Tag Archives: vehicle maintenance

Vehicle Maintenance

Brrr… It’s Cold Out There! Is Your Vehicle Winterized?

\n\nThe recent cold snap – including a chilly 35 degrees in Los Angeles – is a good reminder to make sure your vehicle is ready for winter driving conditions.\n\nDuring a recent television appearance, “The Car Coach” Lauren Fix shared valuable tips to help ensure you don’t find yourself stranded on the side of the road this winter.\n\nNoting that 9 out of 10 vehicles on the road have something wrong with them, Fix emphasized the importance of proactively maintaining your vehicle. She specifically recommends checking your vehicle’s:\n

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  • Battery. It’s a good idea to carry jumper cables, but it makes a lot more sense to check the condition of your battery and replace it if needed.

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  • Coolant. Over time, coolant breaks down and loses its ability to protect your engine against freezing and overheating.

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  • Headlights. About 80% of driving decisions are based on visibility. So, make sure both headlights are operational and providing sufficient light. If a headlight is burned out, replace it.

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  • Oil. Use the proper oil for your vehicle and follow the oil change schedule recommended by your vehicle’s manufacturer.

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  • Wiper Blades. Wiper blades wear out, so Fix recommends changing them every six months and, if you live in a cold climate, using winter blades this time of year.

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  • Tires. Check the condition and pressure of your tires. Improperly inflated tires are unsafe and can reduce fuel economy.

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\nYou can do all of this yourself, or you can visit your local Oil Can Henry’s, relax in the comfort of your vehicle and enjoy a complimentary newspaper as our trained technicians take care of it for you.\n\nMost Oil Can Henry’s centers now provide a free battery test as part of our service. Need a new battery? We proudly sell and install Interstate Batteries.\n\nOil Can Henry’s will also test the condition of your coolant to ensure it’s adequately protecting your engine. If it’s time for new coolant, ask about our Cooling System Flush, which replaces 100% of the old coolant. In comparison, a radiator drain and fill replaces just a fraction of the old coolant.\n\nIf your headlights look hazy, yellowed or faded, consider Headlight Restoration, which can greatly increase headlight output and visibility and improve the appearance of the vehicle.\n\nIt’s also advisable to make sure you’re prepared for winter driving, which often requires navigating snowy and icy roads. We wholeheartedly recommend that you visit the AAA website, a great source for automotive knowledge, to check out the tips for driving in the snow and download “How to Go on Ice and Snow”, an informative guide that helps drivers become safer and more efficient in adverse weather conditions.\n\n

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Vehicle Maintenance

The Rain is Coming. It’s Time to Check Your Wiper Blades.

Driving in the rainSummer’s in the rearview mirror and the rainy days of Fall are upon us. So, now is a good time to check your vehicle’s windshield wipers and replace blades that are hard, inflexible and/or cracked.\n\nAccording to VehicleMD magazine, “the majority of wiper blades are constructed with a rubber wiping element, which provides optimum friction to clear glass of water.” Rubber is a natural compound and breaks down for a variety of reasons, including:\n\n• Heat. The summer sun can heat up your vehicle’s windshield and literally bake the wiper blades. This extreme heat can cause wiper blades to harden and crack.\n\n• Environment. Vehicles in high-traffic areas tend to be exposed to a higher concentration of ozone, which can oxidize the rubber blades and create cracks.\n\n• Cold. Frigid weather causes rubber blades to harden and lose flexibility. When this happens, water can leak underneath the blades and cause smearing.\n\nWhile most wiper manufacturers recommend changing your wiper blades every 6-12 months, we recommend that you check your wiper blades often and replace them when you notice that they’re hard or cracked.\n\nHow to Inspect Your Wiper Blades\nA simple test of your windshield washers will tell you if the wiper blades need to be replaced. If the wipers streak, chatter or fail to cleanly remove the wiper fluid, the wiper blades should be replaced. This test will also show you if the fluid nozzle is clogged or if the nozzle needs to be adjusted to ensure the fluid hits the windshield in the correct place.\n\nLeave It to Us\nEach Oil Can Henry’s service features a safety inspection, including a check of your wiper blades. If you need new blades, your neighborhood Oil Can Henry’s offers quality new wiper blades for purchase. We’ll install them, too!\n\nWe Recycle\nOil Can Henry’s is dedicated to reducing impact on the environment, and we recycle all the used wiper blades from services we perform.

