Car Care Tips: How To Driving In The Mountains

Mountains are the one place I can escape to when I need a break from life. I can live on the highways, and because you're reading this, I believe you share that sentiment with me. It is no easy thing to do, and is not meant for the weak of heart. The twists and turns, steep climbs and hairpin turn, they challenge you and thrill you and also give you scenic view to absorb.

The fun comes with a lot of responsibility and risks as well. Hill roads bring a mixed basket of situations such as clouds, fog, rain and even landslides. As you go higher, the risks involved increase and sometimes are even unacceptable. The only thing that one can do is to reach somewhere safe and hold the fort against the treacherous conditions.

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Drive safely in the mountains by identifying the dangers up front.

Turns

There are various types of turns that come along your way that may be a lot of fun to navigate, but also can prove to be dangerous if they are not handled with care. One of the most notorious types of these are hairpin turns. These are when the road turns suddenly to the right or the left. The risks involved while navigating these kinds of turns is that they are completely blind and you have to depend on sound cues to know if another vehicle is approaching from the blind of the turn.

Advanced drivers can also use the light reflected off trees to be able to judge whether a vehicle is approaching. While navigating these turns, one should slow down and keep in their own lane. If another vehicle is approaching, and there isn't enough space, it is best to let the other vehicle pass and then continue.

Climbs

Some of the roads in hills and mountains may be steep climbs and combined with rain, snow or black ice, it can be very difficult to go up to them. This is where the torque of the car comes into play. Lower gears in the car or the bike have high torque and they should be engaged while going up the gradient. Sometimes it is impossible to climb up these slopes in harsh weather conditions and one should let them pass before moving further.

Find a place to put up and let the rain and snow stop or road ice to melt before going on. If you decide to move on, for whatever reason, wait for a larger vehicle to approach and ask them to help. Trucks plying on these roads have powerful engines and enough torque to tow you and cross the steep climb.

Descents

These are particularly dangerous, and moreover, underestimated. High speeds on descents can prove to be dangerous to not only people travelling in the car, but also to the ones ahead of you on them; in some cases, they can even prove fatal. While descending, heavier vehicles gather more momentum and if it is combined with ice, snow or rain, it can lead to the vehicle being unstoppable. There are technologies such as Hill Descent Control in cars which help control the speed while it is going down the gradient.

Hill Descent Control helps to control the speed by using the Anti-locking Braking System (ABS) to slow the car down if the car is speeding up without any inputs from the driver. If your car has ABS, use it to keep your car or bike's wheels from locking and maintain control over the car. It can, however, be tricky to control cars without

ABS and it needs manual control over the braking to be able to control the car. One needs to pump the brakes lightly or to use gradual braking. Gradual braking is when one applies the brakes lightly initially and keeps increasing the amount of pressure applied to the brakes as the car starts to slow down.

There may be a point where the wheels may feel as they are locking, and that's the cue to ease off the brakes and reapply them firmly to slow the car down. Panic braking, i.e. jamming the brakes when you're scared and praying that the car stops, can be your worst enemy.

Ice

This is the major cause of accidents on mountain roads. When it snows, the mountains look scenic and it looks like you're in heaven. When that snow melts, you're definitely not in it. The water from the melted snow flows onto the road and freezes at night when the temperature goes below a certain point. This thin sheet of ice looks black like the road and can't be noticed by the untrained eye.

Driving over it is dangerous because with the weight of the vehicle and the heat of the tyres, the ice melts momentarily and you're basically driving on a wet road with close to zero traction. Loss of control over the car is what follows, and we don't call it a major cause of accidents for no reason. The only way to navigate these is to keep a calm mind and make sure that you use the smoothest of movements to control your vehicle.

Jerky movements mean that the little traction that you may have is lost and then it all does go downhill, quite literally. If you feel that whatever you're doing isn't helping, just try and find a safe spot to park your car and ask for help from the other drivers on the road or from the locals. Locals are experienced people and will in almost all cases be able to get you out of the trouble that you might get into.

Snow

As beautiful as it may be, it can stop you from seeing the road. Even visibility a few meters ahead can be hindered. On mountain roads, this can prove to be disastrous. Danger lurks every few hundred meters or even lesser and when unidentified, is never good news. Snow can even harden on the road and when cars pass over it, it behaves like black ice. When foraying into uncharted lands, or where you know the terrain might be difficult to navigate, look at the weather prediction and if snow is predicted, avoid going into it.

