While many of us worry about our car batteries dying in the frigid subzero temps of Chicago winters, more batteries actually fail in the high heat of summer. And with record-breaking heat across the nation this summer, it seems there’s no better time than the present to take a look at some battery basics.

The myth is that cold weather is harder on batteries because it takes more power to crank a cold engine, but the opposite is true because batteries are chemically more active when they’re hot than when they’re cold. Batteries in very cold climates have an average life expectancy of 51 months compared to 30 months in very warm climates. (Only 30 percent of vehicle batteries overall last for an average of 48 months.)

A car battery will actually start to discharge on its own within 24 hours in hot weather. It takes several days in cold weather. When batteries are left too long in a state of partial discharge, the discharged portion of the battery plates actually, for the lack of a better word, ‘die.’ Recharging the battery will not restore the dead part of the battery plate.

This is a challenge for motorists who drive short distances with several starts and stops. Their batteries are often partially discharged. As you may know, the battery’s primary job is to start the car. After starting, it takes some time for the alternator to recharge the battery. When you drive short distances, your battery may not fully recharge.

Another burden on our batteries is that vehicles are coming equipped with more and more electricity hungry accessories like navigation systems, DVD players, CD and MP3 players, heated seats, heated steering wheels and so on. And we often plug in cell phones, computers and other gadgets. Combine that with short trips, and it’s no wonder that our batteries are partially discharged.

A protective measure you can take is to avoid deeply discharging your battery. For example, don’t run the headlights and stereo with the engine turned off. That will take months off the battery life every time you do it.

As we discussed earlier, heat is hard on a battery. A dirty, greasy battery holds more heat. You can wipe off excess dirt with a paper towel or ask your service advisor at Star Auto Authority to clean it for you. Star Auto Authority can even test your battery and tell you if it’s time to replace it.

When it is time to replace it, always make sure you get a new battery that meets the factory specifications for your vehicle. If you feel you need more battery capacity than what came with your vehicle, talk with your service advisor at Star Auto Authority about appropriate upgrades.

Caution: Most of us have had a dead battery at one time. If try to jump start it, be careful to inspect it first. If the case is bulging, cracked or leaking, do not jump start it. Damaged batteries can explode or catch fire. Also, deeply discharged batteries can freeze. Do not jump start a frozen battery. Finally, there are a lot of theories out there about the best way to jump start a battery. If you are uncertain, do not attempt it. It’s not worth the risk to yourself, others  or your vehicle’s computer system if you do something wrong. To learn how to properly, safely jump start a vehicle, sign up for one of our upcoming Car Care Clinics.

Today, let’s talk about fuel system cleaning. The  first thing to know is how important it is to have a clean fuel system. You need fuel to go, and the cleaner your fuel system, the more efficiently the fuel will burn. That means more power and better fuel economy. And as we all know, better fuel economy means you’ll save money at the pump.

The average car on the road is at least 9 years old. That means it has had time for dirt and rust to start accumulate in the fuel tank. It’s critical for this debris to be filtered out of the fuel before it reaches your engine, and that’s the job of the fuel filter.

If the fuel filter is not replaced on a routine basis (see your owner’s manual), it can become clogged. This will allow dirty fuel to bypass the filter and head into the engine, where it can clog fuel injectors and get into the cylinders. This could cause some damage, or at the very least, cause your fuel injectors to perform inefficiently and reduce your gas mileage.

During it’s travels, your fuel also passed through the throttle body. This is another area where varnish and gum can accumulate and cause trouble. Your idle may be rough or erratic, or perhaps, too low. A professional fuel system cleaning will use a combination of special cleaning chemicals and old-fashioned swabbing to clean out the throttle body, as well as the fuel injectors.

They are the last stop in the fuel delivery system, and it’s critical for the fuel injectors to be clean. They deliver a precise amount of fuel, at exactly the right time, in a particular spray pattern. If they’re dirty or clogged with debris, they just can’t perform the way they’re supposed to. Dirty fuel injectors will rob your car of power and will waste fuel. Again, a professional fuel system cleaning can work wonders for the fuel injectors. Ask your Star Auto Authority service advisor or consult your owner’s manual for more information.

The bottom line: You’ll save money and enjoy better performance from your car when the fuel system is maintained. Replace your fuel filter when recommended and rely on a professional fuel system cleaning to take the carbon and varnish buildup from your throttle body and fuel injectors.

When it comes to our health, we often seek a second opinion when the doctor gives us news we don’t necessarily agree with. When it comes to auto repair, a lot of us take the same approach.

Posted By Bill

Perhaps we don’t quite trust the shop that recommended A, B and C items, or maybe we want to compare pricing to find the best value. For items that can be inspected visually—tires, belts, hoses, fluid leaks, worn shocks—it’s easy enough to confirm or quash the recommendations and to provide an apples-to-apples cost estimate.

But it’s a different matter entirely when there’s poor engine performance, weird suspension or steering noises, braking issues, and  “Service Engine Soon” lights. (Or similarly, antilock braking (ABS) or airbag (SRS) lights.) Understandably, we field phone calls from motorists asking questions like, “How much to replace the EGR valve in my 2004 Toyota Camry?” and “I was told I need new rotors because of a vibration. How much will that be?”

We can certainly estimate the replacement cost for you, but the next part is tricky. What if you bring the car to us, we replace the EGR valve or rotors based on the prior shop’s diagnosis, and your problem is still there? You will have spent money fixing a non-problem, and chances are, you’ll be angry and frustrated—with the situation, with us and with the other shop.

