Are you one of those people who have a love affair with the automobile? Do your eyes widen at the sight of chrome and lacquered layers of custom paint? Does your pulse quicken at a hint of extra horsepower? If you have these symptoms you may have the custom-car virus. If so, you’re probably not looking for a cure but you might appreciate a treatment that addresses your symptoms.An extra dose of

Early autos required auto maintenance, too. The automobile has played a significant role in American society. With Henry Ford’s development of the assembly line, even someone with a moderate income could afford to purchase a car. With their new car, they had new options. For starters, they didn’t have to live within walking distance of their place of employment. Imagine if you didn’t

I was probably about 12 when I caught the bug. I collected hotrod cards: just like baseball cards but with pictures and statistics about dragsters. I was just outgrowing MatchBox and Hot Wheels, replacing them with building plastic models. With the models, I was able to build the cars I dreamed of owning one day when I was old enough to drive. Of course, I only built models of hotrods. While building

There’s something about cruising on the open road – a kind of freedom you feel as the mile markers go by, local radio stations fade in and then fade out as they’re replaced by other local stations that track your route as the aural equivalent of mile markers. Whether you’re headed north, south, east or west – sometimes, it’s just great to get away. And, when you get back, folks will ask

The ad for new tires says $55. That’s not too bad, though four times $55 is $220. Then you have the other associated fees that run the price even higher – new valve stems, mandatory disposal fees for the old tires, etc. Oh, and did you notice the part of the ad where it reads “Starting at …” What does that mean?What that means is that $55 is for tires a little bigger than those on the wheelbarrow

You’re used to seeing road along this stretch. Today, however, you see water instead. You slow to a stop as you contemplate the million-dollar question – “Can I drive through this water?”When water covers the road, as is the case recently with heavy rains, we occasionally find ourselves faced with the question above. It’s terribly inconvenient when the road is blocked. We come to depend

If you don’t drink and drive, if you don’t text and drive, you’ve reduced two of the major factors that, as a result, could find you in an accident. Of course, there’s always the question of whether the ‘other’ driver was drinking or texting. Still, considering that somewhere around half of all auto accidents occur because of impaired driving, this is a significant way to improve your

“Winter potholes make driving here in the Midwest a brutal experience for cars and vehicles,” said Denny Norton, owner of Ringwood based Performance Unlimited auto repair shop. “Winter roads tend to knock a car’s alignment out of whack while roughing up your shocks, struts, steering and suspension.” Considering, Norton said spring is the best time of year to check out your alignment,

“Hey Cal, what’s with the long face?”The other day I had a dream. It was April 1. We all know the significance of that date – the one day each year where we celebrate the practical jokers among us.In my dream, I ran into an old friend I hadn’t seen a long time. He appeared anything but happy, hence the question above.When I asked the question, Cal walked over to his car and said, “Watch

The Midwest is not kind to your car’s shock absorbers, particularly in the winter. Snow, ice, salt and cold temperatures conspire to pockmark the roadways leaving nasty potholes everywhere as though we had an infestation of gigantic moths chewing at the asphalt and concrete. While one individual solution would be to move south where the winters aren’t as harsh, as long as we’re here, and since