Tag Archive for: technical

What Drives A Man’s Love For His Car?

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What is it about men and their cars? 

 

You see them on a Sunday morning, spending hours cleaning, waxing, and probably caressing their vehicles on the driveway. 

 

You see them salivating over car ads online, planning their next purchase (even if it’s only an imaginary pipe dream of a purchase), looking at luxury sports cars akin to the Ferrari 488 showcased on Wavertree Car Centre’s classified pages. 

 

You see them deliberating over each and every motor at the showroom, desperately trying to reason with themselves that yes, they can afford the latest and greatest car, even if it means taking on a second or even third job to justify the purchase. 

 

But why? What drives a man’s love for his car?

 

Is it a status-symbol thing? Driving down the road in the Lexus-LX, windows rolled down so passersby can see the driver at the wheel; it’s almost as if the guy behind the wheel is shouting ‘look at me.’ The bigger and more expensive the car, the better. A man’s car can signify that he has made it in the world. It can give the guy a sense of coolness that he might not achieve in other aspects of his life. A car can grant him kudos from his peers, and quite possibly, it can elevate his self-esteem, even if it does become more inflated than his newly-purchased tyres.

 

Is it a tech thing? Not only do guys love their cars, but many of them are tech-heads as well. And because today’s cars are stocked with the latest technologies, getting behind the wheel of a gadget-laden car must be akin to every guy’s wet dream. From the latest in sound system technology to more practical features, such as dashcams and digital assistants, it’s little wonder that men spend a lot of time behind the wheel. There is a lot to play and fiddle with! 

 

Is it a freedom thing? Life is stressful, right? Perhaps then, a guy loves nothing more than getting behind the wheel of his car to escape those aspects of his life that are getting him down. With nothing but the open road ahead of him, he has the freedom to escape life’s trials and tribulations. He is in control of the drive, with nobody telling him what to do or where to go. And if his car does elevate his self-esteem, and if it is laden with the latest and greatest in-car accessories, then he will instantly feel better about his life within the safe confines of his motor. He is free to be himself as he takes the freedom of the open road, without the pressures or criticisms of others. 

 

Are these the factors that drive a man’s love for his car? Maybe, and perhaps you can relate to what we have suggested. Or maybe there are other reasons why you spend a lot of time with your car, be that behind the wheel or caressing it on a Sunday morning with a loving wax and polish. We don’t know how you feel about your motor, but we do know this. Men do love their cars, and if you can shed any further light on why, please feel free to share in the comments section below. 

How To Kill An Hour 2019

Planning A Roadtrip? Check These Things Before You Go

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Taking a trip can be really exciting, but if you are out and about, midway into a journey and your car breaks down, things can take a turn for the worst, the fun can be lost, and you can spend a lot of time and money sorting things out. In order to minimise the chances of this happening it is essential to check your car is road trip ready before you even set out.

Check the basics

Before you plan to take a more extended trip, you should always check your air, oil and water. These three tasks can quickly be learned, and you should ensure that for the oil and water checks you have parked on a flat hard standing rather than on a slope as this could give a false reading. Your handbook should tell you what tyre pressures you should be running, and most garages have access to airlines for about twenty pence.

Get your car serviced

Make sure you have been keeping up with servicing on your car, and if you are planning an unusually long journey consider booking a service anyway. This gives you peace of mind that your vehicle has been checked by a professional and if you are unsure about things like oil and water they can check this for you. Failure to serve a car regularly can mean a minor issue is not spotted and over time it deteriorates into a costly job that could have been avoided.

Tyres: Fittings, repair and maintenance

As well as checking the air in your tyres you should also be keeping an eye on the overall quality. Treads have a legal minimum limit, after which the tyre becomes dangerous and could fail to react when braking, or steering sharply. It also means that the rubber has worn away and this can leave the tyre more at risk of punctures or worse, a blowout, which can leave the car uncontrollable and cause an accident. Tyres should be regularly checked for nails, stones and other debris in the treads, and it is vital you have a spare tyre on board, the spare wheel is often only suitable to get you back to proper help, but some vehicles carry a full road legal spare. Even if you’re road-tripping to Scotland and need an emergency repair or replacement, you can get good quality servicing and repairs at places such as C.H. Render.

How to save money

The best way to save money when it comes to cars and road trips is to have breakdown cover should the worst happen. It can be really expensive to get your vehicle towed or repaired at the side of the road if you are not a member of a breakdown service. Check the level of cover and compare it with the journey you are going to make.

The bottom line is that being prepared for road trips is a case of being proactive, not reactive. If you carry out a range of checks and ensure that your vehicle is maintained all year round, you are less likely to have problems when heading out for a longer trip. Being reactive is not only disruptive it can also be hard on the wallet so keeping on top of basic maintenance makes a lot of sense.

 

Don’t Know Your ABC From Your OEM? Technical Car Terms You Might Want To Know

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Heading to the mechanics is one of those things in life that can be intimidating, nerve-wracking, and financially draining at the same time. When heading to the mechanics, the main concern is that they can pull your car in for seemingly trivial reasons. But when you head to the mechanic, one of the ways that you can get one up on them is by knowing your terminology. So if the car needs to go into the shop soon, perhaps you should arm your lexicon with a few of these terms…

 

Drag Coefficient

Fuel economy is one of those things that is on everyone’s lips, especially if you are buying a used vehicle. While you could go to car dealerships and really get to grips with the fuel economy of a vehicle, and they talk about all the cars being better, you can always bring this term into play. In essence, it refers to the amount of air resistance that a car will get while being in motion. This factors into a car’s fuel economy. The less drag coefficient your car has, the better MPH it gets.

 

OEM

Car sellers like Affordable Cars need to keep on their toes in terms of terminology, so you could throw this one into the mix! Standing for Original Equipment Manufacturer, this is vital when purchasing a used car. This term refers to the fact that it is an original part from the maker, not any other marketplace thereafter. If you are looking for a used car, that has been pieced back together, you could question the OEM. 

 

 

A, B, C Pillars

If you ever look to buy a used car, this is in relation to the divisions between the car windows. The A-pillar is each side of the windshield, the B-pillar is between the driver and passenger windows, and the C-pillar is towards the rear of the vehicle.

 

Brake Bias

It’s actually not what you think. This is nothing to do with brakes in a technical sense. It’s to do with the diamond distribution of braking power. So it could either be at the front of the car or the rear. When there’s an issue with the mechanic, you could very well question this and sound like you know what you’re talking about!

 

Camber

This is the setting depending on which direction a wheel tilts. When visiting a mechanic, or buying a used car, depending on the camber setting, it results in a different feel to the vehicle. It’s possible to have the setting adjusted based on your own unique preference. But beware, setting your camber in a certain way can cause the tire to wear down over time.

 

Bed-In Brake Pads

As cozy as this term sounds, it’s to do with brake pads requiring a “bed-in” process. This improves their brake performance. This is done by putting a layer of transfer film between the rotor and the pads. Installing new brake pads is vital for the safety of any vehicle, and if you need to get new brake pads it’s worth checking if the pads need a bed-in process.