If you do not have the time to stop by your this afternoon, you can follow the below steps to do a quick spot check while you find the time to make an appointment with one of our automotive mechanics.

1. “Check the inner and outer sidewall of each tire for bubbles, bulges or cracks”

The inside and outer part of the sidewalls should be perfectly smooth. If you spot a bubble, bulge or crack with the naked eye on any of your tires you need to get your automobile into the automotive repair facility as soon as possible. Bubbles, bulges or cracks are weak spots within the tire and can be a sign that a leak is developing or even worse a “blow out” is waiting to happen at any moment leaving you in a tough and dangerous situation while driving at high speeds down the road.

2. “Tread Wear Indication Bar”

Newer tires have a convenience that older tires lacked. They have tread wear indicator bars built into the tires themselves. These bars, invisible or barely visible when the tires are new, gradually begin to appear as the tread wears down. They appear as flat rubber bars running perpendicular to the direction of the tread itself. If more than one or two of these are visible on a tire, the tread is getting low. This should be particularly obvious in the wet tracks that your tires leave after you drive through a puddle.

3. The “Penny” Test

The tread on your automobile’s tires should never fall below 1/16 of an inch (1.6 millimeters) in depth. If you regularly drive on slick, wet surfaces, you’d be even better off with twice that much. You can buy a gauge to measure the tread depth the way the professionals do, but there’s an old trick that will give you a rough idea of how much tread depth you have left on your automobiles tires and it won’t cost you more than a penny.

In fact, it requires a penny. Take a Lincoln-head penny, the kind you find in your change every day, and insert Abe’s head (head-down) into the tread. If Lincoln’s entire head remains visible, you don’t have enough tread and you risk dangerous driving conditions or catastrophic results.

4. “Automobile Vibrations”

Every automobile owner has experienced slight vibrations with their automobile at different periods while driving down the road. If your automobile starts to vibrate and does not stop that is usually a sign of a bigger problem. The solution could be something as small as needing your tires balanced or aligned or something much bigger that has been brewing with your automobile that is starting to affect your automobiles tires and should be checked out immediately.

If you are ever in doubt or unsure of whether or not you are in need of new tires, take your vehicle to your local ASE Automotive Mechanic for a professional inspection.

When cleaning carpets and upholstery, start with the driver’s area first. It is then more likely that this area will be dry when the customer takes possession of the vehicle.

Clean windows after cleaning everything else inside, thus preventing soiling of the windows while doing the dirty work of cleaning door panels and headliners, et cetera. Do your interior dressing an…d conditioning after window cleaning so as to avoid tracking dressing onto the windows while wiping them.

When cleaning windows, first lower the windows slightly and clean the top edge of the window pane. Then fully close and clean the remainder of the window.

Be careful not to get any of your favorite interior cleaner on the clear plastic panel that cover the instrument panels. These cleaners can spot or fog the plastic.

In heavy carpet soiling situations or if there has been a spill between the seats, it is often easier to remove the seat completely from the vehicle, allowing excellent access to the soiled area for more thorough cleaning. I have found that, especially in neglected interiors, the time it takes to remove the driver and passenger seats is easily made up by the ease of access to the interior of the vehicle during the heavy cleaning that is necessary in these situations.

Be careful to check for wire harnesses under the seat. These usually come out of the carpeting directly under the seat and simply unplug.

Of course, be sure to re-plug the harnesses and securely re-tighten the seat upon re-installation.

Always rinse mats, carpeting, and upholstery after cleaning them to remove any cleaner residue. This residue will simply attract more dirt if left in the material. That is, the material will stay cleaner longer if rinsed.

Don’t forget to check out our online specials! Be sure to call us for all of your towing and tire needs!

Towing, Jumpstart, Passenger and Big Truck Tires all available right here in the heart of Lynchburg

434-846-1383

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