Cleveland auto owners want their tires to last as long as possible. Two ways to extend tire life are wheel balancing and tire rotation.
When wheels are out of balance, they wobble and vibrate. That makes the tires wear in a cupping pattern. If a front wheel is out of balance you’ll feel it in the steering wheel. If it’s a rear wheel you’ll feel it through your seat. To fix this, your technician at Autotronics of ST Peter puts weights on your wheels to balance them out.
That brings us to tire rotation. The front tires on a minivan wear out faster than the rear tires. As they push through turns from St. Peter to Saint Peter, the shoulders of the front tires wear down. So rotating front and rear tires allows them to all wear at about the same rate over the life of the tire.
Proper tire inflation will also help Cleveland folks’ tires last longer. Under-inflated tires wear more on the shoulder and may even overheat. This could cause tire damage or a blow out. Over-inflated tires wear too fast in the middle.
Four wheel drive trucks and SUV’s tend to wear their tires more unevenly so rotation is even more essential with them. Give Autotronics of ST Peter a call to get our recommendation for your minivan.
See your owner’s manual or ask your tech at Autotronics of ST Peter for your recommended tire rotation schedule. It’s usually every 5,000 to 8,000 miles.
Tires are costly and they are one of the most vital safety components on your vehicle. Take care of them and they’ll take care of you.
Autotronics of ST Peter 111 Jefferson Avenue St. Peter, MN 56082 507.934.9290
Why are wheel bearings critical for St. Peter motorists? It’s simple: your wheel bearings keep the wheels on your vehicle. In today’s Autotronics of ST Peter post, we’ll discuss more about wheel bearings and how you can make sure they can do their very essential job while you drive around Kasota, MN.
Come see us at: 111 Jefferson Avenue in St. Peter, MN 56082
Wheel bearings are pretty simple parts. They’re made of high quality steel and are engineered to last 100,000 miles or more if properly cared for. The bearings do two vital jobs: First, they allow the wheel to freely rotate with as little friction as possible. Second, they support the weight of the vehicle. For example, if your car weighs 3,600 pounds, each wheel has to support approximately 900 pounds. That’s a lot of heavy lifting over many, many thousands of miles.
Even though wheel bearings are pretty straightforward, they need to be in near perfect condition to do their job for St. Peter motorists. The bearings are packed with heavy grease to lubricate and protect them. A seal keeps the grease in and water and dirt out. It’s when the seal starts to leak that problems begin. The grease can become contaminated; causing the wheel bearings to overheat and ultimately fail.
The first sign that your wheel bearings are in trouble is an unusual noise coming from a wheel. It could be a chirping, growling, rumbling or a cyclic sound. The noise could get louder or even disappear at certain speeds. Your service professional at Autotronics of ST Peter can inspect for bearing wear by lifting the vehicle and checking for play in the wheel.
Now some wheel bearing assemblies are factory sealed. That means that they cannot be serviced – they can only be replaced. Those that aren’t sealed can be serviced on schedule at Autotronics of ST Peter. The bearings are removed, cleaned and inspected. If the bearings are still good, they’re re-installed – if not, they’re replaced. They are then packed in grease and a new seal is installed.
If your vehicle has a factory sealed wheel bearing assembly, the entire assembly needs to be replaced when trouble arises. Unfortunately, the parts are pretty expensive – but they usually last about 150,000 miles as long as the seals hold up.
Now, even a good seal cannot keep out water that’s exerting pressure on the seal. So if you’ve driven through hub deep water your bearings should be cleaned and repacked if they’re serviceable. If you have factory sealed bearings, you just need to watch for signs of premature failure. If your wheel bearings can be serviced, your automobile manufacturer’s owner’s manual will recommend an interval, usually around 30,000 miles.
If you have any sort of trailer, don’t forget its wheel bearings. They probably need to be serviced even more frequently. This is especially true for boat trailers that are used to launch the boat by backing it into the water. These should be serviced every year, usually at the end of the season so that the bearings don’t have the opportunity to rust all winter.
So what happens to St. Peter drivers if wheel bearings fail? Well, the wheel can literally fall off the vehicle. I don’t need to tell you how dangerous that could be. So check with your tech at Autotronics of ST Peter and see if your vehicle’s wheel bearings can be serviced and when it’s recommended. Listen for warning signs. If you’ve been fording streams or puddle surfing after rainstorms, be especially vigilant.
Visit the automotive professionals at Autotronics of ST Peter for a wheel bearing inspection, or for fuel system cleaning. Call 507.934.9290 for an appointment.
So you have some exciting plans for the MN weekend. You’re going to take some of your St. Peter, MN friends out on the boat for some water skiing. Of course, you’ve gotten the boat all ready. And you haven’t forgotten about your tow vehicle. You’ve gassed it up and even vacuumed it out. However, there is something even more vital than the cleanliness of the interior: you want to make sure that your minivan maintenance is up to date.
Think about it – heavy interstate traffic on the way out of St. Peter. There’s hilly terrain as you get to the lake. Some dirt roads – and it’s going to be pretty hot in St. Peter this weekend. And all the time you’ll be towing around several thousand extra pounds. That all adds up a lot of severe strain on your engine, brakes and transmission.
Let’s just consider the transmission. It’s going to be working overtime, spending more time in lower gears. The internal transmission temperature is going to be much higher than normal. A fun little blast to the local MN lake for you is really severe duty for your transmission.
It’s critical to have enough transmission fluid. If it runs low, the transmission will run hotter and won’t have the protection it needs to cope with the added stress of towing. Transmission fluid breaks down and gets dirty over time. Whether you have an automatic or manual transmission, it’s critical for St. Peter drivers to have it serviced by automotive professionals like the team at Autotronics of ST Peter in St. Peter to make sure it runs efficiently.
An automatic transmission contains a maze of passages through which the fluid must pass to keep it shifting smoothly. St. Peter drivers who neglect regularly scheduled transmission service risk the passages clogging up and starting to have problems.
St. Peter drivers who neglect their transmission for too long will eventually experience pricey transmission failure. You really don’t want to pay for a major transmission repair.
This reminds us of how much of our driving around St. Peter, MN is under severe conditions. Towing or hauling a big load is obvious, but there are lots of other things that constitute severe driving conditions. Things like short trips, driving in very hot or very cold MN weather. Dusty roads and city driving around St. Peter, MN add to the strain. Basically, any driving that’s not at highway speeds or under ideal conditions.
While you have your vehicle in, ask for a trip inspection. Your service specialist at Autotronics of ST Peter will check your belts and hoses and let you know if your brakes are in good shape.