Should i do maintenance on my car




















A Young Mother's Gratitude On a cold and rainy Sunday afternoon, a young mother traveling with her three small children found herself stranded when her minivan overheated. A Tow Providers Instinct is Always to Help Others First Chad, a tow truck operator, was in a crash with another driver but instead of tending to his own injuries, he rushed to the injured to help. Reacting without Hesitation to Save a Life Saleem, a tow truck operator, and one of his staff rushed out to help someone who had been in a serious crash in front of their shop.

See More Articles. When it comes to the air filter, you may need to replace it once or twice each year. It largely depends on how much you drive. Experts recommend checking your car brake fluid, transmission fluids, coolant and windshield washer fluid. Determine brake fluid, coolant and washer fluid levels by removing related covers and visually inspecting each. They should reach a designated fill line.

NEVER remove the radiator cap to check coolant levels. You risk getting scalded if the cap is removed. Instead, check the coolant level in the nearby transparent refill container, says CarTalk. If you want to go one step beyond basic routine vehicle maintenance, then inspect the hoses and belts in the engine bay.

If a hose has separated, shows cracks or bulges, then have it replaced. Similarly, check the belts too. The timing belt, as found in most cars and small SUVs, is critical to the operation of your engine, notes YourMechanic.

If this belt shows signs of wear, including cracking, glazing and material loss chunks missing from the belt itself , then replace it ASAP. If the timing belt goes while driving it can cause serious engine damage. Brakes are a critical component on every vehicle. You should always be aware of how your brakes feel and what they sound like every time you drive. If the brakes feel spongy or it takes more pressure to apply the brakes than normal they need to get inspected by a professional.

Brake sounds can indicate when maintenance or repair is needed. The grinding sound is the rust getting knocked off. Rattling - A rattling or vibration sound suggests one of the rotors is warped or worn out and needs to be replaced. Intermittent Sounds - If brake sounds come and go it could be an indicator of brake fade from overheating. This problem should be looked at by a professional who can pinpoint the cause and fix it. Release air little by little, checking pressure along the way.

The rubber begins to break down over time, be it wear from excessive scraping of ice and snow or from the heat of summer. It's recommended to replace wiper blades once or twice per year, depending on how extreme the weather is. Changing wiper blades will vary from brand to brand, but they all have a simple clasp mechanism with a sliding lock or a button to press to release.

Make sure to buy the correct length blades for your car -- some require two different sizes or might require a rear wiper, too. And don't let the spring-loaded arm smack back down onto the windshield like I so brilliantly did a few months ago , because it can crack or chip your windshield, turning an otherwise quick and cheap repair into a costly one. So you take your car in for service and every time, without fail, you're told by the mechanic that you need to replace your air filter.

Chances are, the mechanic isn't wrong. Air filters, as the name suggests, filter dirt and debris from entering through the air intake system.

It's important to change these regularly -- every 15, miles or roughly once per year -- to prevent serious damage to the engine and to keep the intake system efficient. Just like air filters in your home can seriously affect the performance of your air conditioning unit, a old and dirty air filter can degrade the performance of your car by blocking air flow.

But that doesn't mean you have to pay someone to change it for you. Buy one and replace it yourself. To change the air filter, look under the hood of the car and locate the air filter box. Look for clips or a latch to open the box, remove the old air filter and replace with a new one. Spark plugs are vital to your car's engine running properly. They ignite a fuel and air mixture in the combustion chamber, which drives the piston down, turning the crankshaft.

Your car has several pistons that work together to fully turn the crankshaft. Timing is essential, and even one spark plug misfiring or not working properly can dramatically affect your car's performance, such as a loss of power, poor acceleration, misfires and it can even affect your ability to start the engine.

Changing spark plugs is a little more involved than checking fluids or replacing an air filter, but it can still be done at home quite easily. In most cases, you'll need one plug per cylinder, but some vehicles require two per cylinder. Check your owner's manual for the correct number and types of plugs. Also, take note of the required gap. You might want to pick up a gapping tool while you're at the store, since this can be inadvertently bumped in transport and should be measured and corrected before installed.

To replace spark plugs, first let the engine temperature cool. Then change spark plugs one at a time by gently removing the wire from the spark plug. Use a spark plug socket and torque wrench to remove the old spark plug.



0コメント

  • 1000 / 1000