Car Care

[DAMO46]

I know there alot of noobs out there and yeah i can consider myself one :blink:
But i know alot of people just want to know whats the best way to care for your car..
eg. warming up, warming down
*service intervals
*Fluid checking
*The right or best petrol
etc..
any help or adding to the list?

[ke70dave]

pretty general question there mate, but i think youll find most of it is covered somewhere else..

but since you asked

don't rev it when its cold!!!!!

start car with as little throttle as possible, and let it warm up for a bit. you don't have to wait for it to reach opperating temperature, just give it a minuite or so. i usually jump in, start it up, find something good on the radio/cd. and its good to go. so long as you take it easy till its warmed up to opperating temperature you can drive it. don't need to sit there idling for 10mins...

[DavisJD]

heres my opinions;

Warmups can't hurt, I like to warm mine to running temp before I drive, but even a small warmup will help.

Warmdown's after hard driving couldn't hurt, especially to get your temps back down if there up a little. I role in neutral the whole way down my 3km street as a warm down whenever I come home!

I have no technical backup to support why I do this.

Service internals......If shes working, she's fine. I'm yet to begin preventive maintanece when a bare motor can be bought for $500. If something is wrong, then I fix it. (sometimes!) By this I mean I don't going pulling the rocker covers to check things, I change my spark plugs and my oil every service. (My plugs foul up frequently)

Whenever you service (I recommend every 5000kms, more so depending on what driving you do), check all fluids, it doesn't take long. Keep a log book so you know when things have been changed. Always do a check over your engine bay to see if anything is visually wearing out, becoming loose, belts, lines etc. Also check for leaks. Have a look in new cars log books as to what is being checked if you are going to service your car yourself so you have an idea as to what things to check and change.

Best petrol will very from state to state, BP is nationally recommended, Shell in nationally not recommended. A good servo is a busy servo, so the fuel is changed frequently, then again there is always stories of 'bad batches' of fuel every so often.

Hope that helps a little

[Jonny Rochester]

As a mechanic, here is a short list of things that I never see:

-engine damage due to not warming up the engine
-engine damage due to not cooling the engine down
-turbo damage from not using a turbo timer
-turbo damage from not using a blowoff valve

Here is some things I do $ee:
-blown head gasket/ warped head from a small coolant leak
-blown head gasket/ damaged pistons from driving a turbo conversion car before its tuned.

So basiclly, new oil and oil filter every 10,000. New coolant and brake fluid every 2 or 3 years. New gearbox and diff oil every 20 years. Change plug leads never, unless broken. Change spark plugs every 2 or 3 years if its running right. Don't allow any coolant leak! Change all rubber coolant hoses every 12 years.

[Sly*]

i normally start the engine, and just drive under 3000rpm until it reaches normal operating temp. I do an Oil and oil filter change every 5000kms, and check over everything. I like to check all the under bonnet fluids and tyre pressures once a week.

[riojin]

for daily driving i don't drive over 2500rpm (3000rpm when it was NA) so i don't need to warm up.

for thrashing i drive normal and when its warm i then rev as much as i like.

just make sure you keep on top of things. make sure everything is at the right level and fix things when theyre going not when theyre gone.

ive seen so many fuel tests and all i ever see is BP ultimate on top for economy and performance. shell fuels can and should be better but the quality of it is fluxual. some days its good and others its garbage. ive heard numerous stories of shell selling normal unleaded as premium also. shell unleaded on a good day is the best you can get for economy and v-power is the best you can get for performance on a good day.

i change oils regulary. if I'm using mineral i change every 5000km and filters every second change (every 10000km). if I'm using half-synthetic i change oils and filter every 8000km. if I'm using full synethic (penrite sin) i cange oils and filter every 12000km or when its close to and i know I'm about going to have a good thrash.

[r3zzz4]

Try being on the north coast of NSW, our BP servos were recorded at 92 octane in the 98 ultimate tamks... BP = fail up here.

Oil and oil filters, check your water levels and check for leaks regularly and it should be fine.

[AEE86]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (riojin @ Mar 13 2008, 09:13 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> (index.php?act=findpost&pid=501755)</div>
shell unleaded on a good day is the best you can get for economy and v-power is the best you can get for performance on a good day.[/b]

I would agree, never had a problem with Shell in Brisbane, the ECU in my Evo will switch maps if the octane drops and this has never happened. V-Power Racing 100 Octane FTW! sorry if off-topic.

[DAMO46]

you would think that 10% ethanol in shell v power racing is not so good for your car?
i tend to go with mobil 8000 and wynns octane boster..

[harrygat69]

THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH ETHANOL!

ethanol is an octane booster. then use it in already premium fuel in japan to get ratings of 104 and 106 octane.

the only reason ethanol has a bad name here in australia is because they use it in already rubbish fuel. they use it to push the octane level in the rubbish fuel up to a usable level.

[Bobomacho]

ethanol is not only an octane booster, but also a detergent.

much of the time when 'cars run shit because i put in ethanol fuel' is because all the crap is lifted and pushed through things like injectors and fuel filters which may block things up. after a change and a clean ur engine will run cleaner. i'd back an ethanol fuel anyday.

[redsprinter]

so ethonal is good ... mmm i was reading somewhere that ethonal could damge the seals in older cars ?

can any one confirm ... ?

[shakes]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (redsprinter @ Mar 14 2008, 01:19 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> (index.php?act=findpost&pid=501952)</div>
so ethonal is good ... mmm i was reading somewhere that ethonal could damge the seals in older cars ?

can any one confirm ... ?[/b]


because as said, it removes alot of the crap that is sitting around.. so yes it may, unlikely but yes it may.

also don't let your car sit and idle to warm up... DRIVE IT>! cold thick oil isn't going to get to were it's needed at idle. your oil pump isn't pumping hard enough and thing's aren't spinning fast enough to "chuck" the oil to were it's needed. you will end up with a noisy valve train glazed bores or worse. (again mostly scare mongering) but your better off just mosing around in your car's average rev range, and then open it up when it's warm.