When a truck quits, everything behind it stops too: the load, the appointment, the driver’s hours, and sometimes a lane of traffic.
Around Knoxville that can happen in a lot of different settings. It might be the I-40/I-75 stretch through West Knoxville, where traffic runs heavy most of the day and there’s very little room to work. It might be a 5 a.m. no-start at a Strawberry Plains truck stop after a January cold snap, or a derate on I-75 north of Clinton with the Cumberland climb still ahead.
Emergency roadside assistance is the call for a truck that can’t move, or shouldn’t. We send a mobile diesel mechanic to wherever it’s sitting — an interstate shoulder, a truck stop lot, a customer’s dock, or a fenced yard — to diagnose the failure and repair it there when that’s possible. When it isn’t, you’ll hear that plainly on the phone so you can line up a wrecker instead of waiting on a mechanic who can’t help.
Dispatch picks up 24 hours a day, 7 days a week — overnight, on weekends, and on holidays.
What’s included with our Emergency Roadside Assistance
- Air leaks — blown lines, leaking gladhand seals, cracked fittings, and brake chamber failures that keep the spring brakes from releasing
- No-crank and hard-start calls — weak or dead batteries, failed starters, corroded cables, bad grounds, and fuel supply problems
- Blowouts and flats on steer, drive, and trailer positions (see mobile tire service)
- Check-engine lights and derates — codes read with diagnostic software and a straight answer on whether the truck can keep going
- DPF, DEF, and aftertreatment faults, including parked regens when the system will allow one
- Overheating on a climb — snapped belts, burst coolant hoses, fan clutch problems, and low coolant
- Electrical failures — lights out, blown fuses, and damaged pigtails and trailer cords
- Brakes that are dragging, locked, or out of adjustment
- Fuel filter and water separator changes when restriction or gelled fuel is starving the engine
- Jump starts, fuel delivery, and lockouts (see jump start & fuel delivery)
- Temporary repairs that let a truck drive safely to a shop when a full fix isn’t practical on site
What needs a shop instead
A service truck carries a lot of tools and parts, but it isn’t a building with a lift. These jobs almost always belong in a shop:
- Internal engine damage — spun bearings, dropped valves, a broken crank, or anything that points to an in-frame or out-of-frame overhaul
- Transmission and clutch removal on most trucks
- Serious frame or collision damage
- Work that needs the truck up in the air for hours, like replacing a rear axle housing
- Repairs waiting on a dealer-only part nobody in the Knoxville area has on the shelf
If what you describe sounds like one of these, dispatch will say so. There’s no point paying for a mechanic to drive out and confirm what everyone already expects.
Repair it where it sits, or tow it?
Heavy wrecker bills for a loaded tractor-trailer climb quickly, and a tow usually means the truck then waits in a shop line. For an air line, tire, battery, sensor, belt, hose, or fuel filter, repairing it where it sits is almost always faster and cheaper.
A tow is the better call when the engine has internal damage, when the truck stopped somewhere the mechanic can’t work safely — a narrow shoulder in an I-40 work zone, for example — or when the fix would take longer roadside than a tow plus a shop visit. Sometimes the answer is in the middle: a temporary repair that gets the truck to a shop under its own power.
Have this ready when you call
A few details up front help the mechanic load the right parts and tools and get it done in one trip.
- Location: interstate, direction, and nearest exit or mile marker — or the truck stop, yard, or business name
- Whether the truck is on the shoulder, in a lot, or blocking a lane
- Truck year, make, model, and engine if you know it
- What happened just before it failed, plus any warning lights, codes, noises, or smells
- Loaded or empty, and whether it’s a hazmat or temperature-controlled load
- A callback number for whoever is with the truck
Makes & engines we work on
- Freightliner
- Peterbilt
- Kenworth
- Volvo
- Mack
- International
- Western Star
Class 6 through Class 8 trucks, including engines from Cummins, Detroit Diesel, PACCAR, Volvo, Mack, Navistar, and Caterpillar.
Emergency Roadside Assistance around Knoxville & East Tennessee
Emergency calls around Knoxville tend to come from a few places. The I-40/I-75 overlap between Farragut and the I-640 split is one. The truck stop clusters at Watt Road (Exit 369) and Strawberry Plains (Exit 398) are others. So are I-75 north toward Clinton and Lake City, I-40 east past Kodak toward the I-81 split, and I-640, where through-trucks and hazmat loads are routed around downtown.
Highways we cover
Towns we cover
- Knoxville
- Farragut
- Maryville & Alcoa
- Oak Ridge
- Clinton
- Lenoir City & Loudon
- Sevierville & Pigeon Forge
- Morristown
Emergency Roadside Assistance: common questions
Do you really answer at 3 a.m.?
Yes. Dispatch is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, including nights, weekends, and holidays.
How soon can a mechanic get to my truck?
It depends on where the truck is, the time of day, and traffic — the I-40/I-75 stretch through West Knoxville and I-640 at rush hour can change drive times a lot. Dispatch gives you an estimated arrival time on the call.
Can you work on a truck stopped on the interstate shoulder?
Often, yes, if there’s enough room to work safely. On a narrow shoulder or inside a work zone, the truck may need to be moved first, or the Tennessee Highway Patrol may need to help with traffic.
What does emergency roadside service cost?
It depends on the repair, parts, travel distance, and time of day. Describe the problem and where you are when you call, and ask for pricing up front.
Should I call you or my company’s breakdown line?
If your carrier or lease program has a breakdown process, follow it — many fleets approve a local mobile mechanic through that line. Owner-operators, or drivers told to find local help, can call us directly.
What happens if it can’t be fixed on the roadside?
You’ll get a straight answer. Sometimes a temporary repair gets the truck to a shop under its own power, and sometimes a tow is the right move. Either way you won’t be left guessing.