ATA's Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) Experienced Component Service Life Official Survey (October 2025)

Twenty-eight TMC fleet members responded to TMC’s “Experienced Component Service Life Survey,” which was administered in October and November 2025. The purpose of the follow-up to the Council’s original April/ May 2025 study was to aid in establishing baseline for fleet-experienced service life for selected key components used in commercial vehicle applications. The survey was based on VMRS Code Key 33 (Component Codes), making it easier to aggregate fleet data. Participants were asked to provide experienced service life averages for 30 specific parts often used in heavy-duty commercial vehicle applications.

Given the sample sizes in this second survey were greater than those obtained in the first, it would appear that greater confidence could be placed on the results of this second effort as compared to the original study. Generally, this second study confirms most of the parts sampled appear to fall short of meeting fleet expectations for realized as opposed to anticipated service life, with four notable exceptions. Accordingly, it would appear that fleet managers might be well advised to consider working with their component and/or vehicle supplier/manufacturer to improve specifications or better match equipment to the intended application experienced to achieve the service life expectations they set for these particular components. Additional research in this area with a larger sample size of respondents continues to be warranted and would be even more instructive.