Child Safety Seat Recommendations

Car crashes are a leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 13. Many times, deaths and injuries can be prevented by proper use of car seats, boosters and seat belts.  The recommendations for car seats and booster have changed recently.  Below we highlight the APA recommendations for age/weight and height for each type of safety seats.   

When installing car seats you can either use the vehicle seat belt or the LATCH system.  LATCH stands for Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children. Most new cars now have a LATCH system installed.  LATCH helps to make car seat installation easier.  Both the car and the car seat need to be equipped with the LATCH system for it to work properly.    The tether needs to be used as part of the LATCH system to secure the seat to the vehicle.      

Rear Facing Car Seats should be used for children from the day they come home from the hospital until they reach the height and weight limits of the car seat.  At one time, the Academy of Pediatrics recommended children stay rear facing until the age of two, but recent research has proven that having children stay rear facing as long as their seat allows has shown to decrease injuries in collisions.

When a child rides rear-facing, the head, neck, and spine are all supported by the hard shell of the car safety seat, allowing the car seat to absorb most of the crash forces, and protecting the most vulnerable parts of the body. When children ride forward-facing, their bodies are restrained by the harness straps, but their heads – which for toddlers are disproportionately large and heavy – are thrown forward, possibly resulting in spine and head injuries.

Children should use a forward-facing car safety seat with a harness for as long as possible, until they reach the height and weight limits for their seats. When using the harness, Pull the harness snug to your child's body – the straps should be tight enough that you can just slip two fingers flat between your child's body and their collar bones.  Place the chest clip just under their shoulders. In the colder months make sure to remove any heavy coats, so that the harness is tight against the child and not the bulky clothes. 

When children outgrow the height and weight restrictions on their forward facing car seat they should use a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle’s lap and shoulder seat belt fits properly. There are high back boosters and backless boosters.  While either will improve your child's chances in a crash, research has found that high back boosters provide more safety as well as comfort.  High back boosters do a better job of positioning the shoulder belt correctly by using channels on the head area of the booster.  Additionally, high back boosters can provide head and neck support.  This can be important if you have a child that moves a lot or sleeps in the car.  This feature can provide added safety especially in a side impact collision.     

Children can start using a regular seat belt once they can easily rest their back against the seat of the car and bend their knees over the edge of the seat. Usually, this happens when kids are between 8 and 12 years old and around 4feet 9 inches.  Additionally, you will want to make sure that the seat belt sits across the shoulder, not the neck and on the lap, not the stomach.  Moving a child out of the booster seat too soon can result in injuries to the neck and stomach as well as bruising internal organs if the belt is not sitting correctly.  Children under 13 should be seated in the rear seats of the vehicle and not the front seats where the air bags could cause harm.    Here is the 5 point checklist to see if your child is ready to move out of all seats.

•        Does your child sit all the way back against the vehicle seat?
•         Do your child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the vehicle seat?
•         Does the vehicle belt cross your child's shoulder evenly between the neck and arm?
•         Is the lap belt as low on the abdomen as possible, near the top of the thighs?
•         Can your child stay comfortably seated like this for the whole trip?
•         Does the belt stay in place when the child moves?

Are you prepared for car repairs?

A AAA study found that 1/3 of US motorists would not be able to pay for a repair bill of $500 or more without incurring debt.  In fact many drivers, approximately 1/3, would skip or delay recommend repairs due to a lack of funds.  What drivers do not understand is that delaying, or skipping recommended maintenance can cause additional issues and possibly increase the amount of money needed for repairs.  Additional wear on parts, or the possible breakage or systems could damage other systems in the car.  Additionally, worn down parts can increase the likelihood of roadside breakdowns, adding tow bills to the repair bill.   

AAA suggest setting aside a repair fund to be able to cover regular maintenance as well as any unexpected repairs.  Finding a reputable repair shop that you go to regularly for your oil changes will help decrease the amount of UNEXPECTED repairs.  How so you may ask?  Well, but regularly having your oil and fluids changed and checked, your repair shop will be able to inspect your vehicle for wear and will be able to give you a heads up on any recommended maintenance based on mileage as well as any wear they are seeing in advance to breakage giving you the customer the ability to set aside funds to pay for the upcoming maintenance and repairs.       

