Click HERE to see the WINTER WEATHER VIDEO.[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1540396386716{background-color: #dd3333 !important;}”]RAIN , COOL WEATHER AND HUMIDITY AND HOW IT AFFECTS YOUR VEHICLE.
When the weather “turns” this time of year, a unique but predictable string of car problems arise that cause an increase in phone calls and service visits from our customers.
Why is that? Well since we are fortunate to live in an arid climate most of the time, the truth is that we normally don’t experience what are really very common year-round problems for most of the country.
Our cars and trucks seem to perform well all Spring and Summer on through the hot early Fall, and then suddenly, within a week’s time or less, develop a number of seemingly unrelated problems. What happened?
Chances are we’ve had our first week of 40-50 degree nights, 60-70 degree days, with fog, low clouds or marine layer.
Suddenly we’ve got a slow or no starting condition in the morning. One of our headlights is out. The car seems to stumble and hesitate for several minutes driving while cold. A power window becomes balky and won’t always go “up” without repeated tries. The BAT light on the dash comes on while driving, indicating a failed alternator.
In the engine area, hydraulic lifters become noisy, tapping away for several minutes after start-up. We step on the brake as we back out of the driveway, and the pedal suddenly drops to the floor! We depress the clutch pedal, try to shift but can’t get the stick shift into gear.
All of these problems are activated by the cold and the humidity or moisture in the air! They were already there, waiting to happen because of borderline components ready to fail. The weather was just the “switch” that turned them on.
Until about ten years ago, most cars were regularly serviced about every 15K miles, plus in between oil changes of course. This allowed your friendly, neighborhood auto service provider to look over your car thoroughly and catch a lot of problems before they became breakdowns.
Today’s cars have much longer recommended service intervals, suggesting that they are more trouble free and reliable. Which they are…to a point anyway.
While the arid climate in Southern California often works in our favor, there are other factors working against us.
We drive more miles, at higher speeds, in hotter weather, on a daily basis, then anywhere in the country… maybe in the world!
My suggestions this time of year are:
- Be patient with your vehicle, expect symptoms of new problems to occur this time of year.
- Call your regular shop and ask questions when you notice a difference in the performance of any of your car’s systems.
- Keep in mind that our answer will often be “Bring it in, we’ll check it for you”. Sometimes we need to apply test equipment or make a visual inspection to answer your questions accurately, at the same time we can estimate the cost of repair more accurately too.
But for us, there is really nothing new under the Sun, when it comes to turning problems into known symptoms into diagnoses into accurate and effective repairs.
So be aware your trusty companion on the road may need a little TLC this time of year. It’s better to check everything out at home or at the shop, then when broken down by the side of the road.
Jim O’Neill
Chino Autotech Inc.,
Auto Club of SoCal Approved Auto Repair Facility
Auto Value Certified Service Center
NASTF Service Information/Communications Committees
ASE CMAT-L1, CA. Smog Check Technician
AMI AAM Accredited Automotive Manager
Northwood University-University of the Automotive Aftermarket-Leadership 2.0, Class of 2008-2009