Summer Driving Tips

The experts are guessing about what will be happening on our nation’s roads this summer. Gas prices have stabilized, and appear to be on a slight decline as the season officially approaches. At the same time, airline ticket prices are on the rise. The confluence of these two events should point toward more summer driving — but the uncertainty in the economy has many families sticking closer to home. One thing is for sure: Summer driving is fraught with challenges. We’ve put together a few Summer Driving Tips designed to make your time behind the wheel a little more efficient, safer and maybe more fun.

Even more than in winter, it’s important to pay attention to your tires in the summertime. Under inflation can cost you fuel economy, and it’s also a safety hazard. Heat is an enemy of tires, and if you don’t put the proper amount of air in your tires, you’re likely to create stress and heat in your tires once they get moving, risking a blowout. Check your tire pressure before you begin your driving day to get a cold pressure reading — that’s the number that is referred to in your owner’s manual. If you check your pressure during a fuel stop on a trip, the numbers will be higher, because your tires have heated up and air expands when heated. Resist the impulse to bleed air from your tires on a hot drive — this pressure build up is normal. film A Million Ways to Die in the West online streaming

If you’re going to be towing or subjecting your car to particularly heavy loads, consider using a radiator coolant additive like Royal Purple’s Purple Ice  or WaterWetter from Redline Synthetic Oil. Chris Barker, Royal Purple’s Tech Manager, says that his product contains “an advanced surfactant that lowers the surface tension of the liquid in your radiator, which results in greater liquid to metal contact within the radiator. That’s what you want inside a radiator in order to disperse heat more efficiently.” Making the antifreeze more efficient lowers the temperature, and can help avoid overheating. “Our product won’t repair a mechanical problem with a vehicle,” says Barker. “But it can help some stressed vehicles in high demand situations, like climbing hills in the Desert Southwest with the air conditioning on.”

Lighten your load before you hit the road. When you take a road trip, you’re likely to add hundreds of pounds of gear, luggage and passengers to your car’s normal load. This will affect fuel economy and handling. Plan ahead, and remove all of the unnecessary junk from your trunk before you head out. And take a good look at what you’re bringing along to pare down the payload. Do you really need the electric can opener and seven pairs of jeans for a four-day trip to the beach house?

Source:  Forbes.com

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