Car Spring Cleaning

Now that the weather is getting warmer it’s time to get your car into springtime shape after the wear-and –tear of winter. Learn how with these tips!

As the sun warms up, you may feel the need to roll up your sleeves and to tackle the big task of cleaning and tuning up your car. Getting rid of the winter mess inside and on the outside of your car is critical. The following are the 10 most important things you should do: 

1.     Carpeting and Upholstery: Focus first on the interior carpeting and upholstery. Using a damp towel, wash down the seats. Get rid of any rock salt debris, mud or dry dirt on the carpeting using a carpet-cleaning machine, if possible.

2.     The Console: Wash the consoles carefully. Avoid getting electrical connections wet, but do wipe them down appropriately. Clean out cup holders, too. Use a wet cloth to get the top of the dashboard, but be careful to dry it thoroughly

3.     Organize: Clean out the compartments. In your rush to get inside and out of the cold during the winter, you may have debris, trash or just too much stuff in the car. Get the compartments cleaned out and organized.

4.     The Windows: Shine the windows. After all that winter driving, the windows will need a bit of extra attention. Clean the inside and outside using a window cleaner. Shine them with a dry towel. Do the mirrors of the vehicle in the same way.

5.     The Trunk: Check the trunk of the vehicle next. Clean out the wintertime mess. This is also a good time to make sure the spare tire is in good repair. Be sure your emergency kit is in order too. Vacuum the trunk out.

6.     The Exterior Body: Look at the exterior of the car. A good car washing is often in order. Make sure the first spring car wash is a thorough one that gets the winter grime out of cracks and under the edges. Use a soft towel and a mild detergent to wash the vehicle down.

7.     The Wheels: Pay some extra attention to the wheels. Remove the hubcaps and wash them down. Scrub the tires and wheel wells thoroughly. This is also a good time to check the tire pressure and to tighten up any loose lug nuts.

8.     Under the Hood: Look under the hood next. Leaves, debris and even dirt can get into the engine area. In some cases, just wiping down the edges is enough. In other cases, you may need to consider having the engine wiped off or professionally cleaned.

9.     Waxing: Waxing the exterior of the car is a good idea, as long as you do so out of direct sunlight. Choose a spray or liquid wax for the best results. If you are using a new product, test it on a hidden portion of the car's body to ensure it works properly.

10.   Replace Wipers: After a harsh winter, many vehicles require new windshield wipers. Having wipers in good working order is necessary, especially during intense spring showers.

Maintenance Considerations

While these ten tips for spring cleaning are important, springtime also brings the need for maintenance and tune ups. Focus on the following areas:

·         Get the oil changed as needed.

·         Tune up the engine to ensure it is working at its best. This includes having belts checked.

·         Have the air conditioning tested.

·         Be sure all lighting systems, both on the exterior and interior of the car, are working properly.

·         Replace tires if they no longer hold air properly.

These tips will enhance the function of your vehicle. These, along with the spring car cleaning tips above, will ensure your car is working and looking its best throughout the spring and well beyond.

Article courtesy of : http://cars.lovetoknow.com/about-cars/10-most-important-spring-car-cleaning-tips

Child Safety Tips from the NHTSA

Use these tips from the NHTSA to ensure that your children are as safe as can be in your vehicle.

Did you know 3 out of every 4 car seats are used incorrectly? According tosafercar.gov, parents haven't been doing enough to keep their kids safe on the road, which has resulted in vehicle crashes becoming one of the leading causes of death for children between 1 and 13 years old.

In order to combat these sobering statistics, NHTSA provides an informative booklet aimed at getting parents prepared for life on the road with their children. Available online in PDF form here, the information equips parents with useful knowledge such as what features you should look for in buying a car, which types of car seats you should use and how to properly do so and child safety scores for nearly every vehicle available today.

We highly recommend that every driver who has children, or is planning on having children, give this booklet a read and keep it handy for future reference. Here are some highlights from the publication:

Car safety features

NHTSA advises that you should ensure that a car has the following safety features if it is on your shopping list. Each one serves a specific purpose in making sure accidents, both minor and major, don't occur and, if they do, injury is minimized.

- Automatic door locks: Auto door locks, which engage when a vehicle reaches a certain speed (usually 10 or 20 mph), can prevent accidental door openings in a moving vehicle and the can lower the risk of ejection in the event of a crash.

- Push down/pull-up window switches: These minimize accidental window closure and prevent injury in the car. Older, rocker-type window can shut windows inadvertently if leaned on  trapping fingers and limbs.

