Think about what brakes do, even on a dry road. Now consider what you ask of them on a slippery McHenry road in winter. We demand a lot from the brakes on our cars.According to Autolist, an automotive shopping sight on the internet, in 2021, the average car weighed 4,094 pounds. That’s just over two tons. The additional weight of items you have in your car, as well as yourself, mean that you’re

Gas prices in McHenry, as with gas prices across the country, have spiked over the course of the last year. And higher gas prices are a leading cause for the increases in prices for almost everything else. It’s called inflation but you can fight back – tune up your car, truck or SUV to save.In January of 2021, the price of gasoline in the Chicago area was approximately $2.60. It is now around $3.75.

Tracking the gas mileage of your McHenry caris an excellent way to monitor how your engineis running and detect problems.When you’re ready to drive out of your driveway in McHenry, how do you know there’s a problem with your car? There are a number of clues:The car won’t startThe car runs roughThere’s a repeated thump as you driveThere is smoke coming out from under the hoodThere is one of

Some cars, trucks and SUVs have a feature called “overdrive” but this is not something that makes the car, truck or SUV of Johnsburg drivers go faster; rather, this is a gearing for your transmission that reduces the vehicle’s need for fuel. But ‘overdrive’ is a term used in another way, too.For instance, you don’t want to overdrive your headlights at night. What does that mean, you may

Some cars, trucks and SUVs have a feature called “overdrive” but this is not something that makes the car, truck or SUV of Johnsburg drivers go faster; rather, this is a gearing for your transmission that reduces the vehicle’s need for fuel. But ‘overdrive’ is a term used in another way, too.For instance, you don’t want to overdrive your headlights at night. What does that mean, you may

That white powder on this SUV is a mix of road salt and dirt. Bringing your car to a McHenry carwash will do more than makeyour vehicle look better; it will also slow theoxidation process that harms your vehicle'sfinish.If you think that winters in McHenry often present us with environments that can send cars slipping and sliding, you’re right. But it’s not as bad as it might be since

Escape Johnsburg, and the chill of winter fever in the processAre the walls of your Johnsburg cabin closing in? Is winter putting the isolation squeeze on? Are you looking for something – anything – to justify breaking out of the February doldrums and into the sunlight of something fun away from home? How about the 2022 Chicago Auto Show?The Chicago Auto Show, along the lake front at McCormick

It’s hard to believe but we’re actually approaching the halfway point of the McHenry winter of 2021-22. How’s you car making out so far?Hopefully, you winterized your vehicle long before this. After all, we all know that McHenry winters can be brutal on a vehicle. If you did winterize your car, you’ve probably come this far without too many problems. Things can happen. Parts can break.

With supply issues, new car sales have fallen.This may mean you'll have to keep your usedcar longer than you intended.New car sales dropped in 2020 with COVID and have yet to recover. But it wasn’t just the pandemic that brought on the slump in sales; access to the essential computer chips have reduced production of automobiles, at least complete production. If you drive past a new car dealer

January 17 is Benjamin Franklin’s birthday. But why bring that up in an automotive-related blog? Well, have you considered Franklin’s contribution to the automobile?Franklin died in 1788. That was long before Ford, General Motors or Chrysler brought automobiles to America’s roadways. Even in Franklin’s time, there was the odd steam-powered wagon, but these were hardly comparable to what we