Recommendations For Planning Your Car For Summer Travel


Spring is the right time to get your car ready for the busy summer driving season ahead. It's sensible to have your vehicle checked out before summer's heavy vacation traffic and stop-and-go situation begin earnestly.

The professionals at the nonprofit National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence recommend the following tips on preparing your car:

* Look at the owner's manual and keep up to the recommended service schedules. Pay attention to "regular" vs. "severe" schedules proposed, and find out which is suitable for your driving conditions and habits.

* Seek a methodical repair facility with modern equipment in the service bays and skilled automotive technicians being staff, as evidenced by trade school qualifications, credentials of advanced course work and training, and national certification of the individual technicians by ASE.

* Flush and replenish the cooling system (radiator) as indicated in the service manual's recommendations. The level, condition and intensity of the coolant should be checked periodically. Make sure the engine has cooled down before removing the radiator cap. Engine overheating is the most common summer breakdown.

* Have engine performance conditions corrected, such as hard starts, rough idling and stalling. You'll get improved gasoline mileage, and you could put off more expensive repairs.

* Don't ignore your transmission and brakes. Costly repairs can be prevented by periodic service. Neglected brakes can cause safety issues, too.

* Look for a qualified auto technician to verify the condition of belts, clamps and hoses, but be precautionary by looking for signs of wear, cracking or fraying.

* Have a marginally working air conditioner system serviced by a technician qualified to handle refrigerants. Older units often contain ozone-depleting compounds that could be emitted into the air because of improper or incompetent service.

* Replace the oil and oil filter as detailed in the owner's manual. This simple, inexpensive service can add to the life of your vehicle.

* Replace other filters (air, fuel, PCV) as recommended in the service manual.

* Verify the condition of tires, including the spare. Let the tires "cool down" prior to checking their pressure. Rough wear, "cupping", vibrations or "pulling" to one side indicates troubles with your tires or suspension system.

* Exchange your headlights with some good aftermarket headlights. Good custom headlights or even just a nice new series of H11 bulbs for your standard lights will make a huge difference when you're traveling in dark. Hardly ever do you realize how dim your headlights are until you upgrade. Chances are the winter road grim has spoiled your lenses to the point where they actually need to be replaced.

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