Maintenance & Service, Snow Control, Transit, Trucks/Trailers

How to Budget for Fleet Vehicle and Equipment Replacement

April 2017
When it comes to the timely replacement of your fleet vehicles, it’s critical to have an agreed-upon plan – and budget – in place to enable you to keep your fleet running smoothly and without interruption. A set vehicle replacement program can help you guide, and plan for, your vehicle through its entire lifecycle – taking into consideration a full range of criteria when it comes to deciding on whether or not to replace your vehicle, rather than simply looking at a vehicle’s age and mileage guidelines.

the best way for fleet managers to decide when to replace a vehicle? For many, an economic lifecycle analysis of a fleet can be an important planning tool – allowing you to analyze the total ownership and operating costs throughout a vehicle’s life to estimate the best time to replace the vehicle (as well as determine whether a vehicle can remain in service for another year.) Other options include replacing when the cost to repair exceeds a certain set amount, or replacing at an established age and/or mileage criteria. Keep in mind, though, that relying solely on age and/or mileage criteria can result in the possibility that vehicles may be removed from service sooner than they should be even though they may have several years of service life left before incurring major repairs.

With a variety of approaches to planning and budgeting for replacement vehicles (all with certain advantages/disadvantages), it’s important to create and implement a replacement program that:
  1. Accounts for your fleet’s specific needs;
  2. Evaluates more than one factor when deciding the optimal time to replace a vehicle; and
  3. Reviews the vehicle’s condition.
It is also important to remember to plan and execute a preventive fleet maintenance program throughout the duration of each vehicle’s lifecycle – since a preventative maintenance program not only reduces the overall cost of vehicle maintenance and repair and enables vehicles to reach their economic service life, but can also increase the residual value of the vehicle and, most importantly, keep your fleets running smoothly throughout their entire lifecycle.
For more information about developing an economic lifecycle analysis for your fleet in order to help plan for and budget vehicle and equipment replacement, and information about preventive fleet maintenance programs that can enhance the lifecycle of your vehicles, call All Roads anytime at 516-746-0836 or 631-423-6937.