Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Is It Time To Change Vehicles?
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Saturday, October 08, 2011
You Can Change Your Car's Timing Belt
So, how is your car's timing belt doing? Have you changed it lately? If, ever? If not, you must make certain that the timing belt hasn抰 been driven too many miles or you could be driving on borrowed time. Typically, a timing belt will last anywhere from about 60,000 miles to just over 100,000 miles; your owner's manual will spell that information out for you. A failed timing belt can occur at any time, but if you are on top of things you can avoid being left stranded.
A timing belt is used to turn the camshaft at precisely half the speed as the crankshaft. The camshaft causes the intake and exhaust valves to open and shut in time with the pistons as they move up and down in the cylinders. When the timing belt breaks, you aren't going anywhere as the engine can no longer run. In some cases a timing belt failure could damage or even ruin a car's engine. Unfortunately, too many motorists do not replace their timing belt until it has broken. This can be a real problem when you are miles away from the nearest help!
There is no absolute certain way to check that a timing belt has worn out. Instead, changing it at prescribed intervals will lessen the chance that the timing belt will break before it is replaced. In addition, many mechanics advise changing the water pump at the same time as the timing belt ?even if it hasn't failed ?as most of the labor related to replacing a water pump has already been accomplished when changing the timing belt. This is your call as a water pump could last as long as your car or it could fail at some future point. If the latter, you could be faced with a big repair bill in addition to the inconvenience of having your car out of commission for several days.
Many weekend mechanics feel comfortable enough to replace their car's timing belt themselves. With a trusty Chilton or Haynes auto maintenance and repair manual by your side you can pop the hood and remove and replace the timing belt in no time. Shop via a reputable online wholesaler such as the Timing Belt Pros to compare your replacement timing belt options and to find a product that is right for you. Save a bundle of money by doing the work yourself and avoid the hassles and expense of traveling to your dealer's repair shop.
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Sunday, October 02, 2011
Change Up Your Car With A New Battery
If your car battery has already served its purpose and now needs to be replaced, go ahead and do so. Buy a new battery and replace the old one. You surely would need a battery for you to go places with your car.
First off, you do buy the kind of battery that the auto maker who crafted and designed your vehicle recommends. It is easy to find the right battery for it is just like purchasing Volvo V40 car parts for your Volvo. If you do not know what this kind of battery is, try to check your car owner抯 manual. Or if not, you can always run to auto experts like parts dealers and mechanics for additional information. Keep in mind, though, that for purposes of recycling, the old one must be exchanged with the new one you will buy. So if you would be doing the replacing yourself, you can just drop off the old one at a later time, after you have installed the new car battery.
Now it is time to open the hood and find where your battery is. Once you have found the old battery, disconnect the cables from the terminals of the battery. Keep in mind that you should find the negative cables first before you proceed to disconnecting the positive cables. Negative cables are colored black while the red ones are the positive cables. And when you have successfully done so, remove the frame that holds the battery in place and take the battery out.
Before you put in the new car battery, make sure that the cable terminals are clean. You can use a wire brush and some baking soda with water to clean them off if they are already dirty or are already corroded. Clean the battery terminal also. If they are already damaged and beyond using, now would be the right time to replace them.
When everything is already clean, you can now put the new battery in the frame. Then attach and connect the cables. This time, attach the positive cables first, and then proceed to the negative cables. And when you have done so, you can now test your battery if it has been connected properly. If everything has been properly installed, your engine should start easily.
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