Best way to study for your Pre Trip test?

I rent a lot of cars. And get looks all around when I do a walk around and pop the hood. Not so much for the walk around, because you have to make sure you don’t get charged for the damage.

But pulling that hood? Yup, that confuses them.

 

Find a good checklist, like in your state CDL manual, and break it into "bite-size chunks" and memorize it. Watch one of the good pre-trip videos on YouTube hitting pause/play as necessary. Do these 2 things at the same time, or on a real truck if you have one to practice on.

I used to teach people how to pass what are essentially memory tests on technical subjects. The key is to memorize small bits as one thing, not the whole thing at once. Most children learn the alphabet with a song that has natural breaks. You say the first few letters, then the next few letters,, etc. As adults, that's how they repeat the aphabet, in those grouped letters.

So the pre-trip will re-use the same phrase over and over after each item (cracked, bent, broken, leaking, etc). You practice that phrase until the whole phrase is one memory item. Then the pre-trip usually starts at one place on the truck and you inspect the items there, memorize those few items. Then you recite item A then say the repeating phrase. Say Item B, then the repeating phrase. Say item C, and the repeating phrase. Think of it more like memorizing a long song. You don't have to know everything about every item and how, when or where it's used in real life, you just have to say the item and the phrase the examiner and CDL test require.

You memorize the pre-trip test items to pass the CDL exam. Don't confuse government tests for real life.

 

Gives you a chance to check out the battery and maybe swap it out with an old one before you turn the car back in.......huh?

 

I should have done that on my most recent one lol. Turned it in and the guy told me I was the last one driving it. It was going to be sold. The tires and rims would have fit mine

I couldn’t figure out how to operate half the features it had. Sweet ride.

 

I still to this day examine the vehicle of the ex. We have warded off potential for some serious issues by a simple pretrip before it got really bad somewhere far from home.

I am not examining mine so much, Am working on outright replacement. It's cheaper to pay cash for a replacement vehicle than to try and chase all the bigger issues with mine currently.

 

Best bet is to find a good CDL checklist. Memorize the parts on the vehicle and walk around the same every time.

Off the top of my head a few things the testers like to hear is after you talk about oil... “oil is at capacity no leaks” coolant is at capacity no leaks..
another is when looking at the frame, steering, wheels you say “no cracks or aftermarket welds”

Always point out the cotter keys on steering components as well.

 

Yup I get all sorts of strange looks from the wife when I try to open the hood like a freightliner. Grin

 

The "interwebs" is a great source of information. There are many good videos on YouTube or Vimeo. Just do a search. I learned how to change a fuel filter, tarp a flatbed load, replace an alternator, and more by watching videos.

 

I'm a visual kind of person and need to see things in order to remember them. So when I went to CDL school, I took pictures of all of the parts of the truck that were involved with the pre-trip. Then I printed the pictures out, numbered each thing I needed to remember in the order I needed to remember them. I also took a video on my cell phone of my instructor doing the pre-trip so I could refer to it. One of the instructors saw me studying my pictures and asked if he could copy them. That was a few years ago, and they still hand out my pictures to all of their students to study with.

I aced the pre-trip part of the test first try.

 

lol a driving school works... google for a good check list, approach a trucker and ask if they mind you pretriping their truck for them.