Vehicle Maintenance

Do Volkswagens and Toyotas Require Synthetic Oil to Maintain Their Warranties?

Castrol EDGE with SYNTEC Power Technology\n\nMany Volkswagen and Toyota owners – particularly those with 2010 or newer vehicles – are confused as to the type of oil they must use to maintain their vehicles’ warranties. Specifically, some don’t understand why an oil change provider will decline to put conventional oil into their vehicle’s engine.\n\nThis comes as no surprise to us because, in quite a few cases, neither Volkswagen nor Toyota state in writing that synthetic or synthetic blend oil is required to maintain the warranty, even though the owner’s manual specifies an oil standard or weight that is not available as a conventional oil.\n\nVolkswagen, which introduced its own oil standards in the 1990s, states the following regarding recent model year vehicles:\n

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  • 2001-2012 gas engines use only engine oil meeting Volkswagen standard 502.00;

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  • 2004-2006 diesel engines use only engine oil meeting Volkswagen standard 505.01; and

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  • 2007-2012 diesel engines use only engine oil meeting Volkswagen standard 507.00.

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\nThere is no conventional oil that meets the 502.00, 505.01 or 507.00 specifications, but Volkswagen and its dealers seem reluctant to tell drivers that. Our centers carry Castrol synthetic oils that meet the 502.00 and 505.01 standard; if your vehicle requires 507.00 standard, we recommend you contact your neighborhood Oil Can Henry’s in advance to see if they carry an oil that meets that standard or if they can arrange to have it when you do visit.\n\nToyota, beginning with the 2010 model year, changed the recommended oil weight for most of its vehicles from 5w-30 and 5w-20 to 0w-20. The 0w-20 is not available as a conventional motor oil; it’s only available as a synthetic blend or, more commonly, a full synthetic. Why? 0w-20 can’t be made from conventional-based motor oil because conventional oil can’t naturally flow well at low temperatures. (Learn more about oil viscosity below.)\n\nThe good news is that Oil Can Henry’s centers offer a variety of oils in 0w-20 weight, including:\n

\nSo, Volkswagen and Toyota owners who want to follow the manufacturer’s maintenance recommendations for their vehicles should refer to the owner’s manual to find the specific oil weight or spec. In many cases, that oil is 0w-20 and requires the purchase of a synthetic blend or full synthetic oil change.\n\n \n\nHOW WE PROTECT YOUR VEHICLE\nTo protect our customers and their vehicles, it’s our policy to use only an oil that meets manufacturer warranty requirements if that vehicle is under warranty. If a vehicle is out of warranty and a customer asks to use an oil that does not meet the manufacturer requirements, we’ll do so but will make a notation to that effect in the vehicle service history.\n\n \n\nMORE ABOUT OIL VISCOSITY\n0w-20 and 5w-30 represent levels of oil viscosity, which relates to how the oil flows at different temperatures. The lower the number, the thinner the oil is and the more easily it will flow.\n

5w-30

\nThe first number (to the left of the dash) indicates the viscosity of the oil when at a cold temperature, the w stands for winter and the second number (to the right of the dash) indicates the viscosity at a higher temperature, including when the engine is at its standard operating temperature.\n\nMulti-grade oils such as 0w-20, 5w-20 and 5w-30 are designed to perform well in low and high temperatures. That said, a 0w-20 oil is going to flow at a better rate in cold temperatures than a 5w-20, and, at operating temperature, 0w-20 and 5w-20 will flow at the same rate.\n\nIn the end, it’s best to use the oil viscosity specified in your owner’s manual because each engine will perform best when using the oil for which it was designed.\n\nUsing the right motor oil is an important way to:\n

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  • Lubricate and protect engine parts;

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  • Prepare engines for extreme weather;

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  • Reduce engine wear and friction; and

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  • Start engines up more easily.

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\nWant to learn more? Our friends at Castrol are a fantastic resource of motor oil knowledge. Visit the Castrol website to learn more about motor oil and to learn how to read the American Petroleum Institute (API) seal that appears on all oil bottles.

