Essential Car Care

Looking back, people looking for street-smart yet luxurious cars can never go wrong with any of the Teana, the Camry or the Accord. These three have all what it takes to be smartly deluxe: safety (Intelligent lighting systems), security (engine immobilizers with rolling codes), performance (variable valve timings, cruise control options), styling (leather seats, woodgrain interiors accented with chrome), and convenience (profuse cup-holders, storage spaces, smart keys, rear air-conditioning vents, retractable shades, dual climate controls). Truly, these sedans are worth showing off, having their owners as proud parents of well-behaved “kids”.

(Taken from Business World Highlife magazine, Issue 30)

Restraint systems such as seatbelts, air bags and head restraints work along with the structure of the vehicle itself to protect passengers from serious crashes in an event of an accident. These restraint system keep us secure in our seats and shield us from impact during crashes when accidents occur.

• Head restraints are now required in the front seats of all passenger cars to keep your head from injuring your neck in a rear-end crash (usually whiplash-related injuries). Some head restraints are adjustable, while some are fixed.
• Seat belts are standard on all vehicles sold in America today. These secure us to to our seats during hard braking or in a crash, but seatbelts also allow mobility and of freedom of movement during normal driving.
• Airbags are a very important and very effective safety feature because it prevents us from hitting the dashboard or the steering wheel on the event of a crash.
• Side airbags are designed principally to protect your chest and keep your head from hitting interior or intruding structures.

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When you have decided to give your car a wax, it only means that you have reached the level where you already have appreciation to your car. The remarkable power and quality of the appearance brought about by a carefully waxed car can make a compelling illusion that is really surprising to behold. If the car is not given a coat of wax, there is a risk that the car will be exposed to harsh elements. At the same time that when the car is exposed to undesirable conditions, an early corrosion of the car paint may occur. Some people wax their cars just to appreciate the beauty of it while others do it as additional protection and care for their cars.

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Back to the Basics as many of us seem not to realize the danger that driving without the proper knowledge is crazy and irresponsible and practically dumb for you and your car.

As We all know, we, drivers have our fair share of a stalled vehicle experience, on the side of the road, at what is you or your car by any chance get hit by oncoming traffic because of the mere fact the other driver can’t see your broken down vehicle.

And this is were EWD or an Early Warning Device is very Helpful.

The Explanation : Driving Safety : The EWD (Early warning Device)

For those who didn’t know they have two colors, one yellow and one red, why, well the yellow one is supposed to be placed about twenty feet farther than the red one which is supposed to be placed at least ten feet from the stalled vehicle. The yellow one attracts drivers of on-coming traffic that there is something wrong. just in case they don’t see the yellow one, the red one comes into view which means, “MY CAR’S BROKEN DOWN, GET OUT OF THE WAY!” They are now made of plastic which also serves a purpose, when on-coming traffic does not see them and runs them over, it will catch their attention and alert them that something is wrong ( I assure you that they would notice it) and hopefully get them to steer away from your car in time. Hopefully even if they run over the plastic triangles it catches their attention enough for them to get them to avoid hitting your stalled vehicle and injuring you both in the process.

For the year 2007, a triple threat of sedans came out to outdo each other. First, the Nissan Teana: it’s unmistakably a head-turner with its metallic sapphire blue shade. It’s a quiet ride going on at 170-horsepower and 2.3 liters, which proved to be above satisfactory. A favorite feature of the Teana would be the onboard monitor which gives out a number of important information: mileage specifications, temperature, approximated fuel range and the like. It also has a rear camera that provides video feedback for safe turns while on reverse. The sunroof is a cool bonus, not to mention the spacious leg room.

(to be continued)

When Shiro Nakamura, an international artist and musician, became Nissan’s design chief, he has pushed that the company must be “looser and more creative” with their design concepts. Nakamura saw to it that hindrances between design and development were remedied and from then, engineers and designers were collaborated, and not anymore waiting on each other.

Koji Nagano, Nissan’s project design director, notes that, “Design is very emotional stuff.” On a more personal take, Nagano feeds his creativity with art and music. He shares in particular that he has a large aquarium at home and relates that the fish help him see colors he never saw before. “It is very organic, how the colors interact with one another.”

