Guide to Spruce Up Your Car for Spring

Winters in the Northeast can be brutal, but luckily spring is right around the corner.  Grieco’s

Here’s a Spring discount & a quick 10 step guide to help you get your car spruced up this spring:

car spray

Body

1. Make sure that you clean all of the salt from your car, but especially the undercarriage . Salt wreaks havoc on cars, eats paint,  hastens rust damage and is bad for maintaining your car’s appearance in general. From home if you own a garden hose try to get the pressure as high as possible to wash away as much grime as you can. If you opt for a car wash make sure that they don’t use recycled water.

spring-car-cleaning-tire-treads-penny

Tires

2. Pressure changes occur at about 1 pound per square inch for every 10 degree Fahrenheit shift in temperature . Rubber contracts in the colder winter month weather and expands in warmer summer months. Rotate tires every 5-10 thousand miles- or with every oil change.  Also be sure to remove snow tires and switch them out for spring.  Driving on snow tires unnecessarily in summer months wears out the tread for when you need them. Store them in the garage. Your snow tires will last longer, you and your family will be safer, and you’ll  save money in the long run by preserving the treads.

Wiper Blades & Fluid

3. Clean your windshield wiper blades & make sure to fill your fluid reservoir. Don’t wait for a rain storm to find out that winter road salt ate the rubber or there’s a mechanical error. Fill the windshield wiper fluid reservoir and replace your radiator fluid.

Change Your Oil

4.  Change oil (& your car’s) oil filter every 3 thousand miles or every 3 months, whichever comes first. Check the manufacturer’s manual- some car producers recommend using heavier oil in summer to protect the engine. They also have special oil for high mileage cars.

Change Your Filters

5. Change your air filter. A Care Care council study suggests it can improve engine performance up to 10%. It’s an easy fix and costs under $10.

Cooler System

6. Flush and fill your engine cooling system. It’s the cheapest insurance you can get against engine failure (and change your oil religiously- you don’t want to throw a rod).

Check Radiator & Gas Caps

7. Check your radiator & gas caps. Replace the radiator cap when you flush the cooling system. a tight cap keeps pressure on to keep the engine cool, a loose cap releases the pressure. Sealing your gas cap also helps save on gas by lessening evaporation.

Battery & Spark Plugs

8. Check your care battery and spark plugs. Make sure that the battery’s posts, platform and electrodes are free of corrosion. Dip a Q-tip in vinegar to remove some of the loose corrosion from the nodes and cables. Spark plugs fire millions of times every couple hundred miles, and when they get dirty or overheated they waste gas.
Vacuuming car

Clean Inside

9. Clean the trunk, and cabin. Excess weight wastes gas and can throws car off balance and out of alignment. Vacuum the inside. If you don’t own a shop vac, go to a gas station. Most service stations have industrial strength vacuums for $1 every 90 seconds. Make sure to have a quality spare, a doughnut is OK but an actual tire is better. Also keep on-hand: a jack & lug wrench, blanket, some water and something non-perishable to snack on while you wait for help if something happens.

Clean Outside

10. Finally, wash and wax the outside of your car. Dish soap and a garden hose with either a shirt, towel or soft sponge works well. Coca Cola shines up chrome and removes rust  for classic models
spring clean car care
Spring Car Care