Summer Driving Tip #1

The #1 enemy of cars and trucks in the summertime is excessive heat. High temperatures can ruin engines, transmissions, wheel bearings, and your entire week!

Summer vacation trips often provide the right combination of conditions for cooling system breakdowns. Cooling systems that have been neglected can fail under a combination of high air temperatures, heavy loads, high speeds, and the extra load of air conditioning. Travelers expecting these conditions may want to consider installing auxiliary oil and/or transmission coolers.

Proper preventative maintenance includes flushing your engine cooling system, replacing your thermostat, changing your old belts and hoses, and filling with fresh antifreeze coolant of the correct type and mixture percentage. Make sure that all fluids are at normal levels.

Summer Driving Tip #2

Tires with incorrect air pressure can cause summertime disasters. Maintain proper tire air pressure at all times. Air pressure that is too low can hurt your tires and fuel economy, or even cause high-speed heat-related blowups.

Uneven pressure among your tires can also hurt the handling of your vehicle.

Check your owners manual for the proper tire pressure to match your make and model of vehicle. Please remember that variations of outside air temperatures can affect tire pressure, so check tire pressures frequently during temperature transitions that you may encounter in summertime vacation travels.

General Tips

1. Follow maintenance schedules instead of just fixing breakdowns. For example, we often do brake jobs on vehicles that need expensive parts only because the brake job was put off for too long. (If brake pads or linings get too worn, metal studs will scratch and damage the associated rotors or drums.)
2. Don't let a small problem become a big problem. For example, an air conditioner that starts to work poorly should be inspected immediately, and may be as simple as a leaking fitting that just needs to be tightened. If you just run the system until it breaks down, serious (and expensive) repairs may soon follow.
3. Check back here again for tips on preparing your car or truck for the Winter weather transition that will be "just around the corner" before you know it.

View Winter Season Tips