Getting Your Vehicle Ready for Vacation
June 30, 2009 by Allison Davis
Filed under Blog
Good driving habits and basic vehicle maintenance can help keep you safe and on the road all summer long. In the summer months, gas prices often rise with the temperature. The heat can be extremely hard on your vehicle and your wallet.
“A driver’s goal should be to reach their destination safely and securely,” says Bryan Gregory, director of consumer education for Advance Auto Parts. “With the summer season, come the extremes of heat combined with stop and go traffic and longer trips. Just as you would apply sunscreen at the beach, you should also make sure your vehicle is prepared for the conditions that you will be traveling in.”
Gregory recommends taking a few minutes to check your vehicle from bumper to bumper, beginning with a quick peek under the hood. You can start by checking your headlights, be sure high and low beams are working properly and aimed correctly; air conditioning, check the drive belt and add refrigerant if necessary; change oil if it’s been at least 3,000 miles since last change, change oil filter, and check coolant (antifreeze) level. Next, check your belts for severe wear, fraying, or shiny burnished spots, replace if necessary. Check hoses for swelling and cracking. Check hose clamps for snug, and check the battery to make sure it is clamped down firmly and clean terminals. If you need help, you can stop at any Advance Auto Parts store to receive a free battery and charging system check up. Finally, inspect your tires by placing a penny head first into the tread; the tread should cover the top of Abraham Lincoln’s head. Check outside tread, middle tread, and inside tread depth. Replace worn tires, they have direct impact on your stopping and turning ability.
In order to be prepared for an unexpected break down, every vehicle should contain an emergency kit. “This kit should include items such as bottled water, non-perishable snacks, basic hand tools, a flashlight and flares,” says Gregory, “and if you have children, a source of entertainment that does not require power from the vehicle is a plus.”
Other quick preparations for any trip include wiping down all mirrors and making sure all windows are clean. You should also make sure to secure all luggage, as it could become airborne and cause severe injuries in severe braking. And don’t forget to check all your wiper blades in case of a sudden rain shower, many people forget about the rear wiper on min-vans and SUV’s.
Here are some fuel saving tips from Advance Auto Parts so you can spend less time at the pump and more time on the road:
| 1) | Change your air filter regularly: Your engine needs to breathe to create maximum power and efficiency. You should replace your air filter every 7,500 miles unless otherwise specified by the manufacturer. | ||||
| 2) | Proper tire pressure is the next largest influence on fuel mileage. Check the drivers’ side door post to see exactly what the tire pressure should be, then check all four tires weekly for best results. Tires that are under inflated create dramatically more rolling resistance. | ||||
| 3) | Use synthetic oil. Synthetic oil reduces internal engine friction, lubricate better, and reduce engine operating temperatures, all creating a more efficient power process and helping with fuel mileage | ||||
| 4) | “You definitely want to avoid idling when possible because you get zero miles to the gallon when sitting still,” Gregory said. “Also, be sensible about how long you warm up the car. For most cars and trucks, 30 to 45 seconds of warm-up time is sufficient.” | ||||
| 5) | Reducing a vehicle’s load by eliminating excess cargo, such as extra tires, equipment, bike or ski racks, saves gas also because for every 200 pounds of extra weight in a vehicle, fuel mileage is reduced by one mile per gallon. | ||||
| 6) | Keep fuel injectors clean by using an injector cleaner once or twice a year. When the fuel injector nozzle gets debris and buildup on it, it doesn’t spray the fuel charge as it was designed to. A simple injector cleaner added to the fuel tank a few times each year can help keep the injectors clean and efficient. | ||||
| 7) | Be sure your vehicle is in alignment. If it pulls to the right or to the left, it likely needs an alignment, or possibly some suspension work. When all four wheels are traveling down the road out of alignment, rolling resistance is created, not to mention rapid tire wear. Once the vehicle tracking is straight, it will help protect your investment, enhance safety, and improve fuel mileage. |
Chevron Launches Ultimate Roadtrip Giveaway
June 1, 2009 by Allison Davis
Filed under Blog
Chevron today announced the Summer Road Trip Giveaway, a national promotion featuring more than 40,000 prizes, including Chevron gas for a year, hotel stays, GPS units and five new cars. Beginning today at participating Chevron stations in the U.S., people can test-drive their luck by playing an Online Instant Win game and participate in the virtual Chevron Car Hunt contest with the chance to drive home a 2009 Chevrolet Malibu LS. The promotion runs June 1 through July 12, 2009.
People can enter the Summer Road Trip Giveaway by going to a participating Chevron station, getting a game card and registering to play online here. After entering their game card code, winners will be notified via email if they have won. More than 1,000 online instant-win prizes will be available daily. Prizes include three 2009 Chevrolet Malibu LSs, 39 chances to win Chevron gas for a year, 2,000 TomTom GPS units and 5,000 one-night stays at participating La Quinta Inns & Suites.
The one-time registration on the web site also gives participants an opportunity to enter the Chevron Car Hunt contest, where participants use online clues to locate hidden Chevron Cars in select cities, and then collect these virtual Chevron Cars by retrieving the car name and unique code online. The player who finds the most Chevron Cars in the least amount of time in a contest period is the winner of the grand prize – a 2009 Chevrolet Corvette 1LT Coupe.
“The Summer Road Trip Giveaway is an opportunity for us to reward our loyal customers, attract new customers and have a little fun at our stations around the country as Americans hit the road for summer,” said Danny Roden, vice president, Chevron Global Marketing for the Americas. “More than 40,000 Chevron customers will drive away with Chevron gas for a year, GPS units, hotel stays and cars.”
Roden added, “While the Summer Road Trip Giveaway gives drivers a good reason to fill up on Chevron with Techron this summer, cars need quality gas all year round. Chevron’s Techron Technology cleans vital engine parts and keeps them clean. With unsurpassed cleaning power in the engine’s intake system and the chemistry to help minimize harmful combustion chamber deposits, Techron Technology can help lower emissions and reduce knocking or loss of power during acceleration – whether drivers are taking their own ultimate summer road trip or commuting to work in the fall.”
