As we discovered last week, snow can fall even when we don’t expect it. Few would have guessed that the first snowfall – not just a few flakes but snow that would accumulate on the ground and the roads, would arrive the last day of October. It just seems a tad early. But whenever snow falls, it forces adjustments on the wiser drivers in the Richmond area. Not everyone makes these adjustments. Some

They're creepy and they're kooky Mysterious and spooky They're all together ooky … And they’ll be on the streets of Wonder Lake today ready to scare the pants off you … while filling their bags with those oh-so-sweet tributes. That’s right; today is Halloween: Trick or Treat, the annual festival celebrating the carving of pumpkins, the wearing of scary costumes, consumption of large sums

Winter in McHenry is rough on your car’s engine, charging system and battery, tires, shocks, suspension, steering and brakes. It’s tough on every aspect of your car, truck or SUV, including one aspect not listed above: a McHenry winter is tough on your car, truck or SUV’s finish, too. You have all that snow and ice falling and spreading on your car, truck or SUV. Then it lays there on that

One way to ensure your car, truck or SUV will start this winter is to keep it in your McHenry garage. But, inevitably, you’ll have to go somewhere this winter. You’ll drive your vehicle to the store, to the office, to school, to your friend’s house, to a party. And your car, truck or SUV will wind up sitting out in the cold until you’re ready to return home. Starting your car in winter will

Snow tires are a great idea, too When you want to go, you press the gas pedal and you go. When you want to stop, you press the brake and stop. At least, that’s the plan. Give the gas pedal too much sudden pressure and instead of ‘going’ your tires will spin and you won’t go much at all until you let off the gas. If you’re going too fast when you hit the brake, you may find that stopping

Winter creates two primary problem for driving in and around McHenry. One problem is traction. The roads get slick and it’s often difficult to maintain the kind of control of your car, truck or SUV that you enjoy in warmer seasons. Today, however, we’re focused on another problem – vision. The windshield and windows frost in the winter. Snow and ice build up on the glass impeding your view.

With the exception of a couple rainy days, we’ve had some amazingly mild temperatures here in Johnsburg lately. It’s difficult to think of days when you’ll need to turn on the car, truck or SUV’s heater. Today, you’re more likely to use the air conditioning. But those cold days ARE coming. When the cold arrives, you’ll want to turn the temperature control knob from blue to red – from

Last week, this blog focused on the importance of maintaining fresh coolant/antifreeze in your car, truck or SUV with the approach of winter. Yes, we have some time yet, but it is coming. This week, this blog will focus on the other essential fluids you need to maintain your vehicle with the approach of another blustery McHenry County winter. What ‘other’ fluids are we discussing? There are several

Remember that Polar Vortex that crept through the Midwest and McHenry last January? Of course, you’d rather forget that experience, especially with another winter in the offing. Few of us enjoyed the blast of cold that wrapped the region in a deep, bone-chilling freeze particularly since the cold was extremely hard on our cars, trucks and SUVs. Extreme cold tends to illuminate the weaknesses in

There was a time when power-assisted brakes were an accessory you paid extra for when buying a new car. Today, they’re pretty much standard equipment. But automotive technology has gone far beyond those earlier technologies. Consider that power-assisted brakes date back to the early 1920s when the technology was first installed on the Pierce-Arrow. Today, brakes come with ABS (Anti-lock Brake Systems)