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Timing Belt Replacement in Wilmington

Today we want to talk to Wilmington drivers about timing belts. They're something that many drivers don't know much about and yet your vehicle won't run if it's broken – and it could cause many thousands of dollars damage if it does break. A broken timing belt is usually a tale of woe. Even though timing belt replacement is scheduled in the owner's manual, it's not the kind of thing that most Wilmington area auto owners remember because it's not well understood.Let's review what a timing belt does. As most know, the engine's power is generated in the cylinders. A piston rides up and down in the cylinder. During the first down stroke, an intake valve at the top of the cylinder opens and air and fuel is drawn into the cylinder. Then the piston returns to the top, compressing the fuel and air mix. At the top, the spark plug fires, igniting the fuel, pushing the piston down in the power stroke. As the piston once again returns up in the final stroke of the cycle, an exhaust valve op ... read more

Categories:

Parts

Clean Fuel Equals Clean Performance for Wilmington Drivers

Hello, Wilmington residents. Let's talk fuel filters. Fuel filters clean the dirt, dust and debris out of your fuel. Both gasoline and diesel-powered engines have them. The fuel filter is located in the fuel line between the fuel tank and the engine.Wilmington auto owners don't need to filter their fuel because it has lots of grit in it; they need to filter it because it has some grit it in. Any dirt is bad for your engine. The cleaner the fuel, the better your vehicle engine will run.Over time, the small amounts of rust, dirt and contaminants in your fuel settle out inside the fuel tank. After about five years, this can amount to a quite a bit of sediment. This means that as your vehicle ages, your fuel filter has to work harder to screen your fuel: more sediment in your tank means more potential for grit in your fuel.The harder your fuel filter works, the more often it needs to be replaced. Check with your owner's manual to find out how often it should ... read more

Categories:

Fuel System

Keep Your Cool in Wilmington: Air Conditioning Services

  Most Wilmington drivers don't even think about their air conditioner. Now here's a tip for Wilmington vehicle owners: Run your air conditioner every so often during Delaware winters. This circulates the lubricant to help keep the seals from drying out. The air conditioner actually removes some of the moisture in the air. So if you have trouble with fogging on your vehicle windshield during Delaware winters or during a rain storm, running the A/C on the defrost setting should help. Now on some Wilmington cars you can't run the A/C at the same time as the defroster. Don't ask me why, but I suspect lawyers were involved.Also, air and water can get into the A/C system. That can reduce the efficiency of the system and also lead to corrosion that causes damage. Wilmington drivers should periodically purge the system and replace the refrigerant to remove the air and water.Delaware dri ... read more

Categories:

Air Conditioning

Save Fuel by Watching Your Weight

Most Wilmington drivers are all talking right now. Better gas mileage. Fewer emissions. Delaware folks want to save the environment and our pocketbooks.And we Wilmington drivers all know — or should know — that preventive maintenance will help maintain maximum fuel efficiency. But is there something more we can do? After all, some of us Wilmington road warriors can't cut back on our driving, and others would like to do more to economize.Weight is one major enemy of fuel economy. The more you lug around in your vehicle, the more fuel you have to burn to get around Wilmington. And that means buying more gas and producing more emissions.Of course, your vehicle's weight isn't negotiable. And you can't do much about the weight of your passengers. And this isn't an article about diet and exercise.But look around your car. Are you hauling a bunch of unnecessary weight while driving around Wilmington? Do you really need your golf clubs ev ... read more

Categories:

Fuel Economy

How to Know When to Change Your Oil at PONTE'S AUTOCARE

Today in the PONTE'S AUTOCARE auto care blog, we're going to talk to Wilmington drivers about oil change intervals. It seems that as engine technology advances, oil change intervals become longer for PONTE'S AUTOCARE customers. For example, recently four of the world's largest vehicle manufacturer's shortened the published intervals for several of their engine models. They originally published intervals that extended out to a much as 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers).In real world Wilmington driving, the oil started to sludge up before the recommended change interval. Oil sludge is a thick jelly-like substance: quite literally petroleum jelly – like Vaseline. This goop was clogging vehicle small engine passages so the oil wouldn't flow to some parts of the engine. This resulted in engine damage. We see it too often at PONTE'S AUTOCARE in Wilmington.The vehicle manufacturers began to offer an extended warranty to cover sludge damage. But there was a catch: the vehi ... read more

