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.

How Long Do Tires Last?

Tires are important. They are your car’s connection to the road, and it’s important that tires stay in good shape to keep your car running smoothly. But how long do tires really last? This article from Cars.com will tell you how:

We would expect at least 50,000 miles from the tires that come with any new vehicle, but tire life depends on so many factors that it's impossible to give anything other than broad guidelines.

Among the factors are the quality of the tire, the treadwear rating, whether it is a performance summer tire or an all-season tire, the type of vehicle it is mounted on and how it is driven. Performance tires may grip like leeches on dry pavement, but they tend to wear out faster than tires with less rolling resistance. If you drive your vehicle like you just stole it that also will wear tires faster. The Tires 101 information in the Cars.com Advice section, found here, will help you sort out the different types of tires and which is best for your driving style.

Driving for extended periods on underinflated tires shortens their lifespan, as will driving a vehicle whose wheels are out of alignment. If you never or seldom have your tires rotated, that also can accelerate wear, especially the tires mounted in front on a front-wheel-drive vehicle. They not only carry most of the vehicle's weight but also carry most of the load in braking, cornering and jackrabbit starts.

Though we would expect at least 50,000 miles from original-equipment (and quality replacement) tires, the reality can be quite different. Owners of late-model Honda CR-Vs have complained to us, for example, that they had to replace all four tires around 20,000 miles. We also hear complaints from people who bought replacement tires that were supposed to last 50,000 miles or more but were good for only 30,000 miles. In other words, there are no promises.

Here are some additional guidelines: You don't have to spend lavishly on tires, but don't automatically buy the cheapest ones either. Tires are the only part of your vehicle that are supposed to touch the ground, so make sure they're up to the task. Choose tires that have high treadwear and traction ratings, and bear in mind that performance tires with higher speed ratings may not last long. A balanced combination of wet traction, ride comfort, low noise levels and a high treadwear rating will probably be your best bet.

Article courtesy of: http://bit.ly/13x3aNS

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.

Fuel Saving Tips: An Infographic

Fuel prices are one of the things that can make what should be a fun drive in your car seem like a costly annoyance. Everyone wants to get their money’s worth from their fuel tank, as they should. The problem, though, is that there’s a lot of conflicting information floating around out there about how exactly you save fuel!

Have no fear, readers: to help you we’ve found a great infographic with tips on how to save fuel. It may say “tips for a new year,” but come on: it’s never the wrong time of year to get tips when it comes to car care! Click the image to view a larger version.

Top 10 Weirdest Things Found In Rented Cars

 

Ever forgotten something in that car you rented while you were on vacation? Don’t worry: even the best of us manage to leave our sunglasses or car keys behind occasionally.

But sometimes even stranger items get left behind in cars. What do we mean by strange? Well...take a look at this infographic and you’ll see what we mean! Make sure you read all the way to the end - this has some great tips on how to make sure you don’t leave anything behind in your rental.