Check The Following Things In Your Vehicle To Have A Smooth Holiday

Excited to go on that much awaited holiday? Is everything packed and stuffed inside the car? Make sure you check the following things to avoid any breakdowns or unpleasant experience on the way.

  • Check your engine oil. It keeps the important parts of your engine lubricated and prevents friction. This in turn prevents corrosion and results in fuel efficiency. If you notice engine oil leaking out from the pipes, take your car to a local car repair shop. It is important to change the engine oil every 3000 miles. If you forgot to change your engine oil, do it before you leave for holiday.
  • Add engine coolant to the engine. It helps keep the engine cool by taking away the heat from the heated parts of the engine and also prevents corrosion.
  • Do add anti freeze if it’s winter time. Anti freeze stops vital engine fluids from freezing in cold weather. It also helps prevent the fluids in your car engine from over heating during extreme hot weather conditions.
  • Check the transmission fluids. If you are not able to change the gear smoothly or you feel that the brakes are not performing as they should, you must get the transmission fluid checked.
  • You may not be expecting the rain to come but there is no harm in checking your windshield wipers. But it’s not only during the rainy season that you need to use the windscreen wipers. If you are going to a dry or dusty region, you would need the windscreen washer to keep your windshield clean and clear and to be able to see clearly outside.

Perform these simple checks before you leave and have a smooth, hassle-free driving experience. Happy holidays!!

Tips For Using Diesel Generators Safely

If you have recently bought a diesel generator for using it in your factory or for an upcoming party, follow the safety tips given below to avoid any accident or injury due to mishandling.

  • Always read the instruction manual when using your generator. The instruction manual would familiarize you with the basic safety procedures for handling the generator.
  • Never keep your diesel generator indoors as it emits harmful gases such as carbon monoxide which can prove to be fatal if inhaled. Place the generator outdoors so that fumes can escape easily into the outside air.
  • Make sure that children and pets are kept away from the generators and they are not allowed to touch it.
  • Do not connect the diesel generator to your main power grid as it can result in power overloads.
  • Cover up the generator with a roof-like structure to protect it from rain and wet weather conditions.
  • To prevent the generator from stopping abruptly, make sure that someone is always there to refuel the generator when it starts running low.
  • While refuelling the generator, keep in mind that it is going to be very hot if it has been running for many hours. Before you re-fuel the generator read the instruction manual carefully.
  • Maintain your diesel generator regularly to keep it in good condition and to get the most out of it.

Facts About Diesel Generators

Diesel generators are quite useful at homes, at factory sites, and at large outdoor events like weddings and corporate events where one needs emergency power back up and supply. Here are some facts about diesel generators that you should know if you are planning to buy one for residential or commercial use.

The cost of diesel fuel is lower than gasoline, propane, and most other fuels. Diesel fuel generators are therefore cost efficient solutions for enjoying uninterrupted power supply where there is a major power crisis.

Diesel generators are highly energy efficient. They do not burn as much fuel as gasoline generators and are therefore ideal for industrial use where huge amount of power is required for running heavy machinery and equipment.

Diesel generators have low maintenance requirement. The low maintenance requirement is due to the fact there are no carburettors and spark plugs in these generators. The only maintenance work that is required to keep these engines in good working condition is to change the engine oil.

The diesel engines are sturdier and durable than the gasoline engines. If maintained regularly, they can be used for many years to come.

Diesel generators come in many varieties, such as portable generators, home diesel generators, industrial use diesel generators, and so on and so forth. You can easily find the one that suits your individual requirements and needs.

Diesel generators produce harmful smoke during exhaustion and are therefore not safe to be kept indoors. It is for this reason that these generators are used mostly in manufacturing applications.

These generators produce a lot of noise which make them inappropriate to be used in homes and hospitals.

Because of the high pressure present in these generators, they require a lot of time for warm and cool down and are therefore difficult to start during winters.

Use the information shared above to make the right buying decision.

Diesel Vs Gasoline Engine

Diesel engines and gasoline engines are almost similar. Both of them are combustion engines that convert the chemical energy that is present in the fuel into the mechanical energy. This mechanical energy then moves the pistons inside cylinders and the up and down movement of the pistons creates the rotary movement that helps the wheels of a vehicle to move forward.

The difference however lies in the way this combustion takes place. Whereas in a gasoline engine, fuel is mixed with air compressed by pistons, and is then ignited by the sparks. In case of diesel engine the air is compressed and then the fuel is injected. Compression allows the air to heat up which helps ignite the fuel.

