Finally, Spring is Here! I Know You're Ready, But Is Your Car?
I'm soooooooo ready. Windows down, music up, later nights and outside fun to be had! We had a harsh winter here in Philly and the entire Northeast. I couldn't be happier to feel 60 deg weather. I've wrote some great spring car care tips to make sure your car is just as ready to let's it hair down and go spring/summertime wild after this incredibly unfair winter.1. Your baby needs a wash - Spring cleaning isn't just for your home. Your car needs a good thorough cleaning, inside and out! It will feel like you are driving a brand new car! I normally wait until winter is over to shampoo, vacuum, and wipe down the interior of my car to get all the salt and sand from the winter out. Washing the outside of the car is waaaaaaay more important. In fact, you don't want to wait until Spring to wash the exterior of your car. Every time is snows and and salt is thrown down on the roads to melt snow/ice, that salt is kicked up on the car and underneath it. This salt sits on our car and its part and rusts them away. It is best practice to to wash off you car and underneath it after every snow storm (see blog I wrote to understand why). Still, wash your car after all the snow and salt melted and washed away.
2. Potholes are the devil - You know. I don't need to express that potholes suck! You can find out how to avoid pothole damage here. Potholes not only wreck your tires and rims, they do significant and costly damage to your steering and suspension components, brakes lines and hoses, and exhaust pipes. Have a mechanic check over the following on our car:
- Steering and Suspension parts looseness and damage. Example of these parts are bushings, shocks/struts, control arms, tie rods, wheel bearings. When these parts are loose or damaged you tend to hear thumps, bumps, and creaks while you drive. I've seen cars with suspension parts about to fall off
- Brakes for wear. If you haven't had your brakes checked or replaced since before winter, I'll get them checked out.
- Brake lines and hoses for damage and rust. Damage to these can cause you to lose brake fluid. Being without brakes is a scary feeling you don't want to feel.
- Tires for wear, uneven wear, other damage, and nails/screws.
- Exhaust pipes like the muffler for holes, damage, and rust. When these are damaged you will hear your car coming down the road.
- Your wheels may need to be aligned after hitting all these potholes. Unaligned wheels cause car drift and major uneven tire wear.
Checking out all of these things is not expensive or time consuming. I wouldn't pay more than $40 to have these things looked over. If you have a relationship with a mechanic he/she should not charge our for these checks if you are bringing the car in for another service, like an oil change. If a mechanic tells you something needs to be replaced, ask him or her to show you the problem. These problems are can be seen, heard, and/or felt.3. Wipers for damage, washer fluid for amount - I don't want to seen any peeling wipers, especially since it is April Showers time. It is raining as I write this blog. Winter is harsh on your wipers and they get worn and damaged. Wipers are actually something you can do yourself if are have some mechanical know how. If not, a mechanic can put them on in a few seconds, most likely for free if you are there for something else. Also check the level of your washer fluid. Your probably used a lot this winter.4. Fresh clean oil and your engine will be happy - It's a good idea to get our oil changed if you're past 3,000 miles since the last change. Also, while getting an oil change, all the things from above can be checked out! If you haven't gotten your engine air filter changed within the past year, it would be the time to get this done as well. Spring pollen brings allergies and boogies. Does you car have boogies?Any questions? Email me :-) info@girlsautoclinic.com
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