This WWII B-17 landing at Chicago Executive Airport has four air-cooled engines. The cars on the road below, however, must have quality coolant and cooling systems. Some piston-engine aircraft are air cooled. The engines have oil to reduce friction within but no coolant. That’s not a problem for the aircraft as aircraft don’t get caught in stop-and-go traffic while flying. The air is constantly

What kind of winter will we have here in Northern Illinois and McHenry County? Some are predicting a harsh winter this year – bitter cold and lots of snow. Hopefully, they’re wrong. But, what if they’re right? Are you prepared? Is your vehicle prepared? Preparation starts with having the right clothes and making arrangements for snow removal – either a good shovel and strong back, a snow blower

It’s comforting to know your car is ready for winter, assuming it is. Sure, we have a little while yet before we have to seriously worry about sub-zero temperatures and falling snow. But, if your car isn’t ready to start when that time comes, on a frigid day only a few months away, you don’t have to stand in a walk-in freezer wearing shorts and an Hawaiian shirt to know it will be cold. When

You’re driving down the highway thinking about work, those cute shoes you’ve finally decided to buy at the store or, maybe, that it would be nice to go out for dinner tonight. The last thing on your mind is the variance between your speed and the speed limit.Just then, you notice the nose of a white car off the side of the road behind a large clump of bushes. As you draw closer, you see the lights

Good vision is a nice thing to have when you drive. It’s extremely helpful in avoiding accidents. With good vision, it’s easier to notice potential problems while you drive. With impaired vision, your awareness is diminished.A child runs into the road after a ball. Do you see the child in time to stop or swerve away? A truck at an intersection runs a red light into your path. Will you recognize

Not too many years ago, car owners expected to get about 30,000 miles out of a set of spark plugs. Today, with advances in automotive design, 100,000 miles or more is not uncommon.Spark plugs are an essential part of a combustion engine found in most automobiles. They are designed to fire an arc of electricity across two contact points. That arc initiates an explosion of compacted air and fuel particles.

“Hey, Hey!!” yells Jack Brickhouse over the car radio as Willie Smith slaps a three-run, 3rd-inning homer to help propel the Cubs to another division-leading victory. It’s July 12, 1969, and the temperature is nearing 90-degrees here in the Chicago area. Of course, you have your car windows down. Rolling the windows up on a day such as this is just crazy. Inside the car would quickly turn into

With some exceptions, motorcycle riders make better drivers. The skills they develop and refine to stay safe on motorcycles translate to behind-the-wheel driving, too. In a sense, those skills are the antithesis of the level of attention drivers have while texting. To put it simply, qualified motorcycle riders are hyper attentive when compared to many drivers of automobiles.Hyper-attentive driving

What do you have planned for this summer? Are you going somewhere on vacation? Will you drive there? Maybe you’re not taking an extended trip but still planning to make same day-long excursions. In either case, you’re certainly expecting to have a good time at your destination. You may even expect to enjoy the drive.The last thing you want to deal with while driving to the Milwaukee Zoo, fishing

You missed McHenry’s Green Street Cruise Night last week? That’s a shame. After all, a good time was had by all – hot cars, entertainment, good food. If you’ve attended Green Street Cruise Night before, which means that you’ve attended the annual summer event last year, or a previous year, you know what that means.Green Street Cruise Night is the equivalent, for automotive enthusiasts,