10 Things Everyone Should Know About Their Vehicle

Not everyone is passionate about cars. In fact, most people who drive on the road just use their vehicles for transport. Ask the average person what is the difference between a diesel turbocharger and diesel injectors and see what happens. Even so, there are still a few things that everyone behind the wheel should know about their car to make sure they stay safe and don’t endanger those around them. Here is a list of 10 things that every driver should know about their own car.

1 What side the fuel door is on – This is to prevent your frustration and everyone else at the gas station. There is usually an indicator on your dash that tells you which side your fuel door is located. Make a point to memorize it to prevent unnecessary hang ups at the pump.

2 When to replace wiper blades – if your wiper blades leave big streaks on your windshield when in use, making it difficult to see, replace the blades immediately. It is easy and you can switch them out yourself. If you’re unsure of how to do this, we covered it a few posts back here.

3 What the car’s driven wheels are – this is especially important if you live in an area with seasonally icy roads. If you have a two wheel drive car, you need to know whether it is front wheel or rear wheel drive so you know what tires to put your chains on. Always put the chains on the driven wheels.

4 Where the spare tire and jack are located – you never know when you’ll get a flat tire, so it’s important to be prepared. Take a minute to locate the spare tire and jack on your car, and learn how to use them. Go through a practice run of using the jack and taking off the tire if you need to. This will greatly reduce stress if you ever need to use them.

5 What the lights and gauges mean on the dash – the indicator lights on your dash are to help you maintain your vehicle properly. If you don’t know what the check engine light is, or what the indicator lights mean on your vehicle, you can potentially cause serious and irreparable damage which is always expensive. Take a minute to look at your owner’s manual and read what the indicator lights mean, so when they come on you can address them properly and promptly.

6 How to use jumper cables – If your car won’t start, there is a good chance it is because your battery is dead. This is usually caused by leaving your interior or headlights on overnight, or something similar. In order to start your car you’ll need jumper cables, and a willing partner with a good battery. Always keep a set of jumper cables in your car if your car doesn’t come with them, and read up on how to properly use them so you’re not stuck in a parking lot somewhere.

7 When the tires are worn out – We also covered this a few posts ago, but it’s so important it’s worth mentioning again. Driving around on bald tires is extremely dangerous – you have very little traction on the road with less stopping power, and having bald tires increases your chances of an accident. If you put a penny Lincoln’s head down between the tread and it doesn’t cover his head, you need to get new tires.

8 What the tire pressure should be – driving around with deflated tires affects your fuel economy and, in extreme situations, can cause your tires to blow out on the highway. Look in your owner’s manual for the correct tire pressure, and make sure your tires are properly inflated. You can fill up your tires at the gas station – they usually have a tire pressure gauge there for you to use. If they don’t, you can pick one up at any auto parts store for a dollar and keep it in your vehicle.

9 Where the oil is and how much should be in the car -  you should also check the oil level in your car once in awhile, and if it’s low, put a quart of oil in. You can find the oil dipstick and the oil reservoir using your owner’s manual.

10 When the car should be serviced – Again, check your owner’s manual for recommended servicing intervals for your vehicle and stick to them. When you get your vehicle serviced, keep track of what date you had it serviced and how many miles you car had when you did. You can put this information in a small pocket calendar and keep it in your glovebox for reference. Check on it once in awhile to keep the servicing schedule of your car and keep it running great.

Arming yourself with this information will make you much safer on the road, and keep your vehicle running at peak condition. Make sure every driver in your family also knows this info so everyone is prepared and safe while driving.

Essential Vehicle Maintenance: Exterior Care

Aside from keeping your car running great, maintenance needs to be performed to keep your car looking great too. After you've repaired your worn out diesel injectors and diesel fuel pump, your exterior needs some TLC. Keeping your car clean and waxed will prolong the life of your paint job and make your car more fun to drive. Here are some tips to properly washing, waxing, and detailing your vehicle.

 Beyond the normal dirt and dust that collects on the surface of your car, there are other, harder to see contaminants that can damage your clear coat over time. Airborne pollutants, bugs, tree sap, and bird droppings can all degrade your paint so it’s important to scrub it all off frequently. 

Before washing and especially before waxing, make sure your car is parked in the shade if it is sunny outside. The sun can prematurely dry your car leading to water spots, or hamper your waxing efforts. If you plan on waxing your car you may even want to wash your car twice because dirt is difficult to see when the car is wet.

Make sure to use the right solvents for washing and detailing your car. Dishwashing soap is not good for your paint. Buy some kind of actual car wash, and make sure to buy a high quality wax like Turtle or Meguiar’s. Wash your vehicle thoroughly, using a soft sponge or towel, paying special attention to the front grill of your vehicle where bugs and debris often collect. Rinse and dry your car carefully, inspecting the paint for anything left behind. Make sure to go back and scrub spots that did not come clean – if you attempt to wax the paint with dirt or debris on it, you will scratch the clear coat of your car.

 In decades past it was agreed that the best wax to use was very-hard-to-apply carnauba wax – the “wax on, wax off” kind; nowadays technology has advanced enough to provide excellent, more easily applied waxes that are just as effective at protecting your clear coat. Some of the more advanced systems currently require just spray on application and spreading evenly over the paint, no buffing required. 

