How Long Does an Alternator Last?

Your alternator is a vital component in your car. It recharges your battery, using engine power, and it also delivers power to your car’s electrical components. Essentially, it keeps the battery from losing charge, and of course if your battery dies, your car is simply not going to work.

You ask a lot of your alternator these days. In times gone by, it didn’t have to do much more than just power your headlights, and a few accessories like your radio. But think about all the accessories your car comes with today – entertainment systems, for instance, use up a lot of power, and then you probably also have on-boar... Read more

How Long Does a Clutch Last?

It’s a fact of life that a car clutch will almost certainly wear out before your car does. That’s because, even under normal use, they’re going to take quite a lot of wear and tear with constant gear changes when you’re shifting your car. So how long will your clutch last in your manual transmission?

The fact is, it’s practically impossible to say, because there are so many variables. You’ve probably heard people say that their clutch wore out in under 30,000 miles. You might also talk with people who will tell you that their car clutch is still working just fine at 100,000.

What cause... Read more

How Often Do Oil Filters Need to Be Replaced

Depending on who you ask, you can get a wide variety of answers to the seemingly straightforward question of how often you should replace oil filters in vehicles. Car manufacturers often suggest changing oil filters every other time you have your oil changed. Most parts and oil manufacturers, however, say to replace oil filters with every oil change, which should occur every 3,000 miles or three months (whichever comes first).

Since automobile manufacturers want to present the lowest maintenance costs possible with their products and oil or parts manufacturers make profits on the units they sell, it seems this discrepancy in ans... Read more

Signs Your Car Needs An Alignment

With all the advances in vehicle technology and performance, it can be difficult to keep up with all the required maintenance and repairs. Proper wheel alignment is one of the most important criterion to keeping your car driving safely and happily.

1. Your steering wheel is not centered
If you’re driving straight down a flat, level road, your steering wheel should be sitting close to perfectly straight. There’s usually a small amount of discrepancy allowed depending on the crown of the road, but overall the wheel should be sitting centered and straight, and your vehicle emblem in the center of the steering wheel... Read more

Symptoms of Bad or Failing Stabilizer Bar Links

The responsibility of keeping your car stable and handling smoothly under diverse driving conditions falls on the stabilizer, or sway bar as it's often referred to as. This mechanical unit is attached to the body of the vehicle by way of a body mount with stabilizer bar bushings and the stabilizer bar links, which attach to the lower control arm of the front suspension and have bushings along the link for protection and to ensure a smooth ride.

When the stabilizer bar links are starting to wear out, the symptoms can range from barely noticeable to significant, and if you don't have your stabilizer bar links replaced, can result ... Read more

Throwback Thursday: 1986 Bluebird

Th1986 sedan is the original Bluebird. Although it had a catchy name, it was far from being any close to what image "Bluebird" may have sparked. Aerodynamically challenged and equipped with a range of engines delivering power outputs of 84 hp and 102 hp, the sedan was not exactly a top choice for an everyday car. The most powerful engine strapped to the Bluebird's chassis was a 1.8-liter gasoline turbocharged unit that delivered a maximum 135 hp at 6000 revs.

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How Much Power Does the AC Draw From the Engine?

Most cars these days come with air conditioning as a standard feature – gone are the days when it was an expensive extra (for most of us, anyway). The HVAC system is an important accessory, and helps you stay cool in the car when it gets hot outside. However, the AC is powered by your engine – the serpentine belt that runs your alternator, water pump, power steering pump and other accessories also turns the pulley for the AC compressor/clutch.

How the air conditioning system affects the engine

Because the system is powered by your engine, it pulls energy from it during operation, which can have an effect on e... Read more

Throwback Thursday: 1978 Datsun 510 station wagon.

Two- and four-door sedans and a four-door wagon were staples of the 510 series cars, which offered gas mileage generally between 25 and 35 mpg, great reliability, many interchangeable parts and attractive sticker prices. The wagon was discontinued in 1972, but returned in 1978, when a hatchback was also offered.

The unit-body 510s had independent front suspension and four-link coil rear suspensions, except the wagon, which had leaf springs in back. Sedans and hatchbacks had reclining front bucket seats, and all models had fold-down rear seats, carpeted cargo areas, tinted glass, electric rear defrosters, side window defoggers, t... Read more

How Long Can You Drive on a Spare Tire?

You’ve seen it every day this week, and you’re pretty sure it was like that last week too. When you pulled into your parking stall, the car beside you has its spare tire on. That little compact spare tire, or donut, looks like it’s seen better days. Isn’t there a rule for how far you can drive on a spare tire?

Types of spare tires

Compact, or space-saver tires, known as donuts
Full-size spare tires
A donut is a rudimentary tire, with very little tread or sipes in the tread. It is often undersized in both height and width and is mounted on a basic steel rim.

A full-size spare tire... Read more

5 Signs Your Car Isn't Shifting Correctly

If your car is not shifting properly, you could end up with very expensive transmission repairs. So, how do you know if your car isn’t shifting the way it should? Watch for these signs to avoid serious transmission trouble. Warning light comes on: A warning light alone doesn’t necessarily mean that you have a shifting problem, but if you notice it along with any of the symptoms that follow, you should get it checked out. Car is shifting hard: The car feels as if it’s reluctant to shift gears the way it usually does, or isn’t shifting smoothly. You might notice a clunking or thudding sound when the car shifts gears, or has difficulty ... Read more