Millions of dollars in fuel are wasted. One of the leading causes to lower fuel mileage is over look auto maintenance, due to the (fast food style) quick lube maintenance preformed every day.
Dirty Air Filters: The engine can use more than 10,000 gallons of air for every one gallon of fuel burned, you easily see the importance of a clean air filter. The air filter should be checked at every oil change and changed every 12,000 to 18,000 mile depending on driving conditions. MPG Penalty: Up to 2 MPG
Dirty Engine Oil: Dirty engine oil causes friction in internal engine parts, reducing fuel efficiency and eventually leading to serious engine damage. MPG Penalty: Up to 1 MPG
Worn Spark Plugs: When a spark plug becomes worn it can cause inefficient combustion, resulting in wasted fuel. We recommend referring the your cars owners manual for mileage intervals of spark plug replacement. MPG Penalty: Up to 2 MPG
Fuel Filter: Dirty fuel filters allow dirt, rust and even water into the fuel system, causing not only loss of fuel mileage the need of major fuel injection repairs. MPG Penalty: Up to 2 MPG
Tire Inflation: Low air pressure increases the roll resistance and cause a loss of fuel mileage. It also greatly reduces the tire life mileage, your air pressure should be check on a weekly bases to maximize the tire life and fuel mileage. MPG Penalty: 1 to 2 MPG
Fuel Cap: Missing, damaged or loose fuel tank caps cause over 147 million gallons of fuel to evaporate in to the air each year. Not only is that bad for our environment it does not help our fuel mileage. MPG Penalty: Up to 2 MPG
Worn Oxygen Sensors: A failed oxygen sensor is unable to adjust and/or maintain proper air to fuel ratios. Incorrect fuel mixture not only lead to poor fuel mileage, it also cause emission components to fail. MPG Penalty: Up to 4 MPG
Wheel Alignment: Proper wheel alignments are very important to maintain on your vehicle, miss aligned wheel increase the roll resistance and wear tires . This would be equal to driving with 1 foot on the gas and 1 foot on the brake. MPG Penalty: 1.5 to 2 MPG
So, now you can see why low fuel cost starts with great auto maintenance not searching all over town for the lowest price at the pump.
Now it’s time to do you and your automobile a favor and have one of our ASE Master Techs preform a Auto Health Inspection today.
Call Jackie at 910-794-1390 to schedule your appointment today.
What are they?
Your car’s starting and charging systems, and the battery help ensure dependable vehicle operation whenever you drive your car and in all sorts of driving conditions. Make sure to check these systems regularly.
What does it do?
The battery stores electrical energy and the starter converts that energy into mechanical force to turn the engine for starting. The alternator produces electric current to replace what the starter used during start-up and to support electrical loads when the engine is running. An ignition module turns the low-voltage supply to the ignition coil on and off, and the coil produces the high voltage for the ignition system. This creates a spark at the spark plugs and ignites the air/fuel mixture in the engine. A belt transmits power from the front of the engine to the alternator’s pulley, along with other accessories.
Typical Wear and Tear
Driving habits such as frequent engine on/off cycles will cause more wear on the starter than a simple trip back and forth to work. Other factors include:
- Driving and weather conditions
- Mileage
- Vehicle age
- Excessive electrical draws like in-vehicle entertainment systems
Symptoms
- Headlights and interior lights dim
- “Check Engine” and/or battery light may come on
- Accessories fail to operate
information written and provided by carcare.org
Contact Atlantic Car Care today with questions or comments!
21 New Bern Street
Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
910-794-1390
Today we want to talk about a very important system in our cars – the cooling system. It’s one of those things that you don’t give much thought to until it fails and then you’re stranded by the side of the road.
Cooling systems fail more often than any other mechanical system – usually because of neglect. Don’t you hate it when something breaks, and you could have done something to prevent it?
The good news is that if you take care of your cooling system it can keep working for the life of your car.
Here at AutoNetTV, we emphasize preventive maintenance services like replacing your coolant according to the factory schedule. But the various parts that make up the cooling system need attention too. The major components of the cooling system are the water pump, freeze plugs, the thermostat, the radiator, cooling fans, the heater core, the pressure cap, the overflow tank and the hoses.
