蒙城嘉宏
汽車、運動、遊玩、文學創作、攝影詩詞……
博文
(2008-08-21 09:05:56)
Yesandno.Ifyouwanttorotatethetiresonyourvehicletomaximizetreadlife,thenallthetireshavetobethesamesize.Rotatingthetiresevery5,000to7,500milesisagoodidea,especiallyonfront-wheeldrivecarsandminivanswherethefronttirestendtowearoutlongbeforetheonesontheback.Wide,lowprofiletiresalsotendtodevelopunusualwearpatternsifleftinthesamewheelpositionfortheirentirelife.Ifyoudon’tplantorotateyourtires,however,the...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:54:31)
KeepitinsidealockedgaragewithanarmedguardandDobermanonduty!Or,driveacarthatnobodywouldwanttosteal.Seriously,therearesomecommonsenseprecautionsyoucanusetominimizetheriskofyourvehiclebeingstolenorbrokeninto:Neverleavethekeysintheignition,andneverleavetheenginerunningwhileyourunintoastoreordropsomethingoff.Youcarmightnotbetherewhenyoucomeback,andyoumightevenbeissuedaticketforsuchstupidity!Alwayslocky...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:51:17)
Firstandforemost,donotattemptrepairsthatarebeyondyourability.Ifyoufeelunsureaboutarepair,youshouldseekoutacompetentprofessionaltodotheworkforyou.Bettertopaysomeonewhoknowswhatthey’redoingthantoattempttofixityourselfandscrewitup.Manysystemsonvehiclestodayareverycomplex.Repairsoftenrequireconsiderableskillandexpertise,nottomentionspecialtoolsandequipment.Asimplemistakecouldruinsensitive(andexpensiv...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:46:57)
For"ordinary"antifreeze,thevehiclemanufacturersgenerallyrecommendcoolantchangeseverytwotothreeyearsor30,000miles.Otherssayit’snotabadideatochangethecoolanteveryyearformaximumcorrosionprotection--especiallyinvehiclesthathavealuminumheads,blocksorradiators.Butsuchrecommendationsmaysoonbeobsolete.Severalantifreezesuppliershavejustrecentlyintroduced"longlife"antifreezeformulationsthatclaimtoprovidepr...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:45:19)
Itcouldbeanyofanumberofproblems.Aheaterthat’sworkingproperlyshouldblowairthat’sabout75to100degreesF.hotterthantheoutsideair.Ifitdoesn’t,anyofthefollowingmightbeatfault:Alowcoolantlevel(oftenduetoaleakorweakradiatorcap),butmayalsobetheresultofnotgettingthecoolingsystemcompletelyfilled.Ifyou’vejustrecentlychangedtheantifreeze,checkthecoolantlevelintheradiatortoseeiftheradiatorisfull.Anairpocketi...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:43:21)
Notnormally,butitshouldbeifthesteeringrackorpumpareeverreplaced.Undernormalcircumstances,thefluidinthepowersteeringsystemshouldlastthelifeofthevehicle(orthelifeofthemajorpowersteeringcomponents,whichevercomesfirst).Butasthesystemaccumulatesmiles,microscopicparticlesofmetalandrubbercanbuildupinthefluid.Theseparticlescanactlikeanabrasiveandacceleratepumpandgearwear,sothefluidshouldbechangediftheorig...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:41:05)
Youcanifyoucangetyourhandsonthecorrecttypeofrefrigerantrequiredforyourvehicle.Butthatisnowamajorproblemfordo-it-yourselfersbecausefederallawprohibitsthesaleofR12andR134automotiverefrigerantsto"noncertified"individuals(tobecomecertified,youmustpassawrittentestapprovedbytheEnvironmentalProtectionAgency(EPA)--somethingwhichallprofessionalA/Ctechniciansmustdobeforetheycanlegallyworkonyourvehicle).This...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:25:05)
Thetypespecifiedbythevehiclemanufacturerinyourowner’smanual.Formostpassengercarandlighttruckgasolineenginestoday,it’sanyoilthatmeetstheAmericanPetroleumInstitutes"SH"rating.Asfortheviscosityofoiltouse,mostnewenginestodayrequireamultiviscosity5W-30oilforall-rounddriving.Thelighter5W-30oilscontainfrictionreducingadditivesthathelpimprovefueleconomy,andalsoallowtheoiltoquicklyreachcriticaluppervalve...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:21:35)
Mostvehiclemanufacturerssayit’sokaytowaituntilthelevelreachestheaddmarktoaddoil.TheaddmarkButconsideringthatthecrankcasecapacityonmostpassengercarstodayisonlyfourquarts,runningtheengine25%lowonoil(onequart)maynotbewise.Here’swhy.Oilnotonlylubricatestheengine’sinternalparts,butalsohelpscoolthebearings.Thetotalamountofoilintheengine,therefore,servesasaheatsinktohelpcontrolheat.Undernormaldrivingc...[閱讀全文]
(2008-08-21 08:17:57)
It’shardtogiveaspecifictimeormileagefigurebecausethelifeofthefilterdependsonhowmuchcruditingests.Afilterthatlasts20,000oreven30,000milesonavehiclethat’sdrivenmostlyonexpresswaysmaylastonlyamonthortwoinaruralsettingwherethevehicleisdrivenfrequentlyongravelroads.Changingitannuallyorevery15,000milesforpreventativemaintenancemaybeagoodrecommendationforthecitydriver,butnotitscountrycousin.Regardlesso...[閱讀全文]
