Motor graders are used in excavation and precision finishing in the final shaping of surfaces where pavement will be laid. Graders are the necessary construction machinery in the construction of national defense project, mining construction, urban and rural road, water conservancy construction and farmland reconstruction. Generally, motor graders come in all types and sizes and are used for a number of construction jobs.

Typical models of motor graders have three axles, with the engine and cab situated above the rear axles at one end of the vehicle and a third axle at the front end of the vehicle, motor graders have a blade carried between the front and rear wheels. The blade is referred to as a grader and is controlled either mechanically or hydraulically. The blade of a motor grader can be extended from either side of the grader, as its connected to a few sets of hydraulic cylinder. Both ends of the blade can also be raised or lowered depending on the application, and are operated through a set of gears located within the cab of the grader.

Motor grader may be used for shallow ditching and fields. Most models, however, are used for roadwork. Motor graders are used to smooth out the surfaces on which roads are being laid, as well as to make the surface flat. Rough grading is performed with heavier engineering vehicles, such as scrapers and bulldozers. Although these look a lot like motor graders, they are a different type of equipment with a different purpose.

Motor graders are also commonly used in the maintenance of unpaved roads. Roads that are unpaved tend to become rutted during harsh weather. As a result, they frequently need to be smoothed over. In addition, motor graders are used for removing rocks from a road surface on unpaved roads, which is generally caused by normal usage, as well as in areas of rockslides.

Todays motor graders have the ability to be calibrated for more delicate use as well. Therefore, these large machines can now be used for jobs in which the roadway would have been torn up in the past from the use of motor graders.

With the advancements made in motor graders, they are now also used to set native soil foundation pads. At large construction sites where buildings are being razed, motor grader can clean the foundation in half the time a scraper would take. Motor graders are also used for asphalt operations in order to cut and remove asphalt for base preparation. In addition, they are used to lay down hot or cold mix, to fill ruts, and for general road construction clean up.

Motor graders are more versatile these days than ever. Large construction companies are discovering that motor graders can do more than the job they were originally designed for, and as a result, motor graders can replace several other pieces of equipment. Motor graders are also being developed with more sophisticated control units, allowing for more intricate work.