- Advanced frontal air bags: These new types of air bags can sense the presence of a child and will shut off in the event of a crash or mitigate their release to minimize harm. NHTSA advises that kids should always sit in the back, but in the event that the front seat is the only one available, these air bags will keep your child as safe as possible.

- Side impact air bags: These air bags deploy during side impact crashes and when they do, they deploy very quickly. So while they can be helpful in preventing injury, they can also cause injury to smaller children. NHTSA says you shouldn't allow your kids to lean against the area where these air bags are stored.

- Anti-pinch/auto-reverse windows: These windows are designed to reverse direction if they're closing and sense something is in the way, eliminating the risk of body parts getting pinched or trapped.

- Trunk release levers: Most vehicles have this equipped. It allows someone to get out if they become trapped in the trunk.

- Rearview cameras: These will likely become mandated by law in the near future, but until then, they're an important safety option available on many cars or from aftermarket companies. They allow you to see a wide field of view while backing up.

Car seat 101

Given that three out of four car seats are being used incorrectly, according to NHTSA, the booklet focuses a good deal on getting that practice correct. From installation to daily use, car seats require proper attention and care in order to work correctly and safely.

Here are some tips to get you started:

- Read the car seat manual and your vehicle's owner's manual. Every vehicle and car seat is different, so it's very important that you familiarize yourself with their installation and use instructions before you do anything at all.

- Place the car seat in the back seat.

- Secure it very tightly to the vehicle. It shouldn't move side-to-side or front-to-back more than 1 inch when pulled at the belt path.

- If you have a forward-facing seat with a top tether trap, connect it to the tether anchor and tighten. It's imperative that you do so, as it limits head movement in a crash.

- If you have a rear-facing sear, make sure it's installed at the correct recline angle. Most seats have angle indicators or adjustors that help you do so.

- Make sure your child is fitting correctly in the car seat after you've done proper installation. To do so, ensure that the harness is properly placed (lying flat, not twisted), the harness is buckled and tightened and the chest clip is at armpit level.

For more tips on child safety, head over to safercar.gov and get the full download. The site also has information on everything from combating distracted driving to driving in bad weather. Take some time out of your day and help make yourself a safer driver. You, your passengers and your fellow drivers will all benefit.

Article courtesy of: http://autos.aol.com/article/car-seat-installation-NHTSA-kids-children/

Ford Focus #1 Selling Car of the Year

This year there were more than 1 million Ford Focuses sold internationally. Find out why it is the new number 1 car in the world.

It's official: The Ford (F) Focus was the best-selling car in the world in 2012, according to R.L. Polk & Co. The Focus is far from the best selling car in America, but it's world status is still a homerun for Ford.

The success of the Focus, which beat the Toyota Corolla for world honors and is improving in the U.S., is at the core of Ford's big comeback under CEO Alan Mulally.

When the former Boeing Co. executive arrived at Ford in 2006, the company was building different cars of the same size around the world. Indeed, the American Focus and the European Focus were different cars, though called the same name. Dumb, thought Mulally.

Mulally quickly moved the company to build the Focus, as well as the Fusion mid-sized sedan, the same around the world as a way to lower costs and improve quality (the fewer changes the less things that can go wrong).

In the U.S., from 1999 through 2010, Ford sold an updated version of the same Focus it launched at the end of the 1990s, while Ford of Europe re-tooled the car to a much better version. The fact that the U.S. didn't get the "good, new" Focus rankled dealers and the auto press, and came to hurt the car's reputation.

The all new Focus that is in Ford dealerships today was developed in Europe and is now built in five countries -- the U.S., China, Germany, Russia and Thailand. It is sold in 120 markets worldwide.

Despite economic slowdowns in Europe and China, the global auto industry set a record in 2012 with more than 80 million new vehicles sold worldwide, driving demand for the Focus. The U.S. is part of the surge. Sales topped 14.5 million in the U.S., compared with just 10.4 million as recently as 2009.

The Focus is popular abroad because it comes in several versions including sedan, coupe and hatchback. It is fuel efficient, reliable and doesn't cost an arm and a leg. In Europe, the Focus hatchback is a family car for many households with two children. Gasoline is much more expensive in Europe than the U.S., and so families tend to stay with smaller fuel efficient cars rather than getting an SUV.

In the U.S., the Focus is offered as a sedan, a hatchback five-door and an electric-car.