It sounds complicated, but we don’t have to be experts – we can leave that to our Honest service technicians at Atlantic Car Care. But, having an overview will help us remember to take care of our cooling systems.
Most people would be surprised to know that burning fuel in your engine produces up to 4,500 degrees of heat. And all that heat has to be dealt with. If the heat can’t be drawn off the engine, the pistons will literally weld themselves to the inside of the cylinders – then you just have to throw the engine away and get a new one. That would cost thousands of dollars.
Now the water pump is what forces the coolant through passages in the engine to absorb heat. The pump is driven by a belt that needs replacement from time to time. And the water pump will eventually wear out and need to be replaced. Spending some money on replacing the belts and water pump is much less than the cost of repairing the massive damage that can be done when an engine seizes.
There’s another little part of the coolant system that protects the engine. It’s called a freeze plug. If you remember from high school chemistry, water expands when it freezes. In very cold areas, the coolant can actually freeze when the vehicle is left sitting.
It is hard to believe, but the expanding frozen coolant can actually crack the engine block. The freeze plugs fit into the engine block. They fit tight enough to withstand the pressure of a running engine, but can expand or pop out if the coolant freezes. These little things save a lot of engine blocks.
That brings up a good point. An engine has to work in all kinds of temperatures – extremely hot as well as very cold. How does the cooling system adapt to external temperatures as well as varying operating conditions?
Well, it’s much like the way you keep your house at a comfortable temperature all year round – with a thermostat. The thermostat in your car controls how much coolant flows through your engine. When the engine is cold, it restricts coolant flow until the engine comes up to an efficient operating temperature. Then it starts opening up to move more coolant to keep the temperature within a specified range.
The thermostat needs to be replaced from time to time as well. It’s easy to diagnose a failed thermostat and is fairly inexpensive to replace. We can do this for you at Atlantic Car Care in Wilmington, just give us a call: 9107941390. Now we’ve been talking about all this heat we’ve got to get rid of, but haven’t really talked about where it goes. That’s where the radiator comes in. The hot coolant passes through the radiator. Air flows past the cooling fins and cools the coolant.
The radiator has two tanks that hold coolant: sometimes one the top and bottom or one on either side. If you have an automatic transmission, one of the tanks will also contain a second tank that cools the transmission fluid. Large SUV’s and trucks often have a separate transmission cooler. So when you drive around Wilmington, the air is forced past the radiator. But driving doesn’t produce enough air flow. So the radiator has cooling fans that force fresh air over the radiator. These fans may be powered by a belt or by electric motors.
Now, you also have something called a heater core. The heater core is like a mini radiator. A small fan blows air over the heater core and into the passenger compartment of your vehicle. That’s how you warm your car when it’s cold out.
Next is the radiator cap. With most newer cars around Wilmington, you never remove the radiator cap, except to replace it. You add coolant through the overflow tank. The radiator cap is also called a pressure cap, because its job is to maintain pressure in the cooling system.
High pressure raises the boiling point of the coolant, so it cools more effectively even in very demanding conditions. That is why you need to replace the cap from time to time. They recommend changing it out every time you replace your coolant.
Coming back to the overflow tank, it is needed because when the coolant gets hot it expands and the overflow holds the extra volume. The tank helps maintain the proper level of coolant and keeps air out of the system. You should never open the radiator cap or over flow tank when the engine is hot. This could lead to serious burns.
What else do we need to do to keep our cooling systems working well? Well, there are the hoses that hook all of these pieces together. They’re obviously very tough to deal with the pressure and high temperatures. But they do get worn. Sometimes they get spongy from the heat. Sometimes they lose their connection to the radiator, water pump, etc. It’s a great idea to have your Wilmington service center inspect your hoses at least once a year and replace them, if needed, before they break.
Atlantic Car Care can help you check your cooling system and make any necessary adjustments or repairs. Give us a call at 9107941390.
Gas prices are simply discussed to often. But, we all know gas is back up in price and it is one of our largest and most frustrating expenses! So, why not try to get the best bang for your buck at the most important time. We’re sure you’ve heard this before, but here it is one more time!
Keep Your Engine Properly Tuned
Fixing a car that is noticeably out of tune or has failed an emissions test can improve its gas mileage by an average of 4 percent, though results vary based on the kind of repair and how well it is done.