Categories:

Fluids

Fuel Saving Tip: Dirty Oil in Your Wilmington Vehicle

If you're a quart low in your vehicle, there isn't enough motor oil to lubricate your engine properly. The extra friction causes drag that reduces fuel economy while you're driving around the Wilmington area.The same goes for dirty oil; it doesn't reduce friction properly. The result is you get to watch those numbers at your local Wilmington gas pump rolling higher and higher.The transmission also needs the proper amount of clean fluid to do its work. When it's in need of service, the transmission drags your fuel economy down.So keep it clean at PONTE'S AUTOCARE  and give yourself a fighting chance. PONTE'S AUTOCARE 2401 Concord Pike Wilmington, Delaware 19803 302

Categories:

Fuel System

Why People in Wilmington Hesitate to Get Their Vehicle Serviced

A recent report stated that over 80 percent of the vehicles on our Wilmington, Delaware, roads have one or more service or repair that's needed but hasn't been taken care of. Now that's a lot of undone service. That translates into something over 160 million vehicles in North America alone. Some of the neglected items are minor. Others are serious safety concerns.There are several reasons we hesitate to take care of recommended services, especially services that our Wilmington automotive advisor recommends when we're in for something else, like an oil change.The first issue boils down to comfort with car care. We don't always feel we know enough to make good decisions. Some of that can be attributed to the fact that vehicles are so reliable these days. They almost become an appliance. Of course you love your vehicle, but if you don't have to worry about it breaking down all the time, you're not forced to think as much about preventive main ... read more

Categories:

Inspection

The Maintenance Free Myth

Sometimes we hear people in Wilmington say, "What's up with all this maintenance stuff? Modern cars just don't break down." While it is true that today's vehicles are extremely reliable, they are also becoming increasingly complicated and use more exotic materials than ever before. All that complexity demands higher tolerances for everything. For example, most Wilmington drivers don't realize how high tech automotive fluids have become,  fluids such as engine oil, transmission fluid, coolant and brake fluid.Did you know that a modern engine would not run for more than a few months using motor oil formulas from 30 years ago? Today's automotive fluids contain a much higher percentage of additives to protect your vehicle's components from premature wear and corrosion. Time and distances march on for all of our cars. Please don't think we're using scare tactics to get you to take care of your maintenance - but here are some personal stories we've heard ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Are Modern Vehicles Maintenance Free?

In our auto video today we'll be talking with Alan Peterson about myths surrounding automotive maintenance. You can lump these myths into the statement that "modern vehicles are so reliable, they are virtually maintenance free."Any good myth has some elements of truth. No offense to Wilmington Bigfoot fans, but this maintenance-free myth has more evidence than most. If we look at some isolated areas of auto maintenance, we could conclude that maintenance isn't so important. But other areas would just as easily lead you to believe that maintenance is more important than ever.Here are some examples for our friends in Wilmington. Some vehicles in Wilmington no longer require chassis lubrication. They're made with self-lubricating materials and have sealed joints. There's literally no way to grease those joints. -Chalk one up for the myth.On the other side, some vehicles come with sophisticated variable valve timing. A lot of complicated parts are up ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Wheel Bearings

Why are wheel bearings for Wilmington vehicles important? It's simple: your wheel bearings keep the wheels on your vehicle. In today's PONTE'S AUTOCARE post, we'll discuss more about wheel bearings and how you can make sure they can do their very job while you drive around Wilmington, Delaware. Wheel bearings are pretty simple parts. They're made of high quality steel and are engineered to last 100,000 miles (160,000)  or more if properly cared for. The bearings do two jobs: First, they allow the wheel to freely rotate with as little friction as possible. Second, they support the weight of the vehicle. For example, if your car weighs 3,600 pounds (1600 kilogram), each wheel has to support approximately 900 pounds (400 kilograms). That's a lot of heavy lifting over those long distances.Even though wheel bearings are pretty straightforward, they need to be in near perfect condition to do their job for Wilmington vehicles. The bearings are packed with heavy grease to ... read more

Categories:

Tires and Wheels
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