Keep these useful tips in mind while going for a road trip into the mountains and ensure that you have a great time.

Also read: Car Maintenance Top 10 Tips - To Keep Your Car Looking New

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Car Maintenance Top 10 Tips - To Keep Your Car Looking New

A car with well-maintained paintwork will always look younger than one with chips and scratches.

SOME PEOPLE are obsessive about looking after their cars, parking in spaces far from where they need to be, just so other inconsiderate owners don't open their doors into yours, or carefully removing every little mark as soon as it appears.

But even these people often make the most basic mistakes when it comes to keeping their cars looking like new.

So, here's what NOT to do to your own car.

As much as you may jump at the chance to dream about what you need in an auto, it's best to think more about what you require - not a few seconds ago, but rather later on, as well. Usefulness should trump streak. Here are some handy contemplations to remember:

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1. Use an automated car wash with swirling brushes.

Notice that those brushes are called "swirling" brushes and that's exactly what they'll do to your paint.

Even if you don't notice it, you've probably added a whole swag of new swirl marks to your paintwork.

Those brushes in car washes are seldom cleaned so the accumulated sand, grit and other debris is being swirled across your paintwork every time the brush passes over.

Some car washes use synthetic brushes that are better at shedding dirt and debris, but it' still not failsafe.

2. Go to a car wash where attendants dry your car.

If there are people hand drying your car after it's passed through the car wash, it can be almost as bad as using a brushing car wash because chances are the towels they are using haven't been washed.

Drying your car with a dirty towel simply swirls the grit from other cars around your paintwork. Nasty

3. Use a high pressure "touchless" car wash.

So you think taking your car to a self-serve or touchless high pressure wash will protect your paintwork? Wrong again.

If your car is exceptionally dirty, hitting it with high pressure water can push debris across your paintwork and still cause those awful swirl marks.

Even if the car is relatively clean, you aren't safe. Many car washes use recycled water and no matter how hard they try, or what they tell you, it isn't possible to remove all the contaminants, so every squirt of high pressure water is effectively sand-blasting your paintwork.

Another problem with these car washes is they may use a higher concentration of detergent which will quickly strip off the wax you so carefully applied (you do apply wax, don't you?)

And as if that isn't bad enough, touchless car washes don't even remove all the dirt from your car. Look closely and you'll see a hazy film of grime remains on the surface after the wash.

If you still decide to use a touchless self-serve car wash, always start the wash on high-pressure rinse and before you point it at your car, run it for at least 20 seconds against the wall to clear out any harsh chemicals left in the lines.

4. Leave bird droppings on the car until the next wash.

Birds must have an evil sense of humour, because no matter how far away from a tree you park, one of the little buggers will let fly and leave a deposit on your paintwork.

The likelihood of this happening is in direct proportion to how recently you washed the car. Bird droppings contain acid that can cause damage to the paint surface.

It is even worse under direct sunlight. The best advice is to wash bird droppings off your car as soon as possible - the longer it sits there, the more damage it can do.

5. Don't wash your car, because "it's only going to get dirty again".

There's a sense of inevitability, especially during winter, that as soon as you wash your car it will rain and undo all your good work.

However, the longer all that muck and dirt sits on your paintwork, the more damage it can do, so cleaning it off, even if the car is likely to get dirty again, is good pre-emptive practice.

6. Sit nice and close behind that vehicle in front.

Some people seem to delight in sitting as close to the vehicle ahead as they possibly can.

Not only is this a stupid and dangerous practice, it also peppers your car with debris. For every clink you hear hitting the bonnet or windscreen, there are probably three more taking aim at your bodywork, grille, headlights, bumpers and other vulnerable parts.

And as for sitting close behind large trucks, be warned: the larger the tyres, the bigger the projectiles.

7. Find yourself a great parking spot near a freeway or in an industrial area.

We all know how hard it can be to find a convenient parking space, but don't be tempted to park anywhere near a busy freeway, railway line or in a heavy industrial area.

While dark coloured cars are susceptible to swirl marks, cars with lighter coloured paint are affected by dust and other fallout that rains from above.

What appears to be tiny flecks of rust in your paintwork is actually microscopic pieces of metal and other pollutants sent into the atmosphere from car and train brakes.

