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Why date and distance both matter
A truck on long-haul routes can reach its service distance in a few weeks, while a van that mostly waits at the depot may hit the date limit first. Tracking only one of them means some vehicles are always serviced late.
Set each service with a date interval and a kilometre interval, and treat the vehicle as due when either one is reached. Follow the manufacturer's manual for the actual intervals — they vary by engine, load and model.
Flag what is due soon, not just what is overdue
A list of overdue vehicles is already too late. Use a “due soon” window — for example 30 days or 2,000 km before the service — so you can book a workshop slot without pulling a busy vehicle off a job.
What to check regularly
Engine oil and filters, brakes, tyres (pressure, tread and condition), coolant, batteries, lights, wipers and air-conditioning, plus greasing and other checks your vehicle's manual lists.
Heat is hard on vehicles in both the UAE and Pakistan: tyres, batteries and cooling systems wear out faster in summer, so check them more often from May to September.
Daily driver checks
A two-minute walk-around before each shift — tyres, lights, leaks, mirrors and warning lights on the dashboard — catches many problems before they become breakdowns on the road.
Keep the history and the cost
Record every job with the date, odometer reading, workshop, work done and cost. Over a year this shows which vehicles are becoming expensive to keep and gives a buyer a full service record when you sell.
Track downtime too — the days each vehicle spends off the road. A cheap repair that keeps a truck idle for a week can cost more in lost trips than the repair itself.
Don't forget the paperwork
Registration, insurance, fitness certificates and route permits have their own expiry dates. A vehicle in perfect mechanical condition still can't legally work if its papers have lapsed.