Last updated October 2026
Editorial policy
Our guides exist because maintenance and money are tied together in trucking: a truck that is down earns nothing, and a repair bill comes out of the loads. We write for owner-operators and small fleets running 26 ft box trucks and larger. This page explains how those pages are researched, written and kept current.
Who writes the guides
Guides, references, tools and compliance pages are written under the byline of Norman Ford. We only publish biographical details about the author that we can stand behind; you will not find invented credentials or claimed experience. More about the desk is on our about page.
Where facts come from
We start from primary sources: federal regulations, CVSA criteria, makers' published specifications and service information, tire makers' data, publicly summarized industry recommended practices and published research. Every specific value, such as a limit, interval or capacity, shows its source and the month we checked it, or is labeled "OEM spec" when it varies by maker.
SOURCE LEGEND
- 49 CFR
- Federal motor carrier safety regulations, cited by section, such as 49 CFR 393.75 for tire tread depth.
- CVSA
- Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance out-of-service criteria, the standard roadside inspectors use.
- OEM spec
- The vehicle, engine or component maker's published figure. Where values vary by model, we say so and point you to your manual.
- ATRI
- American Transportation Research Institute research on operating costs, cited by report year.
Source: 49 CFR 393.75, checked October 2026
Fault code pages
Fault code descriptions are written in our own words and checked against public maker documentation. The failure mode identifier (FMI) meanings follow the industry standard. Codes that are specific to one maker are labeled as proprietary, and causes are listed as possibilities to check, never as a diagnosis.
Safety and the law
Repair guides tell you where to stop and use a qualified technician. We never explain how to remove or defeat emissions equipment; we explain the law instead. Examples, such as a sample week or a sample load, are labeled as examples.
Dates, updates and corrections
Each page shows when it was last updated. We review pages when rules or published specs change. If you spot an error, send it through our contact page with the topic set to a correction. We fix confirmed errors and update the date. When a correction changes a number that a tool uses, we update the tool at the same time.
Tools and calculators
Our tools show the formula behind every result in a "Show the math" panel, and defaults that are examples are labeled as examples. Legal limits in checkers, such as tread depth and brake stroke, come from the cited regulation. Where a tool relies on an assumption, such as a rule of thumb for fuel economy, the assumption is editable and labeled.
Partners
Partner offers appear only where they fit the reader, and are always marked. Our disclosure lists every relationship and what we may earn.
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