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In a lot of parts of the country, the winters are tough enough that all-season tires just won’t get the job done. All-season tires are a compromise; they offer good year-round traction with a quiet ride, good handling and road manners. They tend to perform well in wet weather and light wintry conditions, but when the snow is more than a couple of inches deep, all-season tires are out of their league. That’s when it’s time to consider winter tires.  Today’s winte...

You go out to your car, start it up, pull out of your parking space and see a puddle of...something...where you were parked a moment ago. This is never a good feeling. What could it be?  Fortunately, some automotive fluids are dyed different colors to make this a little easier to narrow down.  Does it appear to be water? Were you recently running your A/C? Chances are that's just condensation from the A/C system, which drips out through a rubber tube and is perfectly norm...

Some people love winter. They love the snow, the snap in the air, the short days and cozy nights at home. Others can’t stand it, for many of the same reasons. Regardless of whether you love it or hate it, though, chances are you’re going to have to get out and drive in it at some point. We’ve got a few suggestions to help you through the winter safely: • Make sure you’ve got a well-maintained car. This includes fresh windshield wipers, proper tire inflation, a s...

Your tires are a pretty big investment. Even with the cheapest set of tires, you’re going to be spending upwards of $400 on the tires, mounting, balancing, disposal fees and taxes. Since you laid down that kind of money, doesn’t it just make sense to make sure you get the most miles possible out of them? Here’s some advice on long tire life: • Regularly check your tire pressure. This one is really, really important. Underinflated tires will wear unevenly and...

The tire is such a commonplace item -- it's on every car, every truck, every bicycle, every aircraft. It's easy to not give the tire a second thought, but like every other technology, the tire has an interesting history of advances and failures.  In the 19th century, carriages and wagons used steel strips for "tires" on their wheels, with the punishing sort of ride that you'd expect. In later years, they were shod with strips of natural rubber, which was an i...

For some, the idea of an "organized car" is almost blasphemous, but having your vehicle set up so you can actually find things can be pretty nice. The bigger the vehicle -- minivans, SUVs -- and the more people they haul, the more disorganized they can get. Don't let your minivan turn into a rolling dumpster -- here are some great ideas for keeping it organized.  -- While newer vehicles have come a long way in terms of driver and passenger ergonomics and an abundance of c...

Differential Service – Why Is It Important?  Of all the various things on a vehicle that need regular service and maintenance, the differential is too often neglected. But what exactly is it, and what does it do?  Visualize a rear-wheel-drive vehicle making a right-hand turn. As the car turns to the right, the left rear wheel will have to actually cover a longer distance and spin at a different speed than the right wheel. If the rear axle was delivering the same torque ...

There are so many tire designs on the road -- all-season, high performance, touring, light truck -- and even within a specific tire design, there may be several choices of tread patterns. What differentiates them, and what are the pros and cons of each tread design?  -- Directional tread has a pattern of grooves and chevron shapes, all pointed in one direction. This design makes it easy to direct water away from the tire's contact patch and prevent hydroplaning in wet wea...

In a perfect world, all four tires would wear out at the same time. In the same perfect world, everyone would be able to afford a whole set of tires all at once. Unfortunately, things often just do not work out that way. Sometimes you may just have to replace tires as you can afford them, one or two at a time, but there are some important things to bear in mind if you have to do that. If you can only afford to replace one or two tires, it’s essential that you go with tires that a...

Buying a used car is somewhat less of a crapshoot than it was at one time. You can get detailed information on a vehicle's history via the CARFAX report, and a technician can use onboard diagnostics to get a good picture of what's going on under the hood and what problems might be coming up.  It's always a good idea to get a mechanic to look over any prospective purchase, but there are things you can get a look at yourself before you spend the money for a professional inspe...