Car

The Advantages Of Car Servicing

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Running a motor can be very expensive, particularly these days. We spend money on tax, insurance, petrol, MOTs and car servicing and sometimes the costs seem infinite.

Whether you have a BMW, VW, Audi, Mini Cooper, Mercedes or a commercial vehicle, you can minimise costs by ensuring you don’t pay through the nose: making sure that you have a regular car service.

Car manufacturers recommend very clearly at what time in a car’s life you will need to have a service, and provide a comprehensive service book that needs to be kept up-to-date, especially if you are planning to sell on your car. When it come to trading in or selling your vehicle, it will have had a decent programme of maintenance and will possibly sell for a higher price, so investment in car servicing is a good investment.

Also, if you have a warranty on your car, then you will need regular servicing in order to maintain that warranty as part of its terms and conditions.

Car servicing also ensures that your car is maintained to the highest standard, and performs at its optimum level, and that your car will run as smoothly, safely, efficiently and reliably as possible for a very long time. And when you car is performing to its best ability you will enjoy the driving experience more and get a lot of satisfaction.

With cars’ CO2 emissions becoming increasingly a factor in motoring life, especially for new higher car tax bands, having a regular car service can help fuel consumption be at its cleanest and CO2 emissions at its lowest.

There is nothing worse than an unreliable car, we have all had the odd occasion when the car has broken down at the roadside, not started in the morning, or perhaps has been in and out of a garage more times than it has been running on the road. This can apply to Audis, as well as BMWs and Volkswagens. Having regular car servicing ensures that potential or underlying problems with a car are dealt with before they happen, especially if there is a small mechanical problem that, if left unfixed, can develop into a larger problem, and expense, later on. Sometimes a service can seem like an awful lot of money, especially with all of the other running costs associated with owning a car. But, in the longer term, having your car serviced regularly at a trusted garage could save much trouble and expense and keep the vehicle on the road, performing at its best.

Electric Car Distance Limitation Facts

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Electric cars have become very popular recently due to new information on how to convert to a electric vehicle. Most people seem to believe that electric vehicles are not practical because they can not travel far enough, but this is simply not true.

Granted you are not going to take a cross country trip in one, unless you also happen to own the worlds largest extension cord. Until battery technology improves, that is even beyond the range of a brand new $100,000+ tesla roadster. So that proves your point right? Lets take a
closer look.

How much do you really travel every day? Government studies show that 80% of Americans drive less than 50 miles a day, 50% drive less than 25 miles a day, with a range of 100 miles or more an electric vehicle will easily get you through the day.

Add up the miles you drive, 10-30 mile round trip to work, businesses you frequent are usually within 5 miles of your home, so you can see when you build your own electric vehicle it is really practical for everyday use.

Here are some more advantages of electric cars:

Quiet

Reliable

Environmentally friendly

Cheap to operate and maintain

Reasonably fast

This last fact may come as a surprise to many people, but there are electric cars available right now that will do 0 to 60 mph in under 4 seconds, while a conversion car is not targeted to that kind of speed, the acceleration you get is more than adequate, and it will do highway speeds which makes it good enough for most peoples needs.

Another thing to consider is that you can build your own electric vehicle for under $500, which makes it within the reach of just about everyone. A car is very important for most of us, but the growing concerns over its impact on the environment, shrinking fuel resources, and the rising cost of gasoline forces us to look at other options.

If you are ready for better and cheaper solutions for your transportation needs while saving gasoline, and without adding to global warming, an electric vehicle is the way to go.

How To Finance A Car In 5 Easy Steps

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If you’ve ever wondered how to finance car, there are really only a few simple steps you have to follow. Car financing is very common since the average person doesn’t have several thousand dollars lying around to spend on buying a car outright. The car buying process is very simple once you know the basic format. When you follow these steps, you’ll be able the get the financing you need for the car that you want to buy.

1.Become familiar with your credit score
This is one of the most important steps in how to finance a car. Before you even think about borrowing money you need to know your credit score. Your credit score will let your lenders know your history with borrowing money. Frequently, there are mistakes on a credit report that will negatively influence your ability to get financing. Check your credit score and your credit report and correct any errors before you try to borrow.

2.Save a down payment
Your ability to borrow the money to pay your car is increased greatly if you place a down payment on your car. If you can manage a 20% down payment, your chances of borrowing will be very high. Even a 15% or 10% down payment can help lenders see that you are willing to put forth money to invest in yourself. Pick out your ideal car and start saving for a down payment. You’ll be rewarded with a better rate and lower payments on your auto loan.

3.Get pre-approved
Many people try to go to the dealership first and then get financing, but this is doing it all backwards. It’s much easier to shop for a car when you know exactly what kind of car you can afford. It’s very disappointing to have your heart set on a certain car, only to be told by your bank that you can’t afford it. In order to avoid this problem, why not secure the financing first? Most banks and lending institutions will arrange for you to get pre-approved for a certain amount. With this pre-approval, you’ll be free to shop for the type of car that you can afford or compare rates from other institutions.

4.Shop around for your car loan
Once you get pre-approved, you can use this rate to accurately evaluate other rates from sources online or other financial services in your area. You can compare rates by using a service like www.bankrate.com or visit other banks in your area. Shopping around can give you a better idea of the best deal for you. You may be able to find a source that has a lower APR or lower monthly payments than you were initially offered.