After Focus, which sold about one million across the globe, the Corolla was the most popular with 872,774. Ford's F-Series pickup line was the No. 3 nameplate, its Fiesta subcompact was No. 6, and General Motors Co. (GM)'s Chevrolet Cruze was No. 8, ahead of Honda Motor Co.'s Civic.

Toyota disputes Polk's findings, citing 1.16 million in sales for Corolla. The technicality is that Toyota sells the Corolla in some markets as the Corolla Axio and Corolla Altis, and Polk counts those as separate models.

"Focus and Fiesta represent the best of our One Ford plan," said Jim Farley, Ford's executive vice president, Global Marketing, Sales and Service and Lincoln in an interview with AOL Autos earlier this year. "In just three years, Ford has transformed our global small car lineup and started winning over customers worldwide with vehicles that are not only fun-to-drive but also fuel-efficient – largely thanks to our award-winning Eco-Boost engines."

Article courtesy of: http://autos.aol.com/article/why-ford-focus-is-new-no-1-car-in-the-world/

Easy Car Care Tips

These are some of the easiest ways to care for your car and prevent most major problems throughout the year!

Most men aren't mechanics, and some men could care less about their car as long as it looks good and drives well. But a responsible driver should always take five minutes every other week or so to check the essential parts of his car. If you pay proper attention to your car’s maintenance needs, you will save a lot of time, money and aggravation by avoiding some expensive repairs. Here are some things that you can do yourself:

Check the battery

Many batteries are so advanced they no longer require much maintenance. To be on the safe side, however, you should know where your car battery is located and check it periodically to make sure it is not leaking acid and has adequate water. Most batteries have a condition indicator that displays different colors to indicate how it's functioning: blue means it's OK, red means add distilled water, and white means charging is necessary.

Check the motor oil

For an accurate reading, check the oil dipstick while the car is turned off and parked on a horizontal plane. If the oil on the dipstick is black or deep red, have the oil changed by a professional or change it yourself if you're feeling confident. To check the oil level, pull the dipstick out and wipe it clean with a rag, then plunge it back into place. Pull the dip stick out again and hold it horizontally for an accurate reading. Be sure the oil on the stick is just under or right at the correct oil-level line or indicator hole; it should never be over. Putting excess strain on your hard-working car by not changing its oil will lead to trouble. An engine repair will have you dipping into your savings and leave you without car for as long as it takes for the proper repairs to be made.

Refill the antifreeze

Antifreeze keeps engine temperatures stable in all climate extremes and driving conditions. Always be sure you have the right level of antifreeze because fooling around with the cooling of your car’s complex mechanical parts is an unnecessary risk. Invest a few dollars in a bottle and keep it handy in your trunk. Antifreeze should be added when the engine is cool. Use a funnel as you would when adding motor oil to avoid splashing this greenish, toxic chemical on other parts of the car.

Align the tires

To receive an accurate assessment of your tire alignment, bring your car to a professional and have it put on a computerized tester. Having this test done every few weeks, however, is not cost-efficient in the least. Instead, test the alignment yourself on a flat street. Drive the speed limit and leave a hand on the wheel for safety, but don't actually steer the car for a few seconds. If the car veers in one direction and you need to manually keep your car driving straight, make an alignment appointment with a mechanic.

Check for optimized tire pressure as well. Thirty-two psi to 36 psi on a gauge is about average for a midsizedsedan, but check your owners manual. Slightly deflated or unbalanced tires will not only cause shakiness when you drive at highway speeds, but will eventually warp the tires and reduce your gas mileage. Always buy new tires in pairs so you can put the new ones on the front and move the old front ones to the back; this lets you get more use out of them and avoid blowing a bundle on four new tires -- unless a professional tells you it’s absolutely necessary, of course.

Replace the air filter

The air filter is on the engine air intake and prevents dust and dirt from entering the engine. So, take care of your engine by replacing your air filter when necessary.

Checking the air filter only takes a few minutes. It is usually hidden under a plastic casing under the hood of your car and you have to unsnap the case to switch out the filter. Refer to your operating manual for precise instructions to avoid injury to yourself or harm to your vehicle. As a rule of thumb, make sure your car engine is off before lifting the hood to replace the air filter.

Car care

When it comes time to sell your car or make repairs, having maintained some of these basic areas will really pay off. Negligence is the most common and costly way to see your money go down the drain on repairs that could have easily been avoided.

Article courtesy of http://autos.aol.com/article/easy-car-care-tips/