Oil Can Henry's Centers

Happy 20th Anniversary to Oil Can Henry’s in Sammamish!

Oil Can Henry's in Sammamish is celebrating its 20th Anniversary this AugustMany Oil Can Henry’s service centers enjoy a long history in the communities they serve. But the case of our Sammamish center is particularly unique. You see, the center is seven years older than the city it calls home.\n\nWin Maynard opened his Oil Can Henry’s service center on 228th Avenue N.E. in 1992, when the unincorporated area 21 miles east of Seattle was known to many as simply, “the plateau”.\n\nWhen the city was incorporated seven years later, citizens chose the name Sammamish, which had been the informal name for the community. Although there’s some disagreement as to what Sammamish means – the Sammamish Heritage Society says it’s a Native American name derived from samma (“the sound of the blue crane”) and mish (“river”) – there’s no arguing that it’s a wonderful area.\n\nLast year, Sammamish was honored with a #15 ranking on Money magazine’s Best Places to Live 2011 list. The magazine lavished praise on the community, writing, “If you’re looking for the Pacific Northwest ideal – snow-capped mountains and scenic lakes – Sammamish might be for you. Puget Sound and ski resorts are both an hour from this affluent Seattle suburb. High-tech employers in the area include Boeing, Amazon, and Microsoft, which is headquartered just 15 minutes away.”\n\nCongratulations to Win and his hard-working crew on two decades of earning drivers’ trust. Here’s to another successful 20 years!\n\nTen other Oil Can Henry’s centers join Sammamish in celebrating August anniversaries:\n\n• Boise, ID – 2 years (August 19)\n• Eugene-W. 11th Avenue, OR – 4 years (August 8)\n• Kingman, AZ – 17 years (August 1)\n• Lincoln City, OR – 14 years (August 22)\n• Oakley, CA – 9 years (August 8)\n• Seaside, OR – 7 years (August 13)\n• Tigard, OR – 18 years (August 22)\n• Woodburn, OR – 15 years (August 18)\n• Woodland, WA – 11 years (August 6)\n• Yakima-River Road, WA – 13 years (August 17)

Vehicle Maintenance

Cabin Air Filter: How Clean is the Air Inside Your Car?

Is there a musty smell to the interior of your car? Are your allergies aggravated when you drive? Does little or no air flow through your defrost vents? The culprit may be a clogged cabin air filter.\n\nDon’t be embarrassed if your first response was, “What’s a cabin air filter?” Most drivers know their vehicle has an air filter that prevents dirt and other contaminants from entering the engine, but many people have no idea their vehicle also has a cabin air filter. In fact, according to the Car Care Council, about 30 million vehicles in North America have cabin air filters and many of those vehicles’ owners don’t even know it. As a result, there are a lot of vehicles on the road with dirty and clogged cabin air filters.\n\nWhen a vehicle is in motion or its ventilation system is in use, impurities from the outside air are vented into the vehicle cabin. These impurities can build up inside the vehicle and create an unhealthy mix of pollen, pollutants, dust, and gases. In fact, pollen and harmful substances inside a vehicle can be up to six times more concentrated than outside. Rolling down your window doesn’t solve this problem.\n\nA cabin air filter protects you and your passengers by removing pollen, dust, bacteria, exhaust, mold spores, and other contaminants from the air that circulates through your vehicle’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. This is particularly beneficial for people who suffer from allergies.\n\nIf a dirty or clogged cabin air filter is not replaced, it can cause musty odors in the vehicle and may even cause corrosion damage to the vehicle’s heating and air conditioning system. A dirty or clogged cabin air filter can also cause contaminants to become so concentrated in the cabin that passengers actually breathe in more pollen, fumes and particles when riding in the vehicle than they would walking down the street.\n\nIf your vehicle is model year 2000 or newer, there’s a very good chance it’s equipped with a cabin air filter. To check, refer to your vehicle’s owner’s manual.\n\nVehicle manufacturers recommend that you check your cabin air filter frequently and replace it as needed. Many recommend replacing the filter every 15,000 miles.  Oil Can Henry’s offers Cabin Air Filter replacement for most vehicles.