Perth Wedding Cakes » Autos

Protection meeting your budget!

admin — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 05:01:43 +0000

From the first moment we sit in our car, it becomes an important member of our family. It keeps us protected from all weather conditions like sun and rain, getting us to where we want to go safe and fast! And cars definitely do not come cheap! It can be considered an investment that needs to be taken care of and protected!

When it comes to protecting our cars, nothing is better than getting it car insurance! Having car insurance will keep our cars protected from accidents that will damage it, either do to our own negligence and recklessness or the other driver, and aside from vehicular damages, a car insurance can also protect our investment from natural disasters like floods and tornados! Car insurances that provide full protection can really be expensive, and thus most people choose not to have one. However, availing of cheap car insurance is still possible! And the trick is, finding a cheap car insurance that can meet your demands and needs! Having the right car insurance can give you the protection your car needs, at a price to meet your budget!

Exhausting Solutions

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:59:07 +0000

The holy grail for many hunters and fishermen isn’t an in- your-face largemouth that straightens a 2/0 hook or a big whitetail that makes the book. It’s a 4×4 with more power. Guys who push a four-wheel-drive pickup or sport utility to the limit by climbing high-mountain offroad trails or horsing a boat and trailer off a steep, muddy boat ramp have learned that modem 4×4s all too often come up a bit short in the power department.
But extra power sometimes comes at a hefty price.A turkey-hunting buddy put it to me point blank: “I want more power, but I don’t have the budget or the time for a complete engine overhaul or really expensive accessories.What can I do?”
As it turns out, plenty.
By focusing on the exhaust side of the engine, you can give a 4×4 much more seat-of-the-pants performance at a price you can bear. The reason exhaust modifications can pay off so handsomely is because engine performance boils down to combustion efficiency. For an internal combustion engine to make power, it must efficiently convert fuel into heat (power). How well it does this is a measure of its combustion efficiency. Combustion residuals (exhaust gas) that are allowed to remain in the cylinders after each combustion process reduce efficiency, which translates into a loss of power. But if you can rid the engine of exhaust gas faster, you can increase the efficiency of the engine—and that means more power, better fuel economy, and improved driveability. Longer engine life can also result. All in all, pretty good benefits.

LOOK AND LISTEN

admin — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 18:48:28 +0000

You can help a suspension expert if you conduct a “look and listen” inspection of your rig before taking it to the shop. You’ll need a buddy to help you, preferably one who has not spent a lot of time in the vehicle. (This way he’ll be tuned in to problems that have appeared so gradually you no longer notice them.)
According to the folks at Trailmaster Suspension, your inspection
should be as follows:
1. Put your buddy behind the wheel while you slip under the front end. Have him turn the key to unlock the steering column (don’t start the engine) and slightly wiggle the wheel back and forth. Is there excessive free play? Do either of you hear small rattles or squeaks? Try to determine the exact location of any noise. Under the truck, does anything appear to be loose? Grab the steering components (tie rods, steering links, and Pitman arm) and give each a good yank. Slight free play— the result of normal wear and tear—is acceptable, but anything more means a trip to the shop. (For our purposes, “slight” is defined as .030 inch, the width of a standard paper clip.)
2. Have your Mend turn the steering wheel all the way to each side.You’re now listening for big noises: groans, creaks, and the like.As your friend turns the wheel, your eyes are glued to the major suspension mounting points. Depending on the model, these include ball joints, king pins, control arm bushings, and leading or trailing arm bushings. Track down the source of any noise. The guiding principle here is, “Where there is noise, there is movement, and where there is movement, there are worn or loose parts.”
3. The bounce test checks the condition of the shock absorbers and bushings. Have your buddy crouch next to a corner of the vehicle as you push down quickly on the body. The corner should come to a rest quickly; if it continues to bob up and down, the shocks are shot. Groans or creaks heard by your crouching friend are signs of shocks and/or bushings in distress. Either way, get the truck to an expert.
4. Your buddy should run the test drive while you ride shotgun. Have him run the vehicle at highway speeds, and then slowly over a bumpy road. Be alert for shakes in the steering wheel. These could be due to an out-of-balance tire (not serious) or a slowly disintegrating ball joint (big trouble). In an empty parking lot, turn the vehicle in slow circles, first with the wheel cranked hard right, then hard left. Again, both of you are looking and listening for anything out of the ordinary.
This drill may seem to be a lot of trouble, but it can be done in about 30 minutes.Just don’t wait until the night before the deer opener.

TROUBLESHOOTING THE SUSPENSION

admin — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 18:45:53 +0000

Out of sight, out of mind. That pretty much sums up how most outdoorsmen view the suspension on their 4×4—until the truck starts bottoming out on rutted trails or groaning like some ghoul in a third-rate direct-to-video horror movie. By this point, you’ve no doubt figured out that something is dreadfully wrong with the vehicle’s ride or handling, but you can’t exactly nail down the problem.What do you do?