Do your windows resemble a shower door?

Here at LotPro.com, you can tell when it’s winter (other than the temperature, of course). Other then where the wipers run, the car and truck windows are covered by a thin (or thick) film of salt, grime and gunk. Even the occasional spring rains do little to wash this off.

After you wash your car

Washing your car is only the first step. Now that you have the outside layer washed off, it’s time to finish the job. First, inspect the washer fluid reservoir under the hood and the wiper blades. Fill the fluid reservoir, then wash the windshield and look for streaks. Even if there aren’t any visible streaks, if the wiper blades are over a year old, replace them – especially if they’ve been through a winter like the last one. In fact, it’s a better idea to replace the entire wiper blade assembly. That way, you’ll be sure that the blades will have a strong, even contact over the entire windshield.

Once you’re finished, fill a pail with water and get a soft real or synthetic chamois. Soak the chamois, rinse and squeeze it, then proceed to clean the inside glass of each window. You read it correctly – water is the best thing with which to clean windows. Even if you have to do each one two or three times, water doesn’t streak like glass cleaner and it doesn’t leave a residue.

When you’re finished

Once you have completed your cleaning (don’t forget your glass sunroof if you have one), you might want to consider coating at least the windshield with a layer of rain-x. A number of us at LotPro.com have used Rain-X in the past and found that it is very effective, especially at expressway speeds, in keeping rain off your windshield without the use of wipers. Putting it on in the spring makes it especially easy to scrape off early morning frost.

The Bottom Line

Here at LotPro.com, we want you to drive safely this spring and summer – and what better way to do that when you can actually see out your windows!

Think about it. There are only four places that your car actually touches the road and those places would be the four “contact patches” between each of your tires and the road surface. On average, each of these contact patches is about the size of an adult hand. We also have a mechanical device (your car) that weighs an average of 2 tons and is traveling at speeds ranging from 36.6 feet per second (25mph) to 102.6 feet per second (70mph) or more. That’s feet per second! Add to that the g forces involved in any maneuver – turning, braking, accelerating – and you can see the importance of tire maintenance.

How does this affect you?

Here are the ways that improper tire maintenance can affect your pocketbook:

1. Proper inflation pressure – tires that are under inflated or over inflated can wear out prematurely requiring early replacement.
2. Scheduled tire rotation – tires that are not rotated according to the manufacturer’s specifications will cause unbalanced tire wear between the front and rear tires requiring early tire replacement.
3. Front end alignment – if you drive in an area that has numerous potholes or rough roads, failing to check wheel alignment (both front and rear on many vehicles) can result in premature wear requiring early replacement (is there a pattern developing here?).
4. Gas mileage – both under inflation and improper alignment can negatively affect your gas mileage causing you to spend more at the gas pump than you need to.

The bottom line

Follow the maintenance schedule in your owners manual. Here is an example from the Mazda3 manual:

In this example, the manual says to rotate, inspect and check the wear every 5,000 miles.

In addition, I suggest that you buy yourself a good tire gauge (about $10) and keep it in your car. Check your tire pressure at least once a month and visually inspect them at least once a week for sidewall damage, uneven wear and road debris (if you’ve picked up a nail, it’s much easier to change a tire in your driveway than on the expressway). When you drive, pay attention to whether or not your car “pulls” to the left or right. This could be an indication that your car is out of alignment.

If you follow this advice, not only will you save yourself some money, you will also have a safer driving experience.

Trust your owners manual

The owners manual that came with your car tells you how often to change your oil as well as well as the type of oil that should be used. Here is an example from the Mazda3 Owners Manual:

“Recommended Oil Use SAE 5W-20 engine oil.”

What does this tell us?

Now we know the manufacturer recommends that we change the oil every 5 months or 5,000 miles with SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers specification) 5W-20 oil (the lower the first number, the more easily it flows at low temperatures while the second number is its flow rate at high temperatures).

Types of oils

Conventional Oil – oil that comes from the refining of crude oil. This type of oil is the least expensive.

Full Synthetic Oil – usually produced from a chemical compound called PAO (polyalphaolefins), synthetic oils have a more uniform chemical structure that is better at preventing wear and remaining viscous (the ability to flow) over a wider temperature range. Synthetic oil is considerably more expensive than conventional oil.

Synthetic Blend – a combination of conventional and synthetic oil. Most blends are not true synthetic oils since they are usually based on something other than PAO.

The Bottom Line

If you follow the manufacturer’s recommendations, not only will your warranty be valid, your car will last longer and you will avoid expensive engine repairs in the future.