It’s that time of year again! The time of year when it gets dark earlier and the temperature drops. Because of these things, we also begin to encounter challenging driving situations. Many think that as long as they have winter tires, they'll be fine. But safe winter driving goes well beyond just having winter tires—it also has a lot to do with visibility.
Anyone out there remember the old school window crank? It would take FOREVER to get the window up and down. Granted there are still some cars out there with manual windows, and one benefit to them is that they never fail!
As I write this blog post, I’m anticipating a lot of people will disagree with me… I’m going to be writing about something that a lot of you don’t want to hear. In fact, I’ve avoided writing about this for a while now because many will disagree with me. Alas, I feel convicted to say it like it is. Whether you agree with me or not – this is based on my experience in the automotive industry.
Quite often we get calls from clients asking for a tune-up on their car. What many of them think they're asking for is an overall maintenance check, making sure that their engine is running well, etc. What a tune-up means for technicians today is different than what it meant many years ago.
Summertime is here and many people sitting in the front passenger seat want to put their feet up on the dash or out the window while they're cruising. To be honest, as a driver I can't stand staring at other people's feet.
Every now and again at my auto repair shop, we see a car that has numerous scratches in the door behind the handle. Most often, it’s because the client has longer fingernails or big rings. That manicured and accessorized hand looks great, but the client unknowingly scratches the door every time they grab the door handle and pull to open the door. For me, it would be something I wouldn’t even think of or notice, because opening the car door only takes a split second, then I’m in the driver’s seat and gone.
Did you know it’s not uncommon for rodents to get into your car’s engine bay and build a nest, chew wiring, or store food? As you can imagine, the cost of fixing your car because a cute lil' mouse got in can be quite high.
Look under your engine oil cap and you may see a milky, frothy residue. There are a couple of reasons for this — one being more serious than the other. In either case, it's not ideal for your engine.
The image you see above is from a 2013 Honda Accord. This car came to our shop recently, and for any of you that drive a Honda or Acura product, you’ll know that the maintenance reminder starts to count down in percentage how much "oil life" your car has. Ever wonder what happens below 5%? It starts counting negatively in mileage! The cluster above is showing that the client was 3,574kms OVERDUE on the oil change.
I get it—for some of you, having a set of winter tires means you have to find storage space for them, it's an added expense, and a chore to book the appointment to get them done. It's not fun. I understand. But we do live in Canada, it gets cold and we have SNOW! Some call that white gold!
Did You Know If You Don't Use This Vehicle Feature It Can Stop Working?
