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More Common Car Questions

Continuing our series about vehicles, the parts that make them run, and the strange noises and symptoms that can manifest, we’re going to cover 3 more common car questions. If you’ve been following along, you already know about turn signals failing, tire hum, engine stalls, and other little quirks. Today, we’re going to quickly explore your car’s brake system (and the banshee-like wail that can come from it), type of gas you use (is premium really necessary?), and warming up the engine before hitting the gas pedal. That’s a lot to cover, so let’s get started.

#1 - What Squealing Brakes Mean

Chances are, you’ve experienced the piercing shriek of your brakes sometime in the past. A lot of drivers who hear it are confused about why it’s happening. As you already know from past columns, your vehicle’s brakes are comprised of pads, calipers, and rotors. Any of those 3 parts can be causing the problem. For instance, the pads are usually connected securely to the calipers. If, for some reason, the connection becomes loose, the pads can vibrate and you’ll hear the squeal.

It can also happen as a result of the pads creating friction against one another. If the material is solid enough, the friction will create the squeal. One last note: when you take your car into the shop for a brake job, the mechanics are supposed to resurface the rotors. If they forget (hey, they’re human), you’ll hear the squeal.

#2 - Should You Use Premium Gas?

You’ve probably noticed that every type of gas has a rating for its octane level. But, you may not realize how it impacts your vehicle. A quick review: your car’s engine creates a combustion process while you’re driving. Gas is burned during this process. The level of octane identifies how volatile the gas will be during combustion. The lower the rating, the higher the volatility. So, should you spend the extra money and use high-octane gas? In most cases, no. You probably won’t get as much value from the extra expense.

#3 - Warming Your Car

We’ll cover this one very quickly. A long time ago, vehicles had carburetors which required you to let the engine idle for a few minutes before hitting the road. The reason was because a temperature-controlled spring influenced the choke. When temperatures dropped, the choke would close. So, letting the engine idle was necessary. That’s no longer the case because most cars use fuel injection systems. If you see someone idling their engine, they’re usually just wasting gas.

In the next installment of this series, we’ll be covering a few more topics on the road to educating you about your vehicle. Stay tuned.

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How to Determine a Used Car’s Value

If you are in the market for a used car, one of the most important factors to consider is whether the car you are looking for really is worth its tag price. Even though the car may look like quite a deal, it is possible that you are being ripped off. Here are a few tips to help you make that decision when considering used cars.

1. Make sure you Research the facts

When you find a used car that catches your fancy make sure you do research on that car. Find out how much that car costs if it were brand new. You should also look into whether the car is still in production and if its parts are still available. You could also try a little shop hopping to compare used car prices among cars of the same value and same age.

If a car’s price is too low, that should send you into a state of alarm. It is possible that the car is much more trouble than it is worth.

If it is too expensive, you may want to ask why that is so.

2. The Older the Car the less expensive it will be

Brand new cars typically lose up to 30% in their value in 3 years, and by the time the car is 5 years old, it may have lost up to 65%. If you know the car’s original price, you may want to use this rule of the thumb for your estimation.

3. Use a Third-Party Information Service

Car Fax is a good way to find out about used car histories. They offer a service that will give you a detailed history of the car you are interested in. The information included will typically include accident history and insurance data.

Kelly Blue Book is one of the most comprehensive used car value listings around. It would be a good idea to take a peek into their services for an updated list of hundreds and hundreds of used car values.

4. Take a Mechanic with You

A car’s value is also directly related to its running condition. If you are not that well versed in mechanics and cars, you may want to take a mechanic along so that he or she can evaluate whether the car really is worth the used dealer’s tag price.

Some used car dealers will offer cars that are defective and try to hawk them by sweetening the deal. Beware of these kinds of car dealers.

Try to look for a reputable dealer. The past experience of your acquaintances will be very valuable in evaluating a car dealership.

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