They sit there unnoticed until they bloom as tiny rust dots all over your paintwork.

Caught early, they can often be wiped off, but once they get established, you'll need a clay bar or even an acid wash to get rid of them.

8. Brake hard and often.

This is another stupid behaviour that increases the risk of somebody tail-ending you, but it also creates more brake dust residue to settle on your own car.

Not only will you find yourself replacing brake pads and rotors more often, you'll be looking at getting your car detailed to preserve the finish.

9. Leave that ice and snow on the car

- it'll fall off eventually. Maybe not a problem that afflicts too many Australian drivers, but ice, frost and snow do occasionally cover the roof, windscreen, boot and bonnet.

While ice and snow on their own won't scratch the paintwork as they slide over it, the dirt and debris underneath it will. Remove ice, snow or frost carefully, or wait for it to melt before moving off.

10. Don't bother waxing your car twice a year.

Wax is a protective coating for your paintwork and over time it breaks down. It should be applied each year before winter and again before summer.

Use a reputable brand, apply it in the shade and take your time.

See? Giving your car that unloved patina isn't really so difficult. But keeping your precious paintwork looking like new is possible if you follow this relatively simple advice.

And apart from the satisfaction of owning and driving a smart car, you'll benefit when it's time to trade it in or sell it privately.

Also read: Save Fuel While Driving Car: Lowering the Windows Uses More Fuel than Air-con?

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Save Fuel While Driving Car: Lowering the Windows Uses More Fuel than Air-con?

Another one that every man and their dog will swear is the case, and one way or the other… does rolling down the windows use more fuel than running the air-con?

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BACK BEFORE AIR-CONDITIONING became a thing in cars, we used to roll down the windows and, if you’re old enough, like me, you’ll literally remember rolling down your car’s windows by hand. Using a winder.

Even on a 40-degree day it often felt better to have the windows rolled down in the car then be quietly roasted by the air coming through the car’s vents. This air, before air conditioning, was just being sucked in from outside anyway. But, even while air-con wasn’t a thing, vehicle aerodynamics was and so there were plenty of people who would argue long and loud that rolling down the windows of your vehicle affects its aerodynamic profile and increases fuel consumption.

That argument, on the surface, like most good myths, seems to make sense. You have a solid object designed to cut through the wind and then you place holes in it that seem like they’ll catch the air and increase drag. Yep, makes sense to me. Only, I’ve seen the science, and the answer is not cut and dried.

Yes, there’s actual real, wind-tunnel produced science to support this myth busting… there’s also the TV show Mythbusters which I’m told also produced an episode about this. But this article relies on an SAE produced report that looked at the effect on fuel consumption of rolling down the window vs air-con in both sedans and SUVs at speeds of 50, 80, and 120km/h. Who or what is SAE, I hear you ask… it’s an association of more than 120,000 engineers and ‘related’ technical experts in the field of aerospace, automotive and commercial vehicle industries and it conducts tests, runs seminars and produces journals to improve engineering know-how… it also debunks the odd myth along the way.

Before we get to SAE’s study, because there’s lots to unpack, US automotive publication Consumer Reports wrote about this saying, that running the air-con creates load on the engine that’s equal to the aerodynamic drag of driving with the windows down. And, on the surface that supports the argument that it doesn’t matter which way you go to keep the cabin ventilated, but the truth is dependent on the ambient temperature. And, also the type of vehicle you own.

To the science. According to testing by SAE at an ambient temperature of around 16-degrees C there was almost no difference in whether you ran the air-con unit or lowered the windows. Meaning the fuel consumption from engine load or aerodynamic resistance was equal. But, once the temperature increased the aerodynamic drag created by driving with the windows down compared with the engine load of having the windows up and air-con cranked sees the advantage go to running the air-con. And by a big margin too.

But, even that result isn’t cut and dried, with SAE concluding that low-drag vehicles are more affected (by around 20% of rolling down the windows at high ambient temps) than high-drag vehicles like SUVs (8%). SAE also stated that while its testing was rigorous to realise an accurate result requires multiple runs and that to be definitive it would need to test every single vehicle on the planet.

But the conclusion is that as the temperature increases so does the fuel consumption effect of rolling down your windows. So, yes, rolling down your windows will increase your fuel consumption, so will running the air-con or heating, but not to the same degree.

Also read: How Tyre Upsizing affects driving dynamics

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Why Does My Suspension Squeak And Rattle?

