Common Car Maintenance Mistakes

A part of owning a car is coming to terms with the fact that things are going to go wrong. Parts are going to fail, bulbs will burn out, engine lights will come on, and belts will need to be replaced. Maintenance is inevitable whether you choose to do it yourself or take your car to a professional. There are a number of big mistakes do-it-your-selfers and sometimes even professional mechanics can make when “fixing” vehicle. This article (http://auto.howstuffworks.com/under-the-hood/vehicle-maintenance/10-serious-mistakes-car-maintenance.htm#page=0) tells you some of the most common mistakes to watch for. Here are some of the highlights:

·         Roaming around with burned out lights – Headlights and high beams are easy to spot when they burn out, but tail lights, brake lights, and running lights burn out too. This is one of the cheapest and easiest car maintenance tasks, so don’t put it off!

·         Attempting a jump start without really knowing how – Sending electricity to places it isn’t supposed to be can fry your car…or you! Don’t let that happen. Learn how to jump start a car before you actually have to do it.

·         Assuming bald tires will last a bit longer – Tires give a car the proper contact with road it needs to drive safely. If your tires are bald the car’s contact with the road isn’t so good anymore. Get a new set when the tires go bald, even if the tread looks decent.

·         Forgetting to torque the lug nuts – After changing or rotating wheels you need to make sure there is a proper amount of force applied to the lug nuts. If there’s not, eventually the pressure of driving will force the lug nuts off, which could cause your tire to leave your car while driving. No one wants that.

·         Forgetting to replace drained fluids – Gasoline isn’t the only important fluid in your car. Oil and transmission fluid keep your engine running smoothly. Brake fluid helps maintain proper pressure in your brakes. Coolant keeps things from getting too hot or too cold. These things are all important in keeping your car from having serious issues, so always triple-check that the fluids have been refilled after being drained.

·         Ignoring warning lights – Warning lights come on for one reason only, something isn’t functioning right. The longer you let it go, the more serious the issue can become. Even if you think it’s something simple like your gas cap not being tight enough, get those warning lights checked!

Read all ten maintenance mistakes here: http://bit.ly/18YoBa2.

How to Keep Your Car from Overheating

Use these easy maintenance tips this summer to avoid breaking down from your car overheating.

This summer is one of the hottest in recent memory, and is already creating a flurry of awful news stories about people leaving their dogs and even their children in hot cars to overheat, and even die.

While we hope readers are using common sense about dogs and children, we know that car care in extreme heat is not always obvious, even when you consult that phone book in your glove box known as the owner's manual.

So here are some basic things you should know about caring for your car and avoiding unnecessary catastrophes or repairs.

1. If you battery is three years old, consider replacing it as a matter of preventive maintenance. Batteries get stressed in extreme temperatures, and the older they get, the more stressed they get.

2. Have your cooling service checked by a mechanic or the dealer if it has not been looked at in two years. This system is critical to keeping the engine cool and the air conditioning system working right. Let it break for lack of simple maintenance, and it is not cheap to fix or replace.

3. If you are driving, and especially if you are stuck in traffic, and the temperature light goes on and you are in the danger zone, turn off the air conditioner immediately and open the windows. If the light stays on, turn the temperature selector on the system to the hottest setting. This will redirect some of the heat that is trapped in the cooling system. If the light stays on, pull over and call road-side assistance. Stop driving. If the light goes off, you should be okay to drive the car to a mechanic.

4. Make sure you have fresh coolant in your radiator to start the summer, not just water. Have the radiator checked specifically for corrosion.

5. Look at your tires. If you have worn or cracked tires, you are asking for big trouble in very hot weather. Not only could you blow the tires, but a blow-out at high speeds could cause you to crash, rollover and possibly hit another vehicle.

6. If you drive long stretches of road on a summer road trip or business trip, keep a gallon jug of water somewhere in the car. It could come in handy if you have a radiator leak, or you get stuck waiting for help.

Article courtesy of http://aol.it/YZGLnz.

Did You Know?: Interesting Car Trivia

 

It goes without saying: we love cars. How can we not? Cars are beautiful high-tech wonders. And just as fascinating to us as the cars we drive today is the history behind the cars themselves, especially because buried in the automobile’s past are tons of fun facts.

For example, did you know:

●      Before automobiles were widely used, the New York City Police Department used bicycles to pursue speeding motorists in 1898.

●      The first speeding ticket was issued in 1902.

●      The first Ford cars had Dodge engines.

●      The first gas gauge only appeared in cars in 1922.

●      Most American car horns beep in the key of F.

And that’s just the first five car facts we could think of! Get even more fun car facts by clicking here.

Some DUIs Are Stranger Than Others: An Infographic

 Driving under the influence is one of the biggest dangers drivers can face; it’s no secret that consuming drugs or alcohol prior to driving greatly increases the risk of car accidents, highway injuries, and vehicular deaths. Drivers charged with DUIs often face criminal charges as well as deal with the emotional guilt associated with causing the accident.

Because individual states have different laws about driving under the influence, it’s important for drivers to be aware of the laws that exist in their area. For example, did you know that if you are intoxicated and you let another intoxicated person drive your car, both you and the driver can be charged with a DUI in Virginia?

And don’t think it’s just when you’re behind the wheel of a car that you can be charged, either. Check out this infographic to see some of the stranger circumstances people have been in when charged with a DUI – click the image to view a larger version.

“But officer...”

“But officer...”

The two most universal feelings among drivers are the annoyance and dread we feel when a police officer pulls us over. When we’re stopped it’s common to want to try to make an excuse and not get that ticket the officer’s ready to issue. No one wants to pay a fine or deal with the points that may be slapped onto their record.

Sometimes our excuses may be valid, but most of the time the police could probably say them in sync with us. Can you guess which excuses are most commonly heard (and not accepted) by officers of the law? Write a couple ideas down, then click here to find the answers and see which ones you got right!

And then remember: drive safely. We’d prefer that you not be pulled over in the first place!