Air system leaks and pressure loss
Slow build, a governor that will not cut out, a leak that drains overnight, or a unit that will not release its brakes. Air faults take a truck off the road immediately and are field-repairable more often than not.
Class 7 and 8 iron
Mobile Heavy Duty Mechanic — Prince George
Heavy duty work is a different animal from light vehicle repair: air brakes instead of hydraulic, multi-axle suspensions, high-pressure systems and units that weigh enough to make a mistake permanent. It also happens on ground that was never designed for it.
This page covers heavy duty mobile work in Prince George on highway tractors, log and gravel trucks, trailers, and heavy off-road units that work out of local yards and blocks.
Heavy duty faults that put a unit out of service
Brake performance and adjustment
Dragging brakes, uneven wear, pushrod travel out of spec and hardware issues that turn into a defect on a roadside inspection.
Suspension and driveline problems
Broken springs, worn bushings, air bag failures, u-joint and hanger bearing noise. On log haul roads these take a beating that highway-only units never see.
Electrical faults across truck and trailer
Corroded grounds, chafed harnesses, trailer plug faults and lighting failures. Long units, road salt and constant vibration make these routine work up here.
Do not run it — call it in
- Air pressure drops faster than it builds, or a leak you can hear
- Brakes drag, pull, or a wheel end is running hot
- New clunk, vibration or driveline noise under load
- A trailer that intermittently loses lights or brakes
- Steering play or a change in how the front end tracks
- Any defect that would fail a pre-trip or a roadside inspection
Need a mechanic? We come to you.
Prince George and area. After-hours breakdown calls taken.
How a heavy duty call is handled
Safety comes first with heavy units — whether it is legal and safe to move the truck at all is the first question, not the last.
- 01
Safety check
Is the unit safe to move, or does the repair have to happen where it sits?
- 02
Fault detail
Symptoms, air pressures, codes and what changed before it started.
- 03
On-site diagnosis
Test the system rather than replacing parts on suspicion.
- 04
Repair or route it
Field repair where possible, or a clear plan for getting it to a shop.
Heavy duty work handled on site
Common heavy duty repairs that do not require a hoist or a teardown bay.
- Air system leak diagnosis and repair
- Brake service, adjustment and hardware
- Air bag and suspension component work
- Trailer lighting, brakes and plugs
- Wheel end inspection and service
- Starting, charging and battery banks
- Harness, ground and connector repairs
- Cooling system and hose failures
- Fifth wheel and coupling hardware
- Fluid and filter service in your yard
- Pre-trip defect follow-up
- Diagnostic scans and fault history
Heavy duty: field versus shop
A heavy unit on gravel puts hard limits on what is safe to attempt. Here is roughly where the line sits.
Usually field work
- ·Air and brake system repairs
- ·Suspension and hardware component swaps
- ·Electrical and lighting faults
- ·Cooling, hose and belt failures
- ·Wheel end and hub service
- ·Scheduled maintenance and inspections
Usually a shop job
- ·Clutch, transmission and differential internals
- ·Engine internal repairs and overhauls
- ·Frame repair and structural welding
- ·Work needing a hoist, pit or press
- ·Anything that cannot be safely blocked and supported on site
Heavy duty work in the Prince George region
The truck population around Prince George skews heavy. Log haul running off the bush roads onto Highway 16, chip and gravel trucks, lowbeds moving equipment, highway carriers using the city as a turnaround, and municipal-style fleets that work all winter. Those units accumulate wear faster than a highway-only truck because so much of their life is spent on gravel, ice and grades.
That shows up in the work: suspension hardware that has been pounded, air lines chafed on rough roads, wheel ends that have seen constant water and grit, and electrical faults from vibration and salt. None of that is exotic — it is just the normal service pattern for heavy units in central BC.
Timing matters as much as the fix. Trucks are booked around haul cycles and dispatch where possible, because a repair that costs a load is not really a cheap repair.
Heavy duty mechanic questions
Do you work on trailers as well as the tractor?
Yes. Trailer brakes, lighting, plugs, suspension hardware and wheel ends are common calls, and often the trailer is the actual source of a fault blamed on the truck.
Can a truck be made legal to drive to a shop?
Sometimes. If a defect can be safely repaired or the unit can be made roadworthy to move under its own power, that is often the fastest route. If it cannot be done safely or legally, you will be told that plainly.
Is scheduled heavy duty maintenance done in the yard?
Yes. Service intervals, inspections and small repairs can be handled where the units park, often several in one visit.
Heavy unit down? Get it looked at.
Describe the truck, the fault and where it is sitting in the Prince George area.