consider before ordering a replacement mirror.

1. Mirrors On Big Trucks Are A Big Deal

Even though your truck mirrors aren’t responsible for the power or mobility of your vehicle or fleet, they should still be given considerable attention. No matter what size truck you’re driving, there’s only so much you can see with the naked eye. Your mirrors amplify your visibility of not only the back of your truck but also what the drivers on both sides of you are doing. Mirrors are also your first line of defense in making sure you can change lanes safely and anticipate any road situations in which you have to stop or maneuver quickly.

With so much to keep up with in your day-to-day driving and business, it can be easy to just jump in the truck and go without giving a second thought to the clarity, condition and setup of your mirror system, but when it comes to how and what you see, there’s a lot to consider.

What’s The Latest News About Diesel Prices?

Starting in January 2020, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) will reportedly take measures to cut back on sulfur emissions from ships. In the interest of climate change, ships will no longer be able to use fuels with a sulfur content above 0.5 percent — a huge reduction from the current sulfur content of 3.5 percent.

What does that have to do with trucking, you ask? The new fuel that will be used by the maritime industry, also known as ultra-low sulfur diesel, is the same type of diesel used by the trucking industry. With ships currently using about 3.8 million barrels of fuel on a daily basis, the new IMO regulations will create a lot of new demand for the ultra-low sulfur diesel, which could potentially have a major impact on fuel prices.

Where Is The Wheel Hub Of A Truck?

It may be a no-brainer that the wheel hub of your truck is located, you guessed it, on the wheels. But what exactly does the wheel hub consist of and what can you expect from it? For modern trucks and most trucks made after 1997, the wheel hub was standardized to include a mounting assembly, supporting lugs, and a wheel bearing. Many modern vehicles also include an electronic ABS sensor in wheel hubs.

The wheel hub is the only part on your truck that actually secures the wheels to the vehicle, so even though it’s easy to forget about your hubs until something goes wrong, an 80,000-pound commercial vehicle can’t take the risk of a wheel hub blowing out on the road.

Fall: A Welcome Reprieve For Truck Drivers

It’s finally September, and in addition to getting a break from the tropical storms and annual CVSA inspection events, truck drivers can now also enjoy a reprieve from the heat with Fall weather coming. While you’ve probably had the air conditioning on full blast for the past few months, you can now give your heating and cooling system a break as temperatures start to drop.

What is an Orifice Tube?

Like most of the systems in your truck or fleet, the heating and cooling system is comprised of a complicated network of parts and components that all work together for the same goal — to make sure the temperature in your cabin stays exactly as hot or cold as you want it. The success of this system depends on the performance of every single part from the blower motor to the O-rings.

Because this system is so intricate, it can be easy to not understand everything about how it works. As long as that fresh, cold blast of AC comes on when you turn the truck on, that’s usually all that matters. But it’s also important to gain a better understanding of the small heroes inside your heating and cooling system, such as the orifice tube.