TECHNICIAN'S TIPS
Page 100
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David Fussell, seen here priming a new fuel filter, has spent much of his working life looking after Daf and Leyland Daf trucks. He previously worked at Daf's SVO Department in Colchester working on a variety of one-off projects. He's been working at Thame for the past four and a half years and is responsible, among other things, for the maintenance of the press and demonstrator fleet vehicles.
Having worked on Dafs since 1973, Fussell has seen many changes in the products and considers the 75 Series to be a particularly trouble-free machine.
1 Under the front panel on the offside of the vehicle you'll find the clutch booster fluid reservoir bottle. Fussell's advice is to ignore the maximum level mark and to keep the fluid to the "FILL LEVEL" mark. Also make sure drivers don't get the two fillers either side of the radiator confused. The blue is for the coolant, the red for oil Tucked away on the nearside is the all-black windscreen washer reservoir filler—fill it slowly or it will blow back.
2 It's vital to keep the cab hinge pins greased because if they dry out premature wear and the dreaded 'cab knock' will be the certain result. The greasing points are tucked away and easily overlooked (from March 1994 the 75Series has been equipped with automatic chassis lubrication as standard). While at the front of the vehicle, check also for dirt build-up behind the spray suppression panels, under the front wings. Pressure From this can cause the plastic wings to crack. As it is legal to run without spray suppression on tippers, the easiest solution is to take them off. 3 The alternator mounting bolts can cause real problems if allowed to work loose. In extreme cases the nut will sheer off and the bolt will work its way forward until it eventually fouls the fan belt with expensive consequences. Check these regularly. Also, keep an eye on the intercooler hose clips. If drivers complain of black smoke, loss of power and increased fuel consumption, check these first. 4 Although awkward to get at, the small banjo fuel filter on the inlet side of the priming pump is an important component which must be checked at every service. Because it's so small it doesn't take much to dog it completely and Fussell has known cases where the fuel supply has been cut off for this simple reason. The filter should be removed, cleaned thoroughly and replaced using new washers. When changing the main fuel filter, don't Forget to fill the new canister with fuel (this avoids the need to bleed the system) and lightly lubricate the rubber sealing ring before fitting. Hand-tighten only.
The breathers in the differential cas
ings of the rear axles are another potential problem for the unwary. Especially with tipaers and other vehicles working off-roac., they can become blocked, and the increased pressure will blow the main oil seals. On vehicles used in such rough environments where clogging is a real risk, the breathers should be removed, cleaned and checked at each service. Also, while at the back of the vehicle don't forget to inspect the important load-sensing valve and its linkages (keep clean and lubricated), and the oil level in the rear trunnions of the two-spring bogie. These have a grease nipple as well so don't overlook this either.