Local car repair shops are getting overrun, as people get their vehicles ready for the snow and frigid temperatures. At the Mill Street Tire Center, ASE technician Justin Myers has been busy lately with weather-watchers…people getting their cars ready for the bitter cold and snow on the way. As he told us, "Coming into the winter season it is kind of hard..."
Hoses can crack, lines can freeze and radiators can rupture. Cars in the Truckee Meadows need to be winterized, starting with the coolant. Justin told us, "You’ve got to make sure your coolant is not weak, because it will freeze if it’s below a certain temperature. Windshield washer fluid's a big one too, because a lot of times you won't get a full concentrate, and it will spray and ice on your wipers.”
Also on Justin's checklist: good wiper blades. "Simply just run your finger over them, make sure that they're still rubbery and move around. Or if they don't streak the windshield as you turn them on. It’s easy enough to check it."
And even though we don't get snow like out east, snow tires are recommended here. Those "all season" tires may get you by if you stay in the valley, but may get you stuck anywhere else. Mill Street Tire Manager Lisa Smith told us, "A lot of people commute also. You can just go a little bit out of town and have snow, and you have to be prepared for it."
And yes, once again cold batteries will be leaving folks stuck…it happens every winter. Lows in the teens are just days away, and if you don't have a garage, your battery's left out in the cold. And they still don't like winter. At Reno Fix Auto on Bible Way, Repair tech Felix Rojas told us, "When it fails it’s going to be in the morning! With subzero temperatures, you're going to have a problem."
Felix says there are too many folks driving with older batteries...they're the ones that let you down the most: "Life expectancy is anywhere from 4 to 5 years for a good battery. If you get anything more than that, it’s beyond its service range."
And the elements take a toll on your car's body. Salt brine…salt and water mixed together, is sprayed on our roads. It keeps them sleet-free, but the powerful substance takes its toll on your car. Robert Sundem, a painter at Reno Fix Auto, told us, "if it’s left on the surface for too long it can have corrosive effects on the paint finish, to the car. Eventually it can work its way through the finish and start corrosion underneath, which gets in the body panels…and then you're looking at quite an extensive repair."
The salt brine starts rusting the metal right away. A good example is one customer's car we saw at Reno Fix Auto. Repairing this runs into the hundreds of dollars. How can you protect yourself? By washing your car. Sundem’s suggestion: "Do it as often as possible, rinse the car off is the best thing you can do when there's salt on the roads. That's the best possible prevention you can have for it."
And while that may sound like overkill, it will keep the costly rust away. Meanwhile back at Mill Street Tire, Justin is finished with his winter maintenance check, and another car...is ready to take on a cold Nevada winter.