Fixing a serious maintenance problem, such as a faulty oxygen sensor, can improve your mileage by as much as 40 percent.
Fuel Economy Benefit: 4%
Equivalent Gasoline Savings: $0.15/gallon
Keep Tires Properly Inflated
You can improve your gas mileage by up to 3.3 percent by keeping your tires inflated to the proper pressure. Under-inflated tires can lower gas mileage by 0.3 percent for every 1 psi drop in pressure of all four tires. Properly inflated tires are safer and last longer.
The proper tire pressure for your vehicle is usually found on a sticker in the driver’s side door jamb or the glove box and in your owner’s manual. Do not use the maximum pressure printed on the tire’s sidewall.
Fuel Economy Benefit: Up to 3%
Equivalent Gasoline Savings: Up to $0.12/gallon
Use the Recommended Grade of Motor Oil
You can improve your gas mileage by 1–2 percent by using the manufacturer’s recommended grade of motor oil. For example, using 10W-30 motor oil in an engine designed to use 5W-30 can lower your gas mileage by 1–2 percent. Using 5W-30 in an engine designed for 5W-20 can lower your gas mileage by 1–1.5 percent. Also, look for motor oil that says “Energy Conserving” on the API performance symbol to be sure it contains friction-reducing additives.
Fuel Economy Benefit: 1–2%
Equivalent Gasoline Savings: $0.04–$0.08/gallon
Replacing a Clogged Air Filter on Modern Cars Improves Performance but Not MPG
A new study shows that replacing a clogged air filter on cars with fuel-injected, computer-controlled gasoline engines does not improve fuel economy but it can improve acceleration time by around 6 to 11 percent. This kind of engine is prevalent on most gasoline cars manufactured from the early 1980s onward.
Tests suggest that replacing a clogged air filter on an older car with a carbureted engine may improve fuel economy 2 to 6 percent under normal replacement conditions or up to 14 percent if the filter is so clogged that it significantly affects drivability.
The effect of a clogged air filter on diesel vehicles will be tested in the near future.
Note: Cost savings are based on an assumed fuel price of $3.87/gallon.
Most Wilmington drivers wait for their air conditioning to fail before they service it at Atlantic Car Care. That’s because many Wilmington and Burgaw motorists don’t really understand that automotive air conditioners need periodic service. Let me share some of the reasons why they fail.
First, like every machine, the sedans air conditioner parts need lubrication. The lubricant is actually mixed in with the refrigerant (that’s the stuff that makes the air cool). So sometimes, even though the air conditioner is still making cool air, the oil that lubricates the parts has just been used up: and unlubricated parts can fail in all North Carolina cars.
Now here’s a tip for Wilmington drivers: You should run your air conditioner every so often during North Carolina winters. This circulates the lubricant to help keep the seals from drying out.
The air conditioner actually removes some of the moisture in the air. So if you have trouble with fogging on your windshield during North Carolina winters or during a rain storm, running the A/C on the defrost setting should help. Now on some Wilmington cars you can’t run the A/C at the same time as the defroster. Don’t ask me why, but I suspect lawyers were involved.
Also, air and water can get into the A/C system. That can reduce the efficiency of the system and also lead to corrosion that causes damage. Wilmington drivers should periodically purge the system and replace the refrigerant to clear out the air and water.
Wilmington drivers should be aware of early warning signs of trouble: One might be that the air’s not as cold as it used to be. You may hear an unusual noise when the A/C cycles on. Those are signs to get your vehicle into Atlantic Car Care in Wilmington before the damage gets worse.
So following the recommended service intervals in your sedans owner’s manual can help prevent mechanical failure of your air conditioning system. You’re A/C system contains some expensive components like the compressor, condenser, dryer, etc. Anything Heampstead and Burgaw car owners can do to lengthen the life of their A/C is well worth it.
When winter approaches in Wilmington North Carolina, we break out the sweaters, coats, boots and mittens. We want to be ready for winter conditions. Your vehicle needs to be ready for winter as well. The last thing you want is to get stranded out in the cold. You need your vehicle to be safe and reliable. It’s a good idea to get caught up on any neglected maintenance items anytime – but the stakes are higher in the winter.