Good suspension has many attributes, one of which is quietness, does your suspension squeak and rattle? Here's why.

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SOME MAY SAY it doesn't matter how much noise your suspension makes, it's a 4x4, so, who cares. But that's wrong, because unnecessary noise masks the noises you do want to hear such as the other occupants (sometimes), UHF radio transmission and, of course problems elsewhere in the car. The term used for 'noise' in vehicles is NVH, or noise, vibration and harshness.

The average touring 4x4 has lots of extra noise compared to a stock vehicle due to the modifications. Pretty much everything makes noise; tyres, snorkels, roofracks and the like so you don't want any more from the suspension. Noise is also a factor in driver fatigue, something touring offroaders need to be wary of as we frequently drive long distances.

So why does the suspension make noise, and how is it fixed? First, a recap. Suspension has two main parts - the spring, which sets the ride height and absorbs the bumps in the road. But a spring by itself has a major problem because once compressed it will then extend, compress, extend and compress like a rubber ball bouncing on the ground. That's why the other major suspension component is a damper (also known as a shock absorber) which damps out that bouncing effect.

Dampers work in a similar way to a coffee plunger - imagine a rod with a circular disc at the end pushing through a cylinder filled with fluid, except there's oil under pressure instead of coffee. The disc has holes in it, and the larger the holes, the easier it is to move the disc and its rod up and down. The speed of the rod moving up and down is known as the 'rod speed', and it's not proportional to vehicle speed. Even at fairly low vehicle speeds, corrugations tend to produce high rod speeds thanks to the rapid up-and-down movement of the wheels relative to the body, whereas high-speed cornering will be a lower rod speed as vehicle's weight transfer from side to side.

A major part of suspension damper tuning is all about figuring out how much resistance the damper should provide as it compresses or extends, and there's a very complicated series of valves and other devices to precisely tune those rates for all sorts of terrains, vehicle weights, driving styles and more.

One of the tuning dilemmas is to work out how to design a damper so it offers little initial resistance to a high-speed rod movement, and greater resistance to a low-speed rod movement. One way to do that is a shim. This is another disc, but it's made of thin metal and is designed to bend when fluid flows past it, and the faster the fluid flow, the bigger the bend. This is a useful tuning feature as it means that at low speeds there's quite a bit of resistance as the shim's diameter is large, but as rod speeds pick up, the shim's effective diameter becomes smaller and therefore offers less resistance.

Suspension is also a major factor in NVH, both directly and indirectly. Poor suspension leads to a harsh ride and consequent noise effects on the rest of the car, for example suspension that reaches the limits of its travel will hit bumpstops and that's not comfortable nor good for the car. But even when suspension is delivering the perfect ride and handling it can be noisy. As the rod in the damper moves up and down, forcing fluid to flow through the shims and valves, noise is generated, and the damper can transmit vibrations through to the car's chassis. Vehicles with a separate chassis design (read more here) are inherently insulated from these effects as the body sits on rubber mounts separate to the chassis, but the early breed of unibody (monocoque) vehicles are a problem.

Practical Motoring spoke with Kristian Ristell, Ironman's director of suspension, who said, "unibody bodied vehicles generally lack ability to isolate the passenger cabin from NVH when compared to separated chassis vehicles. This issue was a particular concern with Mitsubishi Pajeros from year 2000 onwards and is also a factor in the Suzuki Grand Vitara and some Jeep models."

Those vehicles were some of the earliest unibody off-roaders. Since that time carmakers have improved their designs and vehicles released over the last few years are less prone to these noise issues. This is a wagon-only problem, as all utes are separate-chassis designs.

According to Kristian, "one specific source of suspension noise has been a concern for some time is the ticking of the shims in the shock absorber over high rod speed movements in the suspension. Most shock absorbers make some noise as the shims open and close at high speed, but this is not normally detectable in most vehicles except those with unibody constructions and/or a poor NVH suppression system."

Basically, as those shims flex up and down they make noise, and that's not good. Kristian says the solution was to "develop a new piston and shim stack that didn't generate any noise at all. We successfully resolved the issue beginning with Pajero and we have now applied the same update to all unibody vehicle models, including the Grand Vitara."

