General Knowledge: Vehicle Inspection
6 questions in the bank cover this topic. Everything below is drawn from the sources those questions cite.
Sources: 49 CFR 392.7, 49 CFR 396.11
What you need to know
392.7(a) lists twelve items and these are the first three.
The duty is yours and the words are 'is satisfied', so it is not discharged by somebody else's signature.
Service brakes, including trailer brake connections. Parking (hand) brake. Steering mechanism.
49 CFR 392.7
All three, and they share a theme: each is how you either see a hazard or warn somebody about it.
Losing any one makes you less able to avoid a collision, not merely less comfortable.
Tires. Horn. Windshield wiper or wipers. Rear-vision mirror or mirrors.
49 CFR 392.7
All three.
Emergency equipment sits on the same list as the coupling because a breakdown is exactly when you need it, and a coupling failure is one of the ways you get one.
Coupling devices. Wheels and rims. Emergency equipment.
49 CFR 392.7
392.7(b) adds an intermodal list on top of the ordinary one, and it is heavy on connection points because those are what fail on equipment you did not load and have never seen before.
Air line connections, hoses, and couplers —King pin upper coupling device —Rails or support frames —Tie down bolsters —Locking pins, clevises, clamps, or hooks
49 CFR 392.7
392.7(b) is a deeming provision.
Driving away IS the confirmation, so an inspection you did not actually perform still counts as one you certified. That is why the walk-around matters more on a strange chassis than on your own tractor.
Drivers who operate the equipment over the road shall be deemed to have confirmed the following components were in good working order when the driver accepted the equipment
49 CFR 392.7
396.11(a)(1) lists eleven parts and all three are on it.
You only have to prepare the report if you found a defect, but the inspection behind it is not optional.
Service brakes including trailer brake connections; (ii) Parking brake; (iii) Steering mechanism;
49 CFR 396.11
Check yourself
- Which of these must you be satisfied are in good working order before you drive?
- Which of these are on the pre-trip list you must satisfy yourself about?
- Besides brakes and steering, which of these must you check before driving?
- You are preparing to transport intermodal equipment. Which components must you inspect?
- What happens, legally, the moment you drive intermodal equipment away?
- Your driver vehicle inspection report must cover which of these?
Answers are in the practice test for this topic.