Blog

Whew! We had a mild winter, which is always a blessing to be savored in upstate
New York, but now that Spring has sprung it’s time to make some adjustments to
your vehicle in order to prepare it for the warmer weather. To make life easier, we
at Vesas Automotive have put together a short list of basic vehicle checks that
can help you figure out just how much abuse your car took during the colder
months and help catch little problems before they blossom into big ones. And the
best part? You can check for these issues either in your driveway or during your
daily commute to work, so that’s a lot of precious time saved that you can better
spend outdoors (and without a coat on).

1.      Check your brakes
   1. Cold and damp winter weather can be murder on your vehicle’s brake
   disks, pads and rotors, so before you hop in the car to see the
   wildflowers, make a few short, long, and emergency stops and really
   pay attention to your brakes. A lot of noise or rough vibrations could
   mean the car is suffering from worn pads, or even the rotors could be
   losing their luster. With many vehicles, it’s possible to peak through the
   spokes of your wheels and visually inspect the pads but if you truly want
   to be sure, come in to Vesas Automotive and we’ll put our professionals
   on the job to give you a definite answer!
2.      Check your alignment
   1. After all of the rough­and­tumble driving through winter pot holes and
   icy roads, the alignment of your vehicle is one of the things that can
   suffer the most. Incorrect wheel alignment degrades vehicle handling
   and causes premature tire ware, resulting in the driver having to
   purchase new tires much sooner than he/she would have to do
   otherwise. Try this test: when driving, center the steering wheel so that
   your tires are straight. If you find that the car is pulling to one side or
   requires the steering wheel to be off­center for straight driving, bring it in
   to the Vesas shop and we’ll be happy to do an alignment for you.
3.      Check your tread
   1. Keeping an eye on your tire tread is something that should be done all
   year long, but it’s especially important when transitioning from one
   season to the next. Take a shiny new penny and ol’ Abraham Lincoln’s
   coin into the tread grooves head­first. If the tread doesn’t cover any
   portion of the president’s head, new tires are needed. A new season
   means different road conditions that you haven’t seen for over a year,
   so don’t set yourself up for trouble by not having traction when you
   need it!
4.      Check your battery
   1. Car batteries rely on chemical reactions to hold their energy, and the
   constant dramatic rise and fall of temperatures can deteriorate the
   battery to the point that this reaction fails completely. Look for heavy
   corrosion on the car battery terminals and pay attention to the time it
   takes to cold­start your vehicle. If there’s anything abnormal, bring it in
   for a thorough testing
5.      Check your coolant
   1. Keeping your engine cool is crucial to the longevity of your vehicle, and
   since we don’t often like to stand shivering the cold to check our fluid
   levels during winter, spring is the perfect time to pop the hood and
   check those coolant dipsticks. Thankfully most cars today are equipped
   with coolant sensors that can warn us if the coolant is low or not
   circulating properly but it’s important to never rely on gages for 100%
   accuracy, especially in older vehicles. If you do find you need to add
   more, always be sure to open the engine coolant cap only when your
   car’s engine is cool; engine coolant is under pressure and can be very
   dangerous to diagnose if the car has been running recently.