The Ford Motor Company recently launched a number of 30-minute podcasts on its Web site created by women especially for women. The concept behind the brand new series, What Women Want, is to cover the automotive topics that ladies care about the most, for example safety, technology and Ford car maintenance.
Throughout a recent podcast in the What Women Want series, blogger Becky Harks hosted a 30 minute question and answer session with Ford Motor Company Vehicle Dynamics Development Engineer, Cristina Rodriguez. Both women discussed car maintenance myths and Becky asked Cristina some questions on behalf of her female blog readers. Read on to determine what Cristina needed to tell Becky and the other women listening on the internet.
How can women do not be scammed with a mechanic? Because a lot of women aren’t experts in neuro-scientific car maintenance, most of them often feel that they are taken advantage of when they visit their local mechanic, particularly if they have their kids with them when they go to the shop. Based on the podcast, if women entered the repair shop feeling more confident in their car knowledge they’d not be easy targets. Cristina suggests asking others about your car problem or searching online to find more details by what the issue might be before heading into the repair shop. That way, you’ll feel like you possess an concept of what’s going on together with your car and you will talk to the mechanic without seeming clueless. Cristina also asserted sometimes she will take a man with her towards the repair shop, but she will still do all the talking. This can show the mechanic that you know what is going on and aren’t going to allow yourself to be taken benefit of.
Does high octane fuel really give better performance? Most engines are made to take regular unleaded gasoline (87), meaning higher octane fuel doesn’t invariably enhance the performance of the Ford car. According to Cristina, if your vehicle doesn’t need high octane fuel, you need to only use regular unleaded fuel since it will save you money.
So why do people get fuel flushes? People get fuel flushes to be able to clean the fuel line. If there is a blockage at risk, it may affect that car’s performance and a fuel flush might help. However, it isn’t something that needs to be done regularly.
Can you really go 12,000 miles with no oil change if you use synthetic oil? Synthetic oil is supposed to use on vehicles that operate under two opposites or in extreme climates. Technically you can go longer with no oil change on synthetic oil, because it was created to collapse less than regular oil. However, it is best to make use of the oil the car manufacturer recommends, which is usually not synthetic oil.
For your vehicle into the shop for something, and the mechanic lets you know 10 different things are wrong with it, what should be the most important for those who have limited money to invest? Stuff that need to be fixed right away include anything associated with the brakes, steering, tires, engine and transmission. Since the engine and transmission make the car go, if a issue is overlooked, it might cause bigger problems down the line. While they in many cases are the most expensive to fix, they must be the very first priority and never overlooked. Anything that is coping with the under body of the car could be set aside, unless it’s making a strange noise or vibration. Then have it fixed as quickly as possible.
Could it be easier to have your tires slightly under inflated or over inflated? Neither. A good thing to complete is to follow the manufacturer’s instructions on which the tire pressure ought to be. Under or over inflating the tires will change their shape and affect performance, ride and gas mileage. In case your tires are under inflated it can cause premature wear on the tires and cost you more income down the road.
Does Ford have plans to make a hybrid mini van? Ford has introduced the eco-boost engine which gives the performance of the bigger engine with more power, but has the gas mileage of the smaller engine. For example, for those who have a V6 eco-boost engine, you will have the strength of a V8 with the fuel efficiency of the V6. Based on Cristina, Ford is going to be using eco-boost technology into the different vehicles lines over the following couple of years.
How long can someone drive using the check engine light on? Based on Cristina, it depends. Many times in Ford cars today, the check engine light occurs for something no more than forgetting to put the gas cap on tight enough. In other cases it’s a malfunction in a sensor or even the computer. These are minor problems that don’t need to be attended to immediately. However, if you’re able to physically seem like something in the engine is running differently and also the check engine light is on, you should get it examined immediately.
Where can women find reliable information about car maintenance online? Based on Cristina, the Ford Motor Company Web site has a lot of great information. However, she recommends not going to only one source. If you are having car issues, check out a few difference sources online and compare. That way you’ll be able to weed out the facts from the myths.
