Photo: What to check in a car (Getty Images) Author: Konstantin Shirokun
The arrival of spring means a change in the operating modes of the car, which means that it is very desirable to have a technical inspection. What to check first?
Read about the systems and units that you should definitely check in your car with the arrival of spring in the RBC-Ukraine article.
Why does a car ask for a checkup right now? Because at the beginning of spring, owners switch to more active driving – with high speeds, energetic acceleration and braking, and finally, with longer trips. And also because during the winter, a whole list of characteristic nuances traditionally accumulates in the car – not exactly malfunctions, but conditions for their occurrence.
Brakes
In any car older than 3-5 years, after winter, the brake system should be checked for the condition of the pads and their guides, which tend to get dirty and stick. To prevent the brake disc from overheating and the fluid from boiling, depriving the car of brakes, the guides should be cleaned, and the pads, perhaps, replaced. It is imperative to inspect the brake system pipes from below, because in a car about ten to 10 years old, corrosion has already settled on them – up to and including through corrosion, which again leads to an emergency situation.
Body
Corrosion is the worst thing that winter can do to a car. But this destructive process can be stopped. You need to carefully inspect the paintwork, especially at the bottom, on the underbody, in the wheel arches, and also on the lower edges of the doors and trunk lid. All damage to the paint should be repaired, otherwise rust will start on each chip and subsequently the part will have to be repainted at the very least, and in the worst case, repaired by welding. Damaged anti-corrosion coating on the underbody and under the wings also needs to be restored.
Chassis
The suspension of the wheels, brakes and transmission are not shy about immediately announcing their problems acquired in winter – with knocking, play and vibrations. But it will be better if these problems are identified at an early stage, when there is less risk that the car will start to be worse in handling and braking. Therefore, in the spring it is worth carrying out diagnostics of the suspension and steering. A separate very useful operation is checking and adjusting the wheel alignment angles (the so-called toe-in-camber). This is important for preserving the tire tread and again for adequate handling.
Transmission
When inspecting the chassis, special attention should be paid to vulnerable transmission elements – rubber covers of the CV joints (constant velocity joints) and other protective covers. These cute “accordions” are damaged not so much by ice blocks and random branches, but by time – they crack in the depths of folds and in other inconspicuous places. If you miss even a small hole, the joint will receive its death sentence: dirt, sand and water will “kill” it in less than a thousand kilometers.
Engine
Some problems in the engine compartment are visible to the naked eye: cracks in the cooling system hoses, low levels of working fluids in the tanks, salty dirt on the wires, belts and wiring connectors. Other possible problems can be identified by a professional serviceman who has a diagnostic scanner to read the parameters of the engine and all vehicle systems. In fact, if the car is working normally, computer diagnostics are not necessary, but at the same time it can reveal something that can subsequently, in the summer, lead to the failure of the car away from home.
Battery
Winter is strict with the battery, although it does not always report this to the owner. Many drivers-gardeners in winter usually do not fully charge the battery while driving, which is detrimental to its durability. Therefore, in the spring, the battery should be shown to an electrician so that he can determine the level of its discharge and the degree of degradation, and also check how successfully the car charges the battery. Listen to the recommendations of a professional on recharging from a stationary device and the operation of the on-board power supply system.
In brief
It is not without reason that large respected service stations often offer their clients a special set of services when the season changes – spring, to prepare the car for work in the warm season. The transition from frost, salt baths and slippery roads to warmth and high speeds should really be supported by checking the technical condition. The old engineering rule that a problem detected in advance will cost less, works in the most modern technology. After all, all unnoticed or delayed malfunctions will still make themselves known later, only in a more powerful form and at an inconvenient moment.
In preparing this article, materials from Autobild and Autocentre were used .
Let us recall that RBC-Ukraine recently reported why pedestrians are not always right.