failed pretrip again

[golfhobo]

I cant believe it I failed my pretrip again I passed driving and skills but he said that I did not say that the lights were not cracked. my ohio cdl book does not tell me to say that just that they are working that cost me 4 points I got 63 needed 67 to pass I got the shaft

I don't see how you think you got the shaft. You missed 37 points.

Look at this way. All of the items you are checking are safety items many which can cost you or someone else's life. To be blunt there is no excuse to ever miss a safety item.

I've seen to many "drivers" do a half-***** pretrip in my years of driving. There just isn't an excuse. Second thing I see is schools are not teaching proper pre/post trip inspections.

A driver should be able to quote from memory every item on the pre/post inspections. And understand and be able to explain why it is important.

Now off my soap box.

kc0iv

Well.... I gotta agree with KC on THIS one! If I were in charge, 67 would NEVER pass! So you are saying you missed by 4 points being 2/3rds PREPARED!! :shock:

On the other hand, I don't think you should have been penalized for not saying your lights weren't CRACKED! I've never heard of this! Who cares if the plastic shield over the light is cracked or not? What matters is whether or not the light is WORKING!

I also don't really agree with the "catchall" phrases that some were taught. Saying an airline has no illegal weld is ridiculous, and only tells ME that you may not REALLY know what could be wrong with it when checking it!

Although I agree that a student should MEMORIZE the pretrip AND be able to recite it WITHOUT looking at the truck, I say it is best that you LEARN the parts of the truck, and what can go wrong with them. Use "cracked" when something can BE cracked, and illegal weld only when something could BE welded.

Break the truck (and therefore the pretrip) into segments or "systems," and memorize those segments. Then show that you UNDERSTAND what you are looking for in each segment.

I think Bengalman was ROBBED on those 4 points, terminology shouldn't be the deciding factor, but I wonder about the OTHER 33 "points." And PLEASE change your thinking concerning how "big a deal" the pretrip is!

I think it is highly possible, though, that the examiner felt he HAD to find a way to deduct those 4 points, because you had proven you couldn't do a COMPLETE pre-trip, but (because the bar was set too low,) you were "in danger" of PASSING!

[gmh]

if you knew an airline didnt allow their pilots and mechanics to use a checklist, but made them check the plane by memory, would you fly with them? I wouldnt..

A buddy of mine got his cdl a few years ago. He was also a pilot (among about a dozen other things) and made this exact same argument. It got him nowhere with anybody, and he got to memorize it just like the rest of us.

[gmh]

Break the truck (and therefore the pretrip) into segments or "systems," and memorize those segments. Then show that you UNDERSTAND what you are looking for in each segment.

That's what we did at my school for the pretrip:

• Engine compartment and steering axle
  Driver's side of cab, catwalk, fifth wheel, and drive axles
  Trailer, passenger side
  Lights
  Interior and air brake (and put a double check next to the air brake while you are at it)

Not sure, but this might even be how the score sheet in Maryland is broken down. I thought about looking at my scores and scoresheet, but barely passing gets you the same CDL as a perfect score. Besides, I never looked at my scoresheet for motorcycles or automobiles either

[ICS]

In NY... I know NY is messed up. We have to walk all the way around the truck doing the commentary on tires, wheel, stickers, reflectors, lights, 5th wheel, air lines, leaks, all that standard stuff. Have the examiner check our brake lights and turn signal at the trailer. then get in and do the static brake check and all the interior safety stuff and 50 foot brake check. All in 10 mins.

[gmh]

In NY... I know NY is messed up. We have to walk all the way around the truck doing the commentary on tires, wheel, stickers, reflectors, lights, 5th wheel, air lines, leaks, all that standard stuff. Have the examiner check our brake lights and turn signal at the trailer. then get in and do the static brake check and all the interior safety stuff and 50 foot brake check. All in 10 mins.

In ten minutes? It's not physically possible to do what I had to do in 10 minutes. Best I could do with doing all the stuff we did in MD was about 26 minutes. Hell, the brake checking took a minimum of about six minutes by itself (governor cut out, warnings, knob pop, build up rate, parking brake test(s) and 50 ft). (Yeah, it's more than what is strictly required, but not that much)

You doing underhood stuff, brakes and suspension?

[Fredog]

if you knew an airline didnt allow their pilots and mechanics to use a checklist, but made them check the plane by memory, would you fly with them? I wouldnt..

A buddy of mine got his cdl a few years ago. He was also a pilot (among about a dozen other things) and made this exact same argument. It got him nowhere with anybody, and he got to memorize it just like the rest of us.

well. of course, this assinine rule was made by our government, the same people who know more than you about when you are tired and how long you need to rest

[Cluggy619]

I cant believe it I failed my pretrip again I passed driving and skills but he said that I did not say that the lights were not cracked. my ohio cdl book does not tell me to say that just that they are working that cost me 4 points I got 63 needed 67 to pass I got the shaft

I don't see how you think you got the shaft. You missed 37 points.

Look at this way. All of the items you are checking are safety items many which can cost you or someone else's life. To be blunt there is no excuse to ever miss a safety item.

I've seen to many "drivers" do a half-***** pretrip in my years of driving. There just isn't an excuse. Second thing I see is schools are not teaching proper pre/post trip inspections.

A driver should be able to quote from memory every item on the pre/post inspections. And understand and be able to explain why it is important.

Now off my soap box.

kc0iv

He's right.

Maybe truck driving isn't the job for you. Running down the road with a 80,000 lbs worth of truck is a lot of responsibility. The pretrip is a very basic thing to learn. Missing 37 points shows lack of interest in my book.

Good luck with future test.

[ICS]

In NY... I know NY is messed up. We have to walk all the way around the truck doing the commentary on tires, wheel, stickers, reflectors, lights, 5th wheel, air lines, leaks, all that standard stuff. Have the examiner check our brake lights and turn signal at the trailer. then get in and do the static brake check and all the interior safety stuff and 50 foot brake check. All in 10 mins.

In ten minutes? It's not physically possible to do what I had to do in 10 minutes. Best I could do with doing all the stuff we did in MD was about 26 minutes. Hell, the brake checking took a minimum of about six minutes by itself (governor cut out, warnings, knob pop, build up rate, parking brake test(s) and 50 ft). (Yeah, it's more than what is strictly required, but not that much)

You doing underhood stuff, brakes and suspension?

We don't have to do under the hood... we have to do the warning and knob pop and all that, not absolutely sure what you mean by governor cut out, other than just making sure your air is at the operating range... So literally we run around the truck grabbing parts, calling stuff out we are looking and jump in the truck and get the inside done and roll.

[gmh]

We don't have to do under the hood... we have to do the warning and knob pop and all that, not absolutely sure what you mean by governor cut out, other than just making sure your air is at the operating range... So literally we run around the truck grabbing parts, calling stuff out we are looking and jump in the truck and get the inside done and roll.

Air pressure doesn't go too high is what I mean with governor cut out.

One thing I found is you can do the full 45 minute MD inspection in about 15 mins if you don't have to actually say it.