Essential Vehicle Maintenance: Tires

If you want to upkeep anything in your vehicle, the objectsthat keep your car rolling, and off the ground, should be at the top of thatlist. Tires are often overlooked because a car with bald tires can still drive,and replacing all four tires can be expensive. When your fuel pump or fuel pump assembly goes out, you have no choice whether or not you want to replace it because your car will not drive - bald tires can get you down the street and back, and the dangers always occur when it's too late. Nevertheless, keeping track ofthe condition of your tires, and keeping them properly inflated, can meanliterally life or death for the people in the vehicle. Here are a few tips tomake sure your tires will keep you and your passengers safe on the road.

The main cause of tire failure (when your tire goes flat orblows out) is the friction caused from moving contact with the road. Thiscauses the tread on the tires to wear away. When the tread becomes too shallow,the tire is worn out and should be replaced. Bald tires give you littletraction on the road, especially when the road is wet or icy. This means thedifference in you maintaining control of your vehicle, and not maintainingcontrol, is dependent on proper tread on your tires. One trick to check if youhave proper tire tread is to place a penny, with Lincoln’s head down, betweenthe tread of your tires. If Lincoln’s head isn’t completely covered by thetreads on your tires, they need to be replaced.

 

 Underinflation is very detrimental to your tires, and yourfuel economy. Not having enough tire pressure causes excessive wear on thetires, and gives you less control of your vehicle on paved roads. You shouldcheck your tire pressure regularly. To check your tire pressure, make sure yourtires are cool (so when the vehicle has been sitting for awhile.) If you needto go somewhere else to fill up your tires with air, check the tire pressurebefore you leave and fill up appropriately. You can find out the appropriatetire pressure for your vehicle by looking in your owner’s manual, the driver’sside door panel, the glove box door, or the fuel door.  Remove the cap from the valve on one tire.Firmly press the tire guage onto the valve. Add air to achieve the recommendedtire pressure. If you overfill a tire, release air by pushing on the metal stemin the center of the valve with a fingernail or the tip of a pen. Recheck thetire pressure, and then replace the valve cap. Repeat for your other tires,including the spare.

 Another important factor in maintaining your tires is yourvehicles alignment. When you are driving, does your car pull to one side, orshake? A bad jolt from hitting a curb or pothole can throw off your alignment.Have a tire dealer check your alignment regularly to make sure your vehicle isaligned properly. If the alignment is off it will cause your tire to wearirregularly, which can lead to tire blowouts.

You should also rotate your tires periodically, typicallyevery 5,000 miles. Naturally your front and back, left and right tires weardifferently on the road. By rotating your tires from front to back, left toright, you can ensure your tires wear evenly and lengthen the life of yourtires.

I find inspecting the tires while filling up at the gas stationis convenient. While the vehicle is filling up, you can check your tires forwear, visually check for proper inflation, and inspect for any debris that iscaught in your tire tread and can damage your tires. This way you will alwaysbe on top of properly maintaining your tires.

“Five Good Things” about the High Price of Gas

The price of gas is rising to an alarming level as of late.Just hearing the fuel pumpin the fuel pump assembly in my car kick on makes me nervous. It’s difficult to be anything other thandismayed at the current situation, but Insideline at Edmunds posted aninteresting take on five “good sides” to the insanely high price of gascurrently.

See how she's walking? Yay fitness!

 1. You can get in shape. With theprice of gas so high, you will supposedly forgo driving short distances towalking or cycling, so you can arrive a sweaty disgusting mess at work afterjogging 6 miles to get there.

2. You can learn to drive moreefficiently. You will no longer floor it to get around that special individualin a Prius on the freeway going 10 miles under the speed limit, because itwould cost you $1.25 to do so. You will patiently coast your vehicle behind thePrius and hope that you can safely and efficiently ease out from behind them byswitching lanes, and then increase speed slowly…. And not think how worth it itwould be to pay $1.25 to cut that special individual off.

3. You can “say goodbye to stress,traffic tickets, and accidents.” Theory is, practicing the above referencedefficient driving you will no longer be wildly weaving in and out of traffic,and your former habits of speeding will magically cease.

Take out a loan to fill this sucker up.

 4. You will be more inclined tosupport energy independence. Not being able to afford gas, you will bemotivated to take public transportation, ride a bicycle, or because you’re sobroke, fork out tens of thousands of dollars for an electric car (that useslithium batteries we are still dependent on other countries to source). Or youcan beg your boss to telecommute as an act of patriotism, because no one fearsfor their jobs already in this economy.

5. You now have a built in excuse foranything. Don’t feel like fulfilling familial obligations? Sorry Grandpa, Ican’t afford to drive to your birthday party. Friend asking you to move? Sorry,can’t afford to cart your stuff back and forth.

There you have it. Five excellent things about gas prices beingso high. Take them or leave them… I think I know which one I’m going with.