There are some specific things that we need to do in Wilmington North Carolina to have our vehicle ready for winter. The most obvious is having the antifreeze checked. If the antifreeze level is too low, it can’t properly protect your engine, radiator and hoses from freezing. If your car does not seem to be making enough heat to keep you warm, your antifreeze level may be low or you could have a thermostat problem. Get it checked out. If you are due for a cooling system service, now is a perfect time to have it done.
In the cold months around Wilmington we always worry about being able to stop in time when it’s slick out. The first thing to remember is to slow down and allow yourself plenty of room to stop. Of course, you want your brakes to be working properly. A thorough brake inspection will reveal if the pads or any other parts need replacing. Check with your service consultant to see if it is time to replace your brake fluid. It accumulates water over time which really messes with your stopping power.
It is a really good idea to have your battery tested. A battery’s cranking power really drops with the temperature. If your battery is weak in the fall, it may not be up to winter. There is nothing like a dead battery in a snow storm.
Which leads us to an emergency kit. You should always have a blanket or something to keep you and your passengers warm if you get stranded. If you will be venturing away from civilization, pack more items such as food and water to help you survive. Keeping at least half a tank of gas is a good precaution if you get stuck and need to run the car to keep warm and it will help keep your gas lines from freezing up.
Atlantic Car Care
21 New Bern Street
Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
9107941390
Winter in Wilmington North Carolina always makes us think of our windshield wiper blades – usually during that first storm when they aren’t working right. That’s why it’s a really good idea to replace your blades in the fall before the winter storms. If you live where there’s a lot of snow and ice, you might want a special winter blade that resists freezing up. And be sure to have enough windshield washer fluid.
The final thing to consider is your tires. Any tire can lose pressure over time – up to one pound every six or eight weeks. For every 10 degrees the temperature drops you lose another pound of pressure. So if it was 80 degrees outside when you checked your tire pressure two months ago and now it’s 40 degrees out, you could be down 5 pounds of pressure. That’s enough to be a real safety issue and it wastes gas too. You may need special winter tires as well. Your tire professional can help you find the right tire design for your expected road conditions.
If you’re getting winter tires, it is always best to put them on all four wheels. If you are only getting two, have them put on the rear – even if you have a front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive vehicle.
This is a very important safety measure recommended by tire manufacturers. Sliding or fish-tailing on ice and snow is a matter of not having enough traction at the rear end. That is why your newest tires should always be on the rear.
Just like our bodies need water, cars need oil. Oil lubricates the piston walls, so they don’t seize. It removes contaminates from the engine, by trapping them in the oil filter. Overtime, just like anything that is removing waste and sitting , the oil gets dirty. Due to combustion residue, wear particles, and environmental dust oil gets dirty and looses it’s lubricating qualities with time and use.
Motor oil is a complex mix of not just oil, but numerous additives that give it the properties it needs for modern vehicles. The heat of compression and combustion minutely leak past the piston rings into the motor oil. Every time you shut an engine off, condensation forms in the crankcase. Motor oil contains these various additives to keep the inside of the engine clean which prevents gum, sludge and varnish. Extreme Pressure additives prevent camshaft, lifter and bearing wear. There are additives to prevent high temperature oxidation as well. And, additives to make the oil flow easily at low temperatures and resist flow at high temperatures.
The oil filter traps physical particles of dirt over 25 microns in size. The filter doesn’t stop abrasives smaller them 25 microns from entering. High numbers of miles traveled reduce the quality of the additives in the motor oil, which indicates it is time to change it!
So, picture the engine in your car like the inside of your body. As stated earlier, our bodies need water. But, if the water was entering our bodies and not ever leaving, it would initially do all the jobs it needed to do and keep everything inside clean. But after sitting in our stomach for long periods of time, like oil, the water would eventually stop doing its job as well since it would be contaminated from all the wear and tear on your body, overtime.
Contact Atlantic Car Care today with questions or comments!
21 New Bern Street
Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
910-794-1390
The function of the fuel filter is pretty self-explanatory. It filters your fuel. The fuel filter is in the fuel line somewhere in between the fuel tank and the engine. Both gas and diesel vehicles around Wilmington North Carolina use fuel filters.
