Getting started with your vehicle...

                                                
Just as you need food and regular checkup as human so does these machines too. To avoid having to go through lots of stress and spending your hard earned money, I would provide you with a list of things you should check at least twice in a week.
1) Always check your engine oil to know its quality and level
2) Always check your radiator coolant to make sure it still has its color and lubricating qualities (would point out why coolant should be used instead of water in later posts). DONT check your coolant from the radiator cap too often as this may damage the radiator cap, always         check it from your coolant reservoir bottle.
3) Check your brake fluid and make sure it is at its maximum level. (NB: never add more brake oil because for your brake fluid to reduce it can either mean that there is a leak in the system or your brake pads are gettin worn. Another reason not to add more brake fluid is that you dont really know whether the brake fluid in the system can coexist with the new one you are adding).
4) Physically inspect your tyres especially your spare to know its present condition.
5) Check your power steering fluid to make sure it is at the maximum indicated level to avoid your power steering pump from humming and seizing up.
6) Check your wiper blades for flexibility and effectiveness as this may save you during rainfall.
7) Check your battery terminal for crud/ corrosion and clean it up with a bottle of coke.(NB: I wont advice you to remove the battery because that can be catastrophic in some cars so just pour it moderately on d affected terminal)
8) Wash your car with the proper cleansers. Washing your car keeps it clean, shiny and free from corrosion. Remember to clean the interior too while you are at it.
9) Check your wiper washer fluid always, you never know it comes in handy!
10) Always check the condition of your lights to know if they are working, it could save you from dents!

Overheating in vehicles. Pros and cons....

      I would love to digress a little to a matter that affect lots of car owners nowadays. Newly bought vehicles in Nigeria  90% of the time is faced with the problem of overheating which can be caused a number of things which most times our mechanics handle wrongly...
       The first thing to watch out in an overheating car is a leaking radiator, checking if your radiator is leaking is a very easy job if and only if you have been using the correct type of coolant (green or the pinkish type) because if there is a leakage, it exposes it quickly to the user unlike water which dries off immediately it leaks.
        A leaking radiator might be as a result of impact on the radiator, an old radiator or possibly a worn radiator cap. Any of these way can easily be detected by just checking for leakages as stated earlier.
        Another major cause is if the water pump is leaking or faulty, if it is leaking you might easily see it in some cars but in other you might have to consult your technician for a proper diagnosis.
        An overheating vehicle can cause a lot of damme to your vehicle that would cost hundred of thousands  to fix. If by chance you are opportuned to notice any leaking part it is best to consult your technician and have it fixed.
         Also, when a vehicle is first bought NEVER allow you rmechanic to remove the thermostat and fix the fan stiff and let it run at engine speed. Why? Letting the fan run at engine speed limit the capacity of the fan to that of the engine whereas, fans on this kind of vehicles are usually viscous fan. Viscous fans runs mainly with air and is mostly found in longitudinally mounted engine where the belt drive is facing the radiator so the fan is partially driven by the engine speed.

"When the engine is cool or even at normal operating temperature, the fan clutch partially disengages the engine's mechanically-driven radiator cooling fan, generally located at the front of the water pumpand driven by a belt and pulley connected to the engine's crankshaft. This saves power, since the engine does not have to fully drive the fan.

However, if engine temperature rises above the clutch's engagement temperature setting, the fan becomes fully engaged, thus drawing a higher volume of ambient air through the vehicle's radiator, which in turn serves to maintain or lower the engine coolant temperature to an acceptable level.

      Would continue later . Contact me on 08037835119

A step closer to your vehicle....

     It's been a wonderful and quite stressful day, I will try and enlighten the public more on the OBD communication link with your car as promised. But first things first, hope everyone is in perfect shape and condition?
      The OBD system has a port on each and almost every car, in the earlier models of cars with this port  you would find it under the hood of your vehicle, that indicates that your vehicle is running on the OBD I system.
       On the vehicles with OBD II you would find the port at most 2 feet from the drivers seat, the positioning differs with each manufacturers and model. In any case that you find the port both under your hood and close to the driver's seat, you know that you have that communication system that is the transition between the OBD I and OBD II systems, some people call it OBD 1.5.
        Each of this systems has advantages over the other, taking a look at the first OBD system, the capabilities was a bit restricted,there were fewer sensors and communication protocols which gives a lot less access to every part of the vehicle.
       The regulatory intent of OBD-I was to encourage auto manufacturers to design reliable emission control systems that remain effective for the vehicle's "useful life". It started in California, people had to pass these emission test before their vehicles were registered.
     OBD 1.5 refers to a partial implementation of OBD-II which General Motors used on some vehicles in 1994 and 1995  but did not call it OBD 1.5, they simply have OBD I and an OBD II section in the manual.
      The OBD II is an improvement over the OBD I in both the range of scope and standardization. The OBD II goes into specifics, it also allows for a single device to scan different cars no matter what the connector(DLC) on your car looks like.

A world where your car talks to you.

      Every passing day, technology grows at a very fast rate influencing so many aspects in our life, earlier today a 2 yr. old kid was cured of the dreaded HIV disease. I couldn't help but imagine what life would be without technology. Phones, cars, planes, drugs,  e.t.c
      Just then as I was thinking about these new technology, a thought came to my mind..... How many Nigerians are actually making proper use of this technology? Is it ignorance or just simply our non-chalant attitude?
       The first car was produced in the year 1770 with a cugnot steam traction engine. Inventions after inventions, cars with more power, speed, beauty, body finish, trims were made. Now the era of cars with carburetors and injectors is in place, an era where to the layman cars have a mind of their own or maybe not.
       Cars nowadays come with the OBD DLC port which allows you with a scanner to pinpoint faults on your vehicle, imagine your cars telling you how worn your brake pad is? This system diagnostics has been in cars as far back as the early 90 's yet it's still a great mystery to us. Many people when told of such stuffs just listen amazed with their mouth wide open.
       The world of tech is constantly on the move, just recently the OBD III system was publicized although most cars still run on the OBD II system which at the moment let you communicate with the heart of your car. You get to know what's wrong with your car before you meet your mechanic, saves you time and a whole lot of money.
         This scanners for your vehicle goes for as low as 40,000# and I don't see that as too expensive for someone with a #2.5m vehicle.
         Would have loved to really go into details on things you can get from the scanner and other but I got to go now... I would get on with it in my next article. Have a nice day.
                                                                                                   Arabambi Yemi (2abet Autoworld)