5.Purchase your car
After all this preparation, you can finally start shopping for your car. When you purchase your car, you’ll know that you’ve done all that you can to find the best rate. The next time you need a car you’ll know exactly

Mazda 6 DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) Removal Breakthrough

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The Mazda 6 DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) is designed to trap soot also known as particulate matter from escaping the exhaust system into the atmosphere. It’s a great idea and works extremely well by reducing soot particles by up to 90%. In fact, it works a bit too well, so well that eventually it will block up and cause endless problems for the owner of the vehicle and until now, the only option was to replace the DPF with a new one which again will be waiting to get blocked again.

There is a process known as regeneration which your vehicle should do without your input, automatically every 200-300 or so miles which basically increases the temperature of the exhaust gasses to help burn off any soot trapped in the Diesel Particulate Filter box to unblock it so it can continue to work, however, this is not very effective and they continue to get blocked up to a point where even a forced regeneration is not possible.

Once the DPF has failed and a regeneration is not possible, your local dealer/garage will advise you buy unit. A new one will cost you in excess of 2000+ with parts, labour & vat. Buying a used / 2nd hand DPF is never advised as it will come partially blocked already and waiting to fail again. In fact, even with a new unit on your car it will not bring you complete piece of mind because the design of the Diesel Particulate Filter has not changed one bit, so you will be waiting for it to fail again.

If you drive with the DPF blocked, your vehicle will fall into LIMP mode (also known as LIMP HOME mode) and the Engine ECU will restrict the engines performance to 3000rpm to safeguard the engine and other mechanical components. With a blocked DPF, you will experience excess backpressure which could eventually weaken and blow the seals of your turbocharger and internal engine seals which will cause problems such as oil leaks and loss of power. So it’s best to get the problem fixed now rather than later.

Until now, that was your only option but recently we (Sinspeed Ltd) announced that we have finally come up with a solution, a breakthrough in the Mazda 6 DPF nightmare. We have been for many years, removing the DPF (Diesel Particulate Filters) from other vehicles such as Vauxhalls, Audi’s, VW’s, Seats, Skoda’s, Kia’s & Jaguar’s etc but until now no company in the world could remove the DPF from a Mazda 6 successfully without it falling into Limp Mode and having the speedo light up like a christmas tree with errors.

Sinspeed is the first & currently the only company in the whole of Europe and possibly the world, to be able to successfully remove the DPF from the Mazda 6 with zero errors. That’s right, even if you’re vehicle is already in LIMP mode (restricting the engine performance to 3000rpm) then Sinspeed can still help. We remove the DPF and reset the PCM/ECU module to bring it out of LIMP mode and turn off all error lights.

Once the vehicle has left our workshop, you will never experience a DPF error warning light come back on and never experience any problems with it ever again. For more information, call us on 0871 2887 666 today.

The Tools You’ll Need for Classic Car Restoration

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Seasoned auto enthusiasts and even weekend-warriors can make great progress on their classic car restoration projects – but only if they have the right tools. Most classic cars have old parts, rusty patches, and jagged edges. It takes a well-stocked tool kit to work with these problems and make your car as good as new. If you’re thinking about taking on a new project, here are a few of the most important pieces of equipment and tools that you’ll need.

Impact Wrench

Most old cars have lug nuts and bolts that are far too difficult to unscrew with muscle power alone. Even if you can manage to get them off manually, they’re probably found all over your car. To save yourself time, energy, and a lot of frustration, you’ll need to keep a quality impact wrench in your garage. It can take even the tightest bolt off in seconds.

Angle Grinder

If you plan on doing your own bodywork, you’re going to need a grinder. Angle grinders allow you to take off large patches of rust in no time, and they’re indispensable for cutting sheet metal. Once all your panels in place, you’ll also want to grind away the jagged areas to make your car stylish and safe.

Hydraulic Jack

To get to your transmission or fuel injectors, you’ll want to be able to lift your car off the ground. Most shops have two or four-post hydraulic lifts, but those just aren’t practical for a home garage. Fortunately, you can still get a little bit of lift from a good hydraulic jack.

Air Compressor

An air compressor may be the most important tool in your garage. You’ll need it to power a variety of devices, including your impact wrench and angle grinder. You will also have to use a compressor with your paint gun to achieve a smooth, even coat.

Fiberglass Repair Kit

Steel bodies look great, but fiberglass can be far easier to repair and maintain. In fact, you can even use fiberglass to repair small dents in steel. Whatever type of chassis you’ve got on your car, you should keep a fiberglass repair kit in stock. It will also come in handy for repairing boats, swimming pools, and bathtubs.

Engine Crane

If you’re serious about classic car restoration, you should probably look into getting your own engine crane. Changing your timing belt, repairing your transmission, and plenty of other jobs may require that you take your engine out of your car.

Basic Hand Tools

Last but not least, you will need a great set of basic equipment. Every enthusiast loves to play with power tools, but you won’t get far without some good wrenches, screwdrivers, and cutters. Make sure you’ve also got small pliers and wires for precise electrical work.

Help from the Pros

Even if you’ve got a fully-stocked kit and the knowledge to use it, you may need some professional help with your car. Whether you’ve got a tough project – or you just don’t have the right tools for the job – call a leading professional now to get assistance with your classic car restoration project.