That being said, there are sometimes unexpected repairs, but having an ongoing relationship with a repair shop will minimize those and will help keep your vehicle in better working order for a longer period of time.  Regular maintenance will help prolong the life of your vehicle and can make it more valuable if you decided to sell it. 

Help! Rodents are eating my car!

While rodent infestation in car vehicles is nothing new, what is concerning is the increase in damage we have seen here at Auto Correct Car Care recently.  More customers are coming in with electrical complaints and the answer is that rodents have chewed the wires causing a short in the system.  The consensus in the industry is that the new soy wire coverings,  used to make vehicles more eco-friendly, are also tasty treats for the rodents.  An interesting fact is that rodents teeth never stop growing, making them in a permanent state of "teething".  Their chewing antics can cause a wide array of electrical issues, including check engine lights coming on, difficulty starting, problems with the HVAC system, basically any system that needs electricity in the car, which could be anything.

So, what can we do about it.  There are a few things you can do to try to deter rodents from making a residence or meal out of your car.  First, you want to make sure you are not leaving your car in the same spot for several days.  If it a car that is not a primary vehicle, you should keep it in a garage, or be sure to move it from time to time.  This will also help extend the batteries life.

Some other possible solutions are:

• Spray the wires with pepper spray
• Use peppermint oil on cotton balls placed in secure locations through the engine compartment
• Use moth balls under the hood
• Some manufacturers have come out with a spicy tape that you put over all of the wires to deter the rodents from eating them.
• Use and ultrasonic pest repellent
• Try Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent made with balsam fir oil (found on Amazon)
• Try Grandpa Gus's Mice Repellent Pouches made with Peppermint Oil (found on Amazon)
• Get a Cat! 😊

What is an AC Service?

In a perfect world the air conditioning system in your car should not lose freon (refrigerant).  It is a closed system and the freon does not get used up.  If your AC is not blowing cold and you need freon added, there is a leak somewhere.  Repairing the AC and getting it to blow cold again could be a multi step process. 

The first thing we will check is to make sure that the A/C compressor is turning on.  If the compressor is not turning on there could be a few causes. Either there is an electrical issue (power supply), mechanical damage to the compressor or there is not enough freon in the system to activate the pressure switches to turn the compressor on.  If the compressor is turning on, then we will perform a pressure test to determine if the compressor is putting out the correct amount of pressure for the system. 

If the compressor is working properly, but there pressures are not correct due to a low freon charge, we will perform an evacuation of the system.  This removes any freon left in the system and measures the amount while placing the system in a vacuum.  If the vacuum pressure drops, it is an indication that there is a leak somewhere.  If we cannot determine where the leak is we will recharge the system with freon according to the factory specification and we will inject a dye into the system.  This dye will help us to see where the freon is leaking.  We ask the customer to return a few weeks later so we can look at the system under a UV light to see where the dye is coming from and will allow us to determine where the leak is coming from and what needs to be replaced.   

Everything you want to know about spark plugs

For a combustion engine to function properly you need to make sure you have fuel, spark and air.  Spark plugs are what provides that spark.  Think of spark plugs as a tiny bolt of lightning. That burst of electricity is used to start the combustion process and essentially jump starts the engine.  Because spark plug health is directly linked to engine performance, it stands to reason weak or bad spark plugs lead to problems

Spark plugs are located in the engine block at the top of every cylinder. Therefore, on most vehicles, the number of spark plugs your vehicle has corresponds to the size engine and the number of cylinders.   

How long spark plugs last can depend on many different factors, one of which being the type of plugs. copper plugs, for example, have the shortest life; and most manufacturers recommend changing those every 30,000 miles.  Platinum or Iridium plugs should be changed at 100,000 miles

Spark Plugs are built to withstand extreme heat and pressure within your cylinders and are built to burn off deposits from fuel additives or other contaminants however as spark plugs age they can buildup deposits.  These deposits can lead to an unreliable supply of energy for your car.