Bio-ethanol May not Be The Biggest Hit But it Packs a Punch

Over the past few years car companies have been pushing theuse of alternative fuels for vehicles. Most of these have gone unnoticed,mainly due to the fact that they are less potent than gasoline.  The fuel pump and fuel pump assembly areable to handle Ethanol without issue and the engines can as well.

The facts about Ethanol are easily seen, while the fuel maynot work well in normal engines but once a few key components are changed towork with ethanol…watch out! The main issue caused by the way ethanol ignites, newinjector timing and ignition are the main issues. Companies like Honda or Toyotahave not really tried to push this set up because the cost to the averageconsumer would be around $3000 and not many of us are just willing to drop thatmuch coin.

The companies that have been able to take advantage of theethanol change are companies like Ferrari or Koenigsegg. While most of us willnever be able to afford anything that these companies off…especially Koenigseggwho mainly makes cars that cost close to a million dollars, the technology isthere for the taking.  New technology isalways showcased in the more expensive cars and trickles down to the rest ofus, usually in the Mercedes S class. Ferrari recently released the FF which isa 4WD that makes 650HP but tune it for Ethanol and that number jumps to around875HP. That’s right no forced induction just a good tune. Koenigsegg tuned theAgera R from 927HP up to 1,100HP just by using Ethanol and there are many otherexamples of this fuel doing great things. Maybe sooner than later it willbecome main stream…oh and did I mention that it is a renewable fuel source.

The Tow Plow

The kids are screaming in the back seat so you look down topress play on your DVD Player, but when you look back up you see what appearsto be an out of control semi.  You panicand yell out, “HOLY FUEL PUMP! That truck has lost control.” I am here to informyou not to worry; it is all part of the show. This crazy device cruising down the highway is called the Tow Plow.  It’s a snow plow on steroids.  It can do the job of two and a half snowplows all by itself.  It makes the Mr.Plow look pathetic.

The Tow Plow is basically what it sounds like.  It is another plow that a normal snowplowtows behind it.  The operator of the snowplow can operate the tow plow with two controls.  One of the controls lifts and lowers theblade, while the other steers the device. The primary use of the Tow Plow is toclear highways with multiple lanes. It can do its job at speeds up to 55 milesper hour, and can also come equipped with the ability to drop sand, salt, or liquidcalcium chloride.

The Tow Plow was developed in Missouri but is currentlybeing used in several states, such as Minnesota, Utah, Maine, andPennsylvania.  Even though it costs a hefty$100,000, states say it makes sense to buy them, because it does the job of twoplows and two snow plow drivers.  Check out a video of the Tow Plow in action, CLICK HERE.

"C" You Later Low Gas Mileage

You know who worked really hard this year and deserves abreak? You’re fuel pump, that’s who.  Youtake for granted all the hard work the fuel pump assembly does for you.  Without it you wouldn’t get to work, or getto the in-laws for the holidays.  OK, somaybe in the second example we wish the fuel pump would stop working so wecould skip the in-laws. Nonetheless, they deserve a break.

It appears that Toyota is going to give the fuel pumps intheir new Prius C a huge break.  These fuelpumps are going to have a nice and relaxing job, since the new Prius C issupposed to get 83 miles per gallon. That’s a little bit better than the standard Prius model.  According to Toyota the Prius C will get thebest city fuel economy of any hyrbids that do not plug in.

The car was introduced last week at the Tokyo Motor Show asthe Toyota Aquas, but it will be officially introduced as the Prius C in thestates next month at The Detroit Auto Show. The cost will be somewhere around $21,700.  The car will have a 1.5 liter four cylinderengine to go along with its electric motor. The total horsepower of the vehicleis going to be around 98.  This is about40 horsepower less than the normal Prius and the Prius V.   

You will be able to buy this miniature Prius thisspring.  And, Toyota is forecasting that alot of you are going to buy it.  Theyexpect to sell 12,000 a month in Japan and hope to have a 20 percent increasein global sales this year.

What is an Oil Pump?

We all know what a cooling fan is. It is a fan that cools. We also now what a fuel pump is. It's a pump that pumps fuel. So, guess what an oil pump does? It is a pump that pumps Oil.  Woah, the answer to that question was moresurprising than the end of a M. Night Shyamalan movie.  Ok, so the oil pump sounds like a prettybasic part, but it plays a vital role in the operation of your vehicle.

The oil pump inside of an internal combustion engine is usedto lubricate the engine and reduce friction. The pump powers oil through bearings, sliding pistons, camshafts, and othersmall parts. The decrease in friction also means the cooling of pistons,bearings, and shafts. Failure to properly lubricate an engine will result inengine failure.  Now you see howimportant that cleverly named oil pump is.

The oil pump needs to be generating approximately 10 psi perevery 1000 revolutions per minute in order to properly lubricate the system.  If your oil pump is working well but you arestill having a low pressure issue, it may be caused by a clogged oil pickupscreen, too much wear on a high mileage engine, or you just need to add moreoil to your car.  Each car has differentoil requirements.  Higher performancevehicles put more stress on the system and they need more lubricating. 