I can hear your objections now: “Yeah, but how often does that happen?” or “Doesn’t the computer tell you what’s wrong?” Surprisingly and unfortunately, we see incorrect diagnoses regularly—at least 50 percent of the time. This is not meant as a dig on our fellow auto repair shops. We can get into the reasons for misdiagnoses another time. But rather, I’m sharing this with you to explain why we think a second inspection or evaluation is, more often than not, worth the money.

If you are bringing the vehicle to us after another shop has seen it, there’s a reason. Does the answer just not seem right to you, or do you not like the pricing? Do you really want to risk us taking their word for it and replacing said item? Or is it worth it to you to pay a second diagnostic fee to ensure the diagnosis was correct—or incorrect?

Countless times, I’ve explained this to clients. They’re doubtful at first, and I can understand that. It’s one thing to pay another $35 co-pay at the doctor’s. It’s another to spend another $100+ on a second diagnosis for your car. But also countless times, I’ve been able to come back and say, “Hey, you don’t need that $500 part after all. All you really need is a $100 wire repair.” One client who was told he needed a new engine in his Toyota pickup truck, when he actually needed a knock sensor. Another client was told she needed a head gasket when she needed an intake gasket. I could go on and on with the examples.

Obviously, I’d recommend that you find and stick with a repair shop you trust to give you the right answer the first time. But if you find yourself in a position where you have doubts, definitely ask yourself the questions above. Chances are, you’ll see the wisdom in paying for a second formal opinion.

We have written posts before with our recommendations for choosing a competent, trustworthy auto repair shop if you move far away from Star Auto Authority, have a child in college or have an unfortunate breakdown on vacation.

Sometimes, we like to turn the “microphone,” so to speak, over to a third party who can offer some equally valuable, credible information. Here’s an article from MSN Autos that we believe does a thorough job of advising you on how to choose a repair shop: Go to article now.

We’re also happy to say that we live up to the standards established in that article. If you’d like more specifics, please don’t hesitate to ask us for information.

While most of our clients are conscientious about maintaining their vehicles, many don’t realize their vehicles come with two different maintenance schedules—one for “severe service” and one for “regular service,” depending on how the vehicle is driven. (Check the fine print in your owner’s manual. They’re both in there!)

Despite your best intentions, if you’re following the wrong maintenance schedule, you’re doing your vehicle a disservice. Chances are, you’re looking at the regular service schedule when you should be looking at the severe one. While this isn’t as detrimental as neglecting maintenance altogether, you’re certainly not gaining all the benefits. Consider the difference between seeing your dentist every 6 months vs. every 12 months or your doctor every 3-5 years vs. every year.

At Star Auto Authority, we find that the vast majority of our clients should be following the severe service schedule, and a recent AAA study supports our recommendations. Only 6 percent of motorists polled by AAA believed they drove under severe conditions, when in reality, 62 percent met the severe service requirements.

While each manufacturer’s recommendations differ slightly, AAA identifies severe service driving as:

• Driving short trips of less than 5 miles in normal temperatures or less than 10 miles in freezing temperatures.
• Driving in hot weather in stop-and-go traffic.
• Driving at speeds of less than 50 mph for long distances.
• Driving on roads that are dusty or muddy or that have salt, sand or gravel spread on the surface.
• Towing a trailer, carrying a camper (on a pickup truck), or transporting items on a roof rack or in a car-top carrier.

Think about your typical week. Do you live a quarter mile from the tollway and enjoy a non-stop commute to work? Or do you pass through 4 miles of traffic lights just to access the highway and then crawl at 20 mph the rest of the way to work? In the Chicago area, we’d contend that most of our trips are on the severe service list because of traffic congestion and our often extreme temperatures.

“Manufacturers provide differing sets of recommendations for severe driving conditions because of the increased wear they put on vehicle components and fluids,” says Steve Benedict, director of AAA Tidewater Automotive Services. “With increased traffic congestion and longer commutes becoming more common, many motorists do not realize what they think of as normal driving is actually severe when it comes to wear and tear on their vehicle.”

Why is this so important? Maintenance schedules for severe driving conditions typically recommend having the vehicle’s fluids and filters changed on a more frequent basis, and more frequent inspections of some components.

In terms of your oil changes, moisture builds up in the engine oil from normal condensation. Short trips around Vernon Hills or driving when it’s really cold means that the engine doesn’t heat up enough for the moisture to evaporate. The water in the oil leads to oil sludge, which gums up your engine and doesn’t let the oil protect it as well. You need to change your oil more frequently to get the sludge out before it causes problems.

Towing, heavy loads and very hot Chicago summers means your engine and transmission will operate at higher temperatures and with more stress. The fluids will break down more quickly. Additives that clean and prevent corrosion will be depleted sooner. Dusty conditions, which may extend also to areas with high air pollution, mean that fluids will get dirty faster and that filters will plug up and won’t work right.

All of these things can lead to premature wear and repairs down the road. They’ll also hurt your fuel economy. The good news is that we’re watching out for you at Star Auto Authority. We take the time to ask about your driving habits and conditions, and we can customize your maintenance schedule to your needs. Plus, we inspect your vehicle with every visit, and that includes visually evaluating the condition of your fluids. If we see your coolant is brown or your transmission fluid is black before the recommended flushing interval, we’ll advise you of that. If you have any questions about your maintenance needs in between visits, don’t hesitate to contact us.

(Note: The AAA study was conducted as part of the 2008 AAA Car Care Month and included interviews with 841 U.S. adults, both AAA members and non-members, who currently own or lease a motor vehicle. Interviews were weighed by age, sex, geographic region and race to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total population, 18 years of age and older.)