Additionally, spark plugs have a specific distance between the ground and center electrodes called a gap.  This gap is where the spark of electricity "jumps".  As the spark plug ages this gap can increase.  If the gap is too far apart, combustion will be erratic or ineffective.

Some Signs that your Spark Plugs may need to be replaced

•        Engine has a rough idle
•        Having trouble starting the vehicle
•        Engine misfires
•        High fuel consumption
•        Lack of acceleration
•        Rattling, pinging or “knock”-like noises

Value Over Price

How important is your car?  It may not be brand new, it may have several thousand miles on it, but when it is not running properly, it is incredibly inconvenient.  You need your car every day.  To take you to work, or the store, run to the doctor or take the kids to baseball and when it is out of commission, you need to find alternate means of transportation, and that is just a pain.

That being said, for most people, it is also an expense that is not thought about frequently.  You think about your monthly insurance, car payment and maybe even fuel, but when a repair comes up you are typically unprepared and so many people start shopping around for the lowest price possible to repair the issue.  Why? 

Let's think about it in a different scenario.  If you were boarding an airplane would you want the pilot with one day of flight training or would you want the pilot that had 25 years flying planes?  Would you want the repairs on the plane to be done with the cheapest parts or would you want the highest quality parts put onto the plane?  Why?  Because you are taking you life in your hands when you fly.  Why does your car, which you use every day, carrying yourself and your precision family, deserve any less?

Now let us compare it back to cars.  Here are some things you should keep in mind when evaluating the cost of repairs.

Are the technicians qualified?  How many years of experience do they have?  Do they continue learning new technologies and keep up with the trade by earning certifications?  Do they understand your vehicle?

Are the parts made of quality materials?  The repair shop doesn't necessarily have to use the highest premium parts, but do they look for reasonably priced parts that they are willing to stand behind with a warranty. Would the owner or technician use these parts on their own vehicle? What kind of warranty do they offer?  By offering an extended warranty on parts and labor, you know they are willing to stand behind the parts they selected if they fail and cover the labor costs associated with replacing the part again. 

Also, remember, that they are providing a service for you.  Doing the repairs yourself will always be the least expensive, however, you may not be qualified to perform the repairs needed, or if you are, how much is your time really worth?  Could your time be better spent at work, doing repairs or yard work to your home, or spending time with your family, while letting the professional do the work for you, clean up after and dispose of all the materials. 

Sometimes, it is all about the bottom line.  Do you really have the money to make the needed repairs, how much can you truly spend. Keep in mind though, that sometimes by saving money now, you could be causing more or a larger issue down the road.  A good repair center will work with you to prioritize repairs needed to help fit your budget and the greatest safety needs while helping you save and prepare for future repairs. 

Repair the old car or buy a new car

There could be a few different scenarios that got you into this situation: You took the car in for regular maintenance and they found a laundry list of items that need to be repaired or replaced, or Your car broke down and left you stranded again and to fix it is going to cost you over $1000.  However it happened, you have arrived at the decision that you need to just purchase a new car.  But did you actually think it through?  Is it really worth it to get a new car or can your current car be repaired, maintained and last you several more years.

When I am asked by a customer whether a car is worth repairing or not, there are several factors I tell them they need to consider.  If they were the original owners then they know the repair history, if they purchased the car used to begin with we would need to take that into consideration and how well it has been maintained along the way

New cars are averaging about $37,000, more for SUV's and slightly less for compacts.  A typical car payment would be about $400 a month.  That comes to a total of $4800 a year spent on your new car.  Think about the maintenance and repairs you made on your car in the past year.

You need to consider the vehicle's mileage and current value.  Check out Kelley Blue Book website to see what the car is worth based on the mileage you have.  From there you can determine if the repairs are worth making. 

Another item to consider, that many people forget about, is to consider your financial and credit picture.  Are you in a financial situation to take on a new car payment and will you be approved for a loan. 

Don't forget that your insurance will decrease as your car ages as well, adding into what you need to consider when making your final decision.

Today's well maintained vehicles can keep going past 200,000 miles saving you a good amount of money by not having a car payment. 

Every vehicle and situation is different.  Make sure that you have is assessed by your local mechanic and they can help you determine what is the best course of action.