PM checklist
Monthly Truck Maintenance Checklist
Monthly reviews help catch trends that daily checks miss, especially tire wear, fluid seepage, battery weakness, and deferred defects.
If this checklist creates repair items, record them in the maintenance log template and use the PM schedule generator to plan the next due mileage.
Printable Checklist
| Item | What to check | Why it matters | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trend tire readings | Compare tread depth and pressure by position against last month. | Slow wear patterns are easier to catch in monthly comparisons. | Flag steer tire wear early. |
| Battery and charging review | Check battery age, terminals, cables, hold-downs, charging voltage, and jump-start history. | Starting problems often build gradually. | Prioritize before winter. |
| Fluid consumption | Review oil, coolant, DEF, and power steering additions since the last review. | Repeated top-offs are maintenance data. | Separate seepage from active leaks. |
| Open defects | Review driver notes, inspection defects, shop recommendations, and deferred work. | Small fleets lose track of deferred items quickly. | Assign owner and target date. |
| PM due status | Compare current odometer to PM, oil, DPF, tire rotation, and annual inspection targets. | Monthly review turns mileage into action. | Schedule before dispatch pressure peaks. |
How Often to Use This Checklist
Use once per month for each unit, or more often for high-mileage equipment.
Common Mistakes
- Checking boxes without writing mileage, unit number, defect notes, and follow-up status.
- Treating a visual walkaround as a qualified mechanical inspection.
- Skipping records for small defects that later become repeated repair issues.
- Filing paper logs where drivers, dispatch, and maintenance cannot retrieve them quickly.
Records to Keep
- Completed checklist with date, odometer, driver or inspector name, and unit number.
- Defect correction notes, invoices, parts receipts, and photos when useful.
- PM due mileage, next inspection target, and any out-of-service decision notes.
Use the print button to print the checklist or save it as a PDF from the browser.
Related resources
Sources and Methodology
- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, Part 393 - Equipment safety rules used as a reference point for inspection-sensitive systems such as brakes, lamps, coupling devices, and tires.
- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, Part 396 - Maintenance, inspection, repair, and recordkeeping requirements for motor carriers.
- Driver Vehicle Inspection Reports and Roadside Inspection Basics - Public FMCSA material used for inspection and recordkeeping context.