If you decide to use a more traditional paste wax or cream wax, use the applicator recommended or provided by the wax manufacturer. If they don’t have a recommendation, use a foam applicator pad to apply the wax. Work in small areas, rubbing a small amount of wax and spreading it to the surrounding areas. Apply the wax in a back and forth motion, not in circles, and make sure your applicator and buffer are clean before you begin. If the wax residue doesn’t buff off easily, switch to a very clean towel or cloth.

After you are done buffing, use a soft toothbrush or detailing brush to clean the wax out of the cracks and crevices of your car. After you’re done waxing, your car should have a smooth, glossy finish that looks almost wet. 

Paste wax systems require you to re-apply the wax every 30-90 days to protect your paint, depending on weather conditions. Newer synthetic systems can last up to 9 months without re-application, but some people say they don’t give off the same “three-dimensional” shine that carnauba wax provides, so you’ll have to make a judgment call on what is most important to you.  Either system will protect your paint and keep your car in excellent form for years.

How to Get Warranty Work Done at the Dealership

A great way to ruin your day is to have your diesel engine parts or diesel injectors go out on you. It's even worse when the parts aren't warrantied; or worse still, when the parts ARE warrantied by the manufacturer but your local dealership doesn't want to warranty the parts for you.

It's sometimes difficult to realize that dealerships are not directly related to the brand of vehicles they sell. Though you hold high regard for the automaker of the car you purchased, the dealership can fall short of those high standards. Automakers try very hard to get their dealers to be honest and good to their customers (it affects their brand image a great deal), but still sleazy dealerships persist.

Marilynn K. Yee/The New York Times

 Here are some tips to get warranty work done on your vehicle:

1. Know Your Warranty: The owner's manual for your vehicle will have a warranty section, or a separate warranty pamphlet. There are often separate warranty terms for different parts of your vehicle; an example is a Drivetrain Warranty. Make sure that the part in question is covered under the manufacturer's warranty, and that your vehicle is within the warranty parameters.

2. Be Polite But Firm: If a dealer argues with you that the part is not under warranty when it clearly is, ask politely if you can check the warranty section of your manual. If they are still being resistant, nicely ask if they would like you to call the automaker to get authorization for them. Maintain an attitude of trying to work to solve the problem, not trying to accuse the dealer. Unfortunately your best bet of getting the problem fixed lies with the dealer, so make sure to remain polite and genial but firm.

3. Call The Automaker: If the dealer still refuses, you can always repeat the process at a different dealer in hopes of getting better service. If not, however, it may be necessary to contact your automaker and let them know of your experience. They often have national and regional telephone numbers; check your automaker's main website and search for the regional telephone number (if you can get it). Once on the phone, still remain polite and calm and do not badmouth the dealer. You do not want to be labeled as one of those "insane customers" so it's best to keep your cool and emphasize you are just trying to resolve an issue with your vehicle, and you need help.

Think this is a warranty issue?

 4. Lemon Laws: If all else fails, you might need to get help from a lawyer. There are different laws for manufacturer's warranties in each state; finding out how many issues, and what kind of issues, you need to be experiencing to qualify could be useful to you. At this point you need to weigh the cost of lawyer's fees with the cost of buying a new part at your expense.

Hopefully, you will never need to follow all of these guidelines to get warranty work done on your vehicle. It can be an extremely frustrating experience but hopefully, armed with the facts, you'll get your vehicle taken care of.

Clean Fuel Injectors Mean Better Gas Mileage

After time you may notice your car isn’t getting the same gas mileage it once did. A cause of this may be one of your diesel injectors, which can experience wear over time. Diesel or regular fuel injectors will need a bit of work to sustain the power and performance they had from stock. In some cases a simple cleaning of the injectors can restore the vehicle’s performance. In other cases, the diesel injectors may need to be replaced with a new diesel injector kit.  A recent consumer reports study shows that 46% of people think fuel economy is the most important factor when purchasing a car. (Have you seen any Hummers around lately?) The only factor that seems to have more of an impact on new car sales is price.

A main factor that can hurt the performance of a fuel injector is dirt. A fuel injector is basically a valve controlled by the car’s ECU. This valve opens and closes very quickly to allow fuel to be squirted into the intake valves. Ideally, the fuel is delivered as a mist and it is vaporized immediately. If there is any dirt on the nozzle or within the injector itself, the fuel will not be sprayed as consistently and the combustion system will suffer. This process takes place in small fractions of a second and is therefore extremely sensitive.

How do you clean your fuel injectors? Give them a bath! Ultrasonic cleaning is one of the more intensive (but effective) solutions.  This process involves actually removing the injectors and giving them a “bath” in a special cleaning solution. Simpler cleaning tips include doing a few full throttle accelerations on the highway. After having the injectors cleaned, most car drivers notice an immediate improvement in performance.

If there has been too much dirt buildup or there are other problems facing the fuel system, the fuel injectors may ultimately need to be replaced. If it comes to this, you should probably consider changing out all of the fuel injectors at the same time. So save yourself some money at the pump this holiday season and make sure your getting the gas mileage you’re suppose to!