As with Nissan, a growing number of car designers aimed their “creative fires to animate cold, lifeless metal”. With the aesthetics and design in mind, it is best to also keep the end user in mind.

(Taken from Business World Highlife magazine, Issue 31)

Ahhh.. This is the fault of watching Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift too many times, I want to drift but don’t know where to start. So First of all, what is drifting? Wikipedia defines drifting as:

Drifting refers either to a driving technique, or to a sport based on the technique; this article deals primarily with the sport. When the rear slip angle is greater than the front slip angle, and the front wheels are pointed in the opposite direction to the turn (e.g. car is turning left, wheels are pointed right), and the driver is controlling this, the car is drifting.

And now the moment you’ve all been Waiting for.. The Video from Youtube

Remember.. Safety First…

Jaren Cudilla Posted This really awesome Post on StudyDriving.com : Going On a Road Trip and now this is a good reminder for us and we can make this as a basic checklist template.. whenever we’re planning a roadtrip. Exciting, yes.. I love roadtrips. It’s an escape from the realities of life. Driving makes me happy inside. Driving is my Inner Peace.

Going on a Road Trip? Here are tips for a safe, pleasant, worry-free road trip.

Before planning a road trip, make sure to have your car checked or serviced first, things like under the hood (the car battery, A/C, Engine Oil) and under the chassis (shocks, align wheels, as well as the exhaust systems)

Now on the actually going to the road trip part, Before leaving make sure you check :

1. Check the Brake Fluid Level. Fill up to the recommended level
2. Radiator coolant Level. Fill up to the recommended level
3. Window wiper Washer Level. Fill up to the recommended level
4. Check Brake lights, Headlights, foglamps, and always bring a spare bulbs
5. Check Fuses, bring spare fuses
6. Fuel tank. A full tank is wise choice
7. Check tire pressure. Inflate to recommended level
8. Check your spare tire, set of car tools, Early warning Device, First aid kit
9. Maps

Simple Tips I’ve learned from driving on long road trips

1. Bring Water for all the passengers.
2. Eat light snacks to keep you alert
3. To keep you charged, drink energy drinks, soft drinks, or fruit juices.
4. Don’t drive all the way take short breaks to stretch your muscles, If you have a replacement driver even better.
5. Whenever you feel sleepy, take a rest or switch with your co-driver.
6. Listen to a happy driving song, ( I listen to Gin Blossoms & Better than Ezra, whenever I go on a road trip)

Lastly, Have fun and Safe Road Trip.

One of the most important car maintenance tasks you should do regularly for your automatic transmission cars is to check the automatic transmission fluid.

1. Park the car in a level spot. Start the engine. The shifter must be in the “park” position.

2. Pull out the transmission dipstick. Consult your manual to know where you can find it. Wipe it off with a clean lint-fee rag. Insert the transmission dipstick back carefully.

3. If the car has just been used, the fluid level should be at the upper end of the HOT indicator, while if the engine’s not been running long, then it should be at the COLD end of the dipstick. The general rule is that brownish and blackish liquid must be replaced as soon as possible, but do check your manual just to be sure.

Ever noticed your neighbor’s dogs peeing on your all aluminum mag wheels, then wash it out immediately for the high salt content in their pee tends to eat away aluminum. This could lead to problems such as rusting at the wheel nuts and corrosion in the underside of the rims that can render them ugly and even lead to failure. Wash away debris and pee off the wheels so they don’t affect the appearance, you can also tell the neighbor so they get down to cleaning it for you as it’s their dog that did the thingy’.
Dogs have an insatiable appetite to mark their territory and having smelled scent from another dog triggers them to mark it over with their own product. This is bad news for alloy and aluminum wheels for it can find any kinks in the clear coat of the wheel rim (clear coat lacquer) that protects it from the elements. Getting some wiggle in your steering lately, might be some debris caught in the inner part of the rim you can’t see. Get the wheel taken out and better yet rotated so they wear out evenly. Have the service guy clean out the wheel to get rid of road tar and other contaminants which may be sticking to the other parts of the rim and wheel. Try some pepper oil and spray it onto the wheels, dogs hate it (produces a burning sensation onto their tender noses) and it’ll sure teach them not to do their business on your beautiful and shiny wheels.