Driver guides
Guides for Drivers & Dispatchers
Straight, practical information for the moments that matter: when the truck quits, when an inspector is walking around it, and when a warning light won’t go away.
Broke Down? What to Do
Getting off the road, where the triangles go, what to tell dispatch, and waiting safely.
Read the guideDOT Out-of-Service Criteria
The brake, tire, light, and suspension defects that park trucks at roadside inspections.
Read the guideDPF Regens on the Roadside
Passive, active, and parked regens — what the lights mean and when a roadside regen works.
Read the guideAir Leak Troubleshooting
The leak-down test, common leak points on tractors and trailers, and when to stop driving.
Read the guideCalifornia Exhaust & Emissions Laws
Clean Truck Check, the Drayage Truck Registry, the Clean Truck Fund rate, and the law on DPF deletes.
Read the guideWritten for the roads around the harbor
These guides answer the questions drivers and dispatchers ask most: what to do in the first ten minutes after a breakdown, which defects will get a truck placed out of service at a roadside inspection, whether a DPF regen can be done on the shoulder, how to track down an air leak, and what California’s exhaust and emissions rules actually require of a working truck.
Each one is written with this market in mind — gate-queue idling, pool chassis, the Vincent Thomas and Schuyler Heim bridges where there is nowhere to stop, the pavement on the 710, and CARB enforcement that applies whether or not your truck is registered in California.
They’re general information, not a substitute for your carrier’s procedures or the current FMCSA, CVSA, and CARB rules. When a truck needs hands-on help, see our mobile repair services or call dispatch any time at (562) 261-8946.