Full STEAM Ahead
I really want to blog.... I really, really do. In fact, my intentions were to get a few saved up posts published tonight for you to read. Pretty good stuff, actually.
But, after spending more than an hour and a half sitting in a back-up on 81 due to an accident, and then another hour or so on the shoulder of I-78....
Well, you get the idea. I am too pooped and with my first delivery scheduled tomorrow morning in the Bronx, I really need to de-stress and get some sleep
Oh, yeah, sitting on the shoulder of Interstate 78, you ask.
The truck I am driving this week has been written up for the past 5 weeks for a coolant leak. This is not my beloved Frankentruck. This is a spare. The write-ups were addressed by simply topping off the fluid. I drove this truck last week and also requested the repair. I was informed that the only thing wrong with this truck was the coolant sensor..
Oh yeah? Then why do I actually have to add coolant?
So, after about 600 miles into my trip, the sensor begins to indicate that my fluid levels are low. By 850 miles, the levels have dropped to critical and the engine shut down. I was able to coast to a stop on the shoulder where I let the old boy cool off as I searched for his malfunction. I checked clamps, fittings and hoses. Could not find the source of the leak as everything was wet, everything was stained, EVERYTHING !! I topped him off and proceeded to my destination, but the sensor was triggered again. This time I was able to get into a rest area and do a more thorough search.
Thanks to a quick phone call, it was suggested to me that perhaps the fill cap itself was stripped out because the moisture seemed to be coming from the top.... Ah ha!! So after donning a roll of electricians tape and wrapping the mouth of the reservoir, I was able to continue forward on my journey. I managed to use the tape just as a plumber would by insulating the threads of the cap... You would have thought that after 5 weeks, the mechanics would have figured that one out, but they insist that it must be coming from the overflow tube (where there are no signs of leakage). That is after trying to convince me that it is only a sensor problem.
This saved the day and hopefully my week, but I will be sure to let the Stooges know that the sensor is leaking again.... as if....LOL
You know, today was not so bad. Minor roadside repairs are and will always be a part of my job. But the level of frustration I feel when something like this happens is another story. This truck was written up for the leak five weeks in a row.. I should never have had to made the repair on the side of the Interstate !! But, then I would have not been able to make my deliveries either...
I am committed....or maybe I should be committed...
7 comments:
Get a new cap and drive a new truck under it? Don't we all wish that would happen?
I'm fairly fortunate in that my company is more concerned about reliable and consistent delivery of their products. If they didn't care about the delivery process, they'd put it out for bid and save a bunch of money - but they'd lose their rep. So, they're pretty fanatical about keeping all the trucks (even the ones in the back line) up and ready to go without drama.
Our drivers have to service their rides, and if they want the hours to work on mechanical issues - they can do that, too. Major stuff I leave to our mechanic.
Fortunately, I don't have to mess with the three stooges anymore. I pay for service now, but I get good service.
Sounds like you might be a victim of soicumstanc.
Jeffro I am actually surprised at how much our mechanics let slide. But I also think that we, the drivers, have personally secured out reputation by always doing what we have to, to get the delivery made... So there is no pressure placed on the mechanics. I miss driving for the O/O sometimes, because I never had to worry about maintenance with that Pete.
Lynn, somethings will never change !!
Aaron, Certainly...nyuck, nyuck, nyuck
Yeah, I'm in the same boat, re, truck, as well. Problem is not a coolant; more like the turbo and maybe the fuel injectors in the engine is slowly going out. It's been over a month and our boss keeps telling us to be patience but patience IS wearing thin. Not only that, the spare truck we have was taken, not borrowed, but taken to use on another job. The other driver and I have come up with an idea: taking it out of service isn't the answer; our boss will get another doofus to drive it so we'll let the engine kill itself and then have it towed to the shop where it'll get the attention it needs and then take back our spare truck in the meantime. Sometimes drastic steps have to be taken.
Ain't it grand? Stooges occur the world over .... it isn't something peculiar to the grand ol' U S of A!!!
The company for whom I work had one such genius. Okay ... so we only have 25 trucks (which, Downunder, is a medium sized specialised fleet). We had 1 X full time, company employed spanner man and one self employed spanner man who supplemented his efforts.
To cut a long story short, he was booking down much work and doing bugger all.
He heard there was an opening in the mines and departed to make his fame and fortune. Us drivers suspect that his new employers will be keep to close that opening right on top of his head right smart - rart thar.
Anyway (without taking over your post, little one), since said Stooge's departure, the boss has suddenly discovered what he WASN'T doing (but charging him for).
Yup! It happens everywhere!
Update: Our truck finally broke down 30 minutes after leaving our yard (No it wasn't sabotage) and us drivers were right: the turbo gave out and so it other little things that contributed to the problem. We (as in me, another fellow and a veteran mechanic with 50 years experience combined)suggested to get back the spare truck to use while the other truck was in the shop. His response was to take the truck in the shop to get fixed, but notget the spare truck 'cause it was being used. Another employee with eight years experience told him the same thing we mentioned before and the boss says to get the spare truck back. Our boss is definitely a Stooge; a brain-dead Stooge.
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