There are basically three types of pumps, a twin gear pump,a Gerotor Pump, and an internal pump.  Atwin gear pump has one gear connected to a shaft that is driven by the camshaftor distributor.  A twin gear pump turnsat half the speed of the engine and is located inside the oil pan.  A Gerotor Pump has one small gear rotatinginside a larger one.  While an internalpump is a Gerotor style pump, an internal pump turns at the same speed of theengine so it creates a stronger flow. An internal pump design is used onoverhead cam engines.

Car Company to Close… I’m so Saab :(

Saab appears to have run out of gas. Not even a new fuel pump could save them now. The 74 year old car company filed for bankruptcy thismorning.   This news is likely to befollowed by the company announcing that it will shut its doors completely.  The only fuel pump that would rescue themwould be one that turns gas into gold.

Saabs’ last chance was to acquire $782 million in loans fromthe Chinese company, Zheijang Youngman Lotus Automotive, but General Motorsdenied the deal.  GM was a former owner,but still had a say in the deal because they supply parts to Saab.  Speculation was that GM objected to the loanbecause they worried that some of their technology would end up in Chinese competitors’hands.  However, GM came out and saidthat they were against the deal because it was, “not meaningful different,” fromprevious offers.

GM sold Saab to Swedish Automotive back in 2010.  Swedish Automotive is a Dutch company, whichis not at all confusing.  Saab did getsome funding back in June from a couple of Chinese companies, but they blewthrough that cash faster than my girlfriend spends her paycheck on BlackFriday.

There is still a slight chance that Saab will stillexist.  A new buyer could swoop in andbuy the remaining assets.  So, if you andyour friends have some extra cash lying around, feel free to group the cashtogether and go “Dutch” on the car company.

Fuel System Issues

Any car can be crippled with a fuel issue and it doesn’t matter how well you care for your car. The main issue to remember it may not always be the fuel pump or fuel pump assembly that is to blame. Many people get the news that their engine is not getting enough fuel and assume a fuel pump issue. In fact most mechanics will give the old “fuel pump don’t work” but believing this can be an expensive mistake. There are many parts in the fuel system that can cause an issue from leaking to low pressure.

If the fuel pump is bad there will be no pressure coming from the pump even if the mechanic were to hook direct power to the unit. A low pressure system may be caused by a blockage in the system or even low voltage from the alternator. A major cause of fuel issues is the FPR or fuel pressure regulator which is a unit that controls the flow of fuel to the injectors. If this unit were to function incorrectly it would cause low fuel pressure at the injectors and the car would have issues running and starting.

Cracks in the fuel lines and bad seals in meeting points can cause fuel leaks that can not only cause low pressure in the fuel system but can also be dangerous due to the highly flammable nature of the fuel.  If there is a fuel leak in the system it could be caused by old dry rotted line or cracks in the system from impacts of rocks and other debris from the road.

If the issue is tracked back to the fuel pump it may be a much smaller issue than the whole pump. If the wiring has a short and cannot get the proper voltage to the pump then the electric motor cannot function at full power and will not provide the correct pressure. Sometimes the voltage sent from the alternator is just too low and cannot power the pump unit enough. In the end it is better to check out the cause of the issue then just throwing in new parts and hoping it fixes the issue.

How to Wire a New Fuel Pump

Installing any auto part can seem like a simple job until you have your whole car torn apart and realize everything is not right. Many a shad-tree-mechanic get the shock of their week when they pull out a fuel pump only to find the wiring to the fuel pump assembly is different than theirs. The first reaction is of course …rage, those sons of $^&*#^’s but this may not be needed. Most modern cars use similar set ups for fuel pumps or updated wiring harnesses that are a simple 5 min wiring job.

Now before you start any job it is essential for you to know that the job is not out of your knowledge range. Just keep in mind this is a machine that will be hurling you down the road at enormous speed. It is not a great idea to be guessing at how it works. So it must be said, if you don’t know how…let someone who does. Oh and don’t ever smoke while installing a fuel pump. When starting the wiring job, determine what colors your factory wires are from the factory harness.  Once you have them you can find a wiring diagram usually supplied by the fuel pump supplier or on their webpage under the help section.

Most new aftermarket and even OEM fuel pumps use a GT280 style electrical piggy back. This unit is a more efficient connection than the older units and has less heat that it creates. The connector was redesigned to reduce the risk of fire and will be easily wired in. Once the wire colors are matched up, attach the wires and use screw on covers to be sure there are no exposed wires. Exposed wires means the chance of spark, spark can mean fire and in the eternal words of Phil Hartman “Fire BAD”.

With the whole new pigtail wired in the installation process is as simple as clicking the new clip into place and lowering the assembly into the tank. Now turn the retaining ring on the pump to secure it and you are good to go.