For more information about your fuel filter, visit Atlantic Car Care or come by our shop located at 21 New Bern Street in Wilmington, North Carolina 28403.
Please call 9107941390 to make an appointment.
Generally speaking there’s not a lot of dirt in our Wilmington North Carolina auto fuel supply, but there is enough that you want to screen it out. The problem actually gets worse the older your vehicle becomes. That’s because dirt, rust and other contaminants will settle out of the fuel and onto the bottom of the fuel tank. After your sedans is five years or older, it can actually have a fair amount of sediment built up.
That just means that the fuel filter has to work harder as your sedans ages. It’ll get clogged sooner and need to be replaced more often.
A symptom of a clogged fuel filter is that the engine sputters at highway speeds or under hard acceleration. That’s because enough fuel is getting through around town, but when you need more fuel for speed, enough just can’t get through the filter. Obviously, that could be dangerous if your car or truck can’t get enough power to get you out of harm’s way.
For just that reason, fuel filters have a bypass valve. When the filter is severely clogged, some fuel can bypass the filter all together. Of course that means that dirty, unfiltered fuel is getting through to be burned in the engine.
This dirt can then clog and damage your fuel injectors. Now injectors are not cheap to replace, so you don’t want to cause them damage just because you didn’t spend a few bucks to replace a fuel filter.
You know, in a way, the fuel filter can be the poster child for preventive maintenance. It’s a little part, it’s simple and it’s cheap to take care of. But if it’s neglected, it could lead to thousands of dollars of repair bills.
Those auto service schedules in your owner’s manual are there for a reason. If ever you don’t understand a recommended service, just ask your Wilmington service advisor at Atlantic Car Care. We’ll be happy to explain.
Women have come a long way in the world. The facts are, women have become a dominant force in business, automotive purchases, and business travel.
Women purchase more than 50% of all new vehicles, 48% of all used vehicles, influence 80% of all sales, comprise 40% of all business travelers, influence 80% of all luxury and family travel, own 38% of all US businesses contributing $1.6 trillion to the national economy and have now reached 59% of all Internet users.
They also comprise 40% of all business travelers today, up 5000% since 1970.
Despite male attempts to limit or prohibit female drivers in the late 1920′s and early 30′s, famous women motorists like writers Emily Post and Edith Wharton, and women’s automobile contributions during the World War I years were the most notable indicators of the existence of a core of urban and suburban women for whom driving was useful, necessary, or adventurous in the early years of the twentieth century.
American women learned early on, the possibilities of the automobile from the publicity offered by newspaper coverage of the pioneering transcontinental car journeys that took place between 1899 and 1908. They may not have been in the majority in terms of drivers when the first cars became available to Americans, but they surely existed.
Since then, women have become not only more independent and in charge of their own careers and finances, they have become the prime decision makers. Let’s face it, men, women hold the keys to the driver’s side. When it comes to deciding on your next automobile, where you will purchase it, or especially where you will take it for routine maintenance, just leave it to the ladies. And if you live in Wilmington, you know Atlantic Car Care is the most trusting, honest and reliable. Contact us today with any questions or concerns!
21 New Bern Street
Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
910-794-1390
Imagine you’ve left Wilmington and you’re up in the arctic on a dog sled.
Your dog team is pulling straight and true. You can cover a lot of ground fast. Now imagine what would happen if one or two of the dogs wanted to go their own way and were pulling off to the side.
That would slow you down. You would have to work harder to keep the sled going where you want it. The dogs are all working as hard as before, but you’re covering less ground for the same effort.
You’re wasting kibble.
The same is true of your vehicle when the wheels are out of alignment. That wheel that’s pulling to the side is dragging down the rest of the car; so you push a little harder on the gas pedal to keep up your speed. You’re wasting gas.
So have your wheel alignment checked at least once a year. Get it checked right away if you feel the car pulling to one side.
Sometimes we bump a curb or hit a pothole and knock our wheels out of alignment. An accident can take the wheels out of alignment as well.
Atlantic Car Care 21 New Bern Street Wilmington, North Carolina 28403 9107941390
So make sure you’re tracking straight. You’ll save gas and your tires’ll last longer. Now, mush!