To test out the theory, we asked Ironman 4x4 to fit the revised design fitted to our Grand Vitara for a test over all the usual terrains from bitumen to low-range work, and we can confirm it is an improvement. It doesn't fix the Grand Vitara's inherently poor NVH, but every little bit of noise reduction helps.

There's lots of other ways suspension can make noise. Leaf springs make noise as they rub against each other, the bushes connecting things like swaybars to the body, and to minimise noise it's important not to neglect general maintenance and lubrication of worn components - everything from dampers to bushes. Adding other accessories can change noise too, for example underbody protection can reflect noise or change its tone. There are a few cases where adding accessories helps; one is fitting heavy drawer systems which absorb noise, and another is a heavy-duty aftermarket sound system!

In the case of our Grand Vitara we also discovered an unusual problem - a slight knocking noise, but that was a much easier fix. Kristian told us that "it appears that during original installation the end of the coil was resting hard on the spring seat step and preventing it from seating on the flat plate, we rotated the coil anticlockwise slightly to separate the coil end from the step, which stopped the noise. We've not had this issue before, it appears it was just an awkward coil seating position, mainly on the left side".

Of course, as soon as you get rid of one noise other noises which existed before but you didn't notice start to make themselves heard. Then you get used to a certain level of noise and think it's ok, but when you drive a quieter vehicle or get rid of a couple of more irritating noises you realise just how much better life can be.

Also read: Week after Week Checklist for the Smooth Functioning of Your Car

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Easy Steps to Learn Automatic Cars

Learning to drive an automatic car is much easier as compare to a car with manual transmission. Still, if you are trying to acquire a driving license, it makes sense to keep some basic things in mind which would make learning to drive an easy affair. We have prepared a list of few such important things.

1. Know the controls & get comfortable

To be able to sit comfortably in the driver seat is important. You may need to move the seat / forward or backward or adjust the seat height to get a good driving position.

It’s also important that you adjust the rear-view mirrors before driving. This should help and provide all-around visibility. Ensure that you can reach the steering wheel and holding it properly.

Make sure that you have optimum angle for back rest inclination and the headrest is in place. Stalks besides the steering wheel operate wipers, headlight and turn indicators, if you are not familiar, how they operate, refer to the service manual.

2. Know the modes on the Gear Lever

Most automatic gear levers will have the modes ‘P, ‘R’, ‘D’ & ‘N’. Where ‘P’ means Park, D stands for Drive, R for Reverse and N is for Neutral.

A Shift-lock button on the gear lever is present on the stick to lock the mode is required to be pressed every time you need to change the mode.

In addition to these modes, an ‘S’ mode (in case of Jazz) or an ‘L’ mode (in case of Baleno) is also present which facilitates enthusiastic driving and better acceleration.

You can use it while driving down hills and up hills to keep the engine is power band and have more control. Also, if you are towing something heavy, it’s better to keep the car in these modes to prevent cycling through gears and prevent engine strain.

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3. Getting ready and driving the car

Manoeuvring an automatic car is fairly easy considering that there are only two pedals – brake and accelerator. The accelerator is on the right while brake on the middle. Since there’s no clutch, you do not risk stalling the engine.

To start the engine, you need to have the car in the “Park mode. To get the car moving, you would need to take the car out of “Park” mode and put it in “Drive”.

In addition to using the shift-lock button, make sure that all this while your foot is on the brake pedal too. This would prevent inadvertent movement.

4. Situation – Stopping, Hilly areas & Parking

Cars equipped with Creep functionality will start moving when you remove the foot off the brake pedal, you may not need to press the accelerator depending on the slope gradient. For the ones which do not have this functionality, you would need to press accelerator pedal to get going. On a slope, creep becomes a boon for cars that do not have ‘Hill assist’ feature.

While stopping the car is pretty straight forward and you can do it while still in the Drive mode without necessarily changing the mode to “Neutral”. You would need to keep the foot on the brake pedal if the car is equipped with creep function to prevent it from moving. To park the car, use “P” and also apply hand brake.

5. Observe Traffic rules

Before you start driving on the road, make yourself aware of all the traffic rules and regulations. Observe speed limits and stick to them and remember that it’s safe to drive in lane with good amount of space between your car and car ahead of you. Avoid overtaking and use turn indicators whenever necessary.

Having a good idea about what’s around you and being vigilant at all times is one of the best way to avoid accidents. Driving cautiously and anticipating behaviour of the traffic / drivers around you pays off.

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