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Newsletter - August 2005
Winter Car Preparation
As winter approaches, some thought should be given to how to protect your vehicle's paint, trim and metal from the harsh elements such as ice, sand, salt and magnesium chloride. The good news about mag chloride is it's less corrosive than salt and won't chip paint and glass like sand and salt do.
Having the right supplies makes the job faster and produces a better result. Wash the vehicle with a high-grade carwash shampoo. Detergents like dishwashing soap can dull the paint. . A brush works well for wheels and rocker panels but it needs to be a paint safe brush. Wash the wheels first then dump the water and refill your bucket with fresh water for the rest of the car. A good wash tool is a lamb's wool mitt or a micro fiber wash mitt. Rinse thoroughly and dry with a chamois, paint safe drying towel or to dry it quickly a paint safe squeegee.
Use a good synthetic car wax because it provides better protection against water and salt than carnauba wax. Continue to keep the car washed and treat any new chips with synthetic wax.
Here's a great winter tip! To prevent ice and snow from building up in the wheel wells, spray an inexpensive tire dressing in the wheel wells.
Winter is hard on leather upholstery so use a leather treatment before the weather gets cold to prevent cracking.
If your battery is over 5 years old, you are living on borrowed time. Don't try to get the last electron out of it but replace it and have peace of mind. Battery power goes down with lower temperatures.
Good wiper blades are essential in the winter. If they are over a year old or are streaking they need to be replaced. Aside from regular wiper blades, there are winter blades which are rubber booted and won't build up ice. At the same time check the washer operation and be sure the washer reservoir is full.
Finally, if you don't know when the antifreeze was last checked, have it done. A weak mixture could freeze if the temperature goes below zero.
What can I do to save gas?
As gasoline prices continue to rise here's some tips to help you save gas.
* Keep your tires inflated to the proper pressure. There's a sticker on the door or in most cars that gives the correct pressure. Don't go by the maximum pressure written on the tires. Over inflating will cause premature tire wear. Tires should be inflated cold and checked monthly.
* Keep your wheels in proper alignment, a rule of thumb is to have your vehicle aligned once a year after pothole season. Alignment also prevents excessive tire wear making tires last longer.
* Keep your engine maintained. For instance a dirty air and filter can cut gas mileage by 10%.
* Don't use premium fuel unless your owner's manual requires it, but on the other hand if premium fuel is required you could do engine damage by not using it.
* Avoid excessive warm up time. You don't have a carburetor anymore. Modern engines don't require a warm up period.
* Remove roof racks when not in use. They cause excessive drag and lower mileage. (How much did it cost you to haul around that roof rack all summer when you only had something in it for four days?).
* Use cruise control whenever possible on the open road.
* Keep that turbo needle on the left.
* Scan the road ahead to identify changes in traffic to allow you to slow gradually.
* Avoid 'jackrabbit' starts, accelerate smoothly.
Probably the most significant thing you can do to increase your fuel mileage is to keep your vehicle properly maintained. Today's vehicles have a computerized engine management system that compensates for worn parts and components without you ever noticing the adjustments. The downfall to this is that you no longer receive any kind of warning that parts are worn until you break down and these adjustments usually reduce your fuel mileage. Spark plugs and fuel/air filters will have the greatest effect on your mileage.
One common myth is that not using your air conditioning will save gas. Generally, the additional drag from the windows being rolled down will offset the saving in not running the A/C. This is especially true during high speed, highway driving.
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Addison Auto Repair & Body Shop
2005 South Holly Street • Denver, CO 80222 • 303-691-9484