In diesel engines, the combustion process takes place through four strokes. There is intake stroke, compression stroke, combustion stroke and exhaust stroke.

Unlike gasoline engines, the diesel engine has no spark plug for air intake and compression. It is the heat produced by the compressed air that lights the fuel in a diesel engine.

All You Wanted To Know About Fuel Additives

There is a huge variety of fuel additives in the market nowadays. Most of these additives claim to improve the performance of your engine, increase your vehicle’s acceleration and horse power and cut down your fuel consumption and expense.

What exactly are fuel additives? How do they work?

Fuel additives are basically liquids that are added to diesel fuel or petrol. They can be added into the fuel at the pumps or you may choose to buy them separately. Fuel additives are added into the fuel either with the help of filler cap or through other parts of the fuel system.

When added to standard petrol or diesel, fuel additives improve the fuel performance by virtue of removing the impurities from the fuel. This in fact is the most important feature of the fuel additives. By removing dirt, dust, and grime, fuel additives prevent these substances from depositing on the engine. Dirt and dust if allowed to develop on the engine reduces its efficiency and performance.

There are many different types of fuel additives. For the sake of convenience, they can be categorized in to three main types-those that help improve the performance of your engine, those that result in fuel economy, and those that help maintain the condition of your car.

Studies have revealed that adding fuel additives result in significant improvement in engine performance. Now if you want to enjoy the benefits offered by fuel additives you have to choose the best quality additives available in the market.

Tips For Reducing Your Vehicle’s Diesel Fuel Consumption

Fuel prices are sky rocketing, but there are so many ways you can reduce the fuel consumption of your vehicle and can reduce your monthly fuel expense.

Whether you own a manual car or an automatic model, always accelerate gently and do not be so harsh on breaks. If you break gently and less often, less fuel will be used. Applying too much of breaks and accelerating roughly affects the mileage of your car.

Use of air conditioning in cars makes it use more of fuel. The fuel consumption is almost 10-15% more when you put the air conditioning on. If the weather is good, open the windows and enjoy clean and fresh air outside. It would be good for your health and also for your purse.

Carrying too much load also increases the fuel consumption of your vehicle. If you are going on a holiday or visiting a family member, do not stuff your car with anything and everything. Instead, take only that which is important and which you think would be required. The less luggage you carry, the better mileage you can enjoy.

An engine that is neat and clean burns fuel economically and allows you to enjoy more kilometres per gallon. Take your car to the local service station and get the air filters and oil changed regularly.

Properly inflated tyres prevent the vehicle from dragging on the road and thereby reduce the fuel cost. Before you set out on a long drive or a weekend getaway, get the tyre pressure checked.

There are some other ways of enjoying fuel economy. Do ensure that the filler cap is properly closed after filling the car with fuel as preventing the fuel vapour from escaping the fuel tank would help cut down the fuel cost. Make sure that the fan or the ventilation system in the car is not on when you do not need it. Avoid charging your phones, I-pods, and mp4s to reduce your car’s fuel consumption.

All these are relatively simple and inexpensive ways of cutting down your fuel consumption. You may also get fuel enhancement products for enjoying even better fuel efficiency.

Common Rail Principle in Diesel Engines

Common rail is the innermost container in a diesel engine and it supplies the different injectors with fuel. Pressure, injection and generation are the 3 vital components of fuel injectors system and these are segregated. It is possible to store the fuel at high pressure in the common rail container. With this arrangement, high injection pressure is feasible even at low speeds.  Fine atomization of fuel is thus a possibility and it eventually makes clean combustion possible.

The supply of fuel is not related to the speed of diesel engine as it is controlled autonomously at every point along the way, enhancing efficiency. This is why in modern common rail systems used in vehicles, there is a larger scope for controlling fuel injection at the pre-injection, main injection and post injection point.

The engine control unit of the car or truck is the brain that controls the entire system and opens each fuel injector automatically. These signals are processed very fast – multiple times in a second – to ensure that the vehicle is always running at its optimum efficacy while also keeping the emissions at acceptable levels. It also helps to maintain good fuel efficiency in the vehicle. The ECU also has a “map” that tells the fuel injection system, at each engine speed and setting the amount of fuel to be injected into the engine. Timely fuel injector cleaning servicing of vehicle as per schedule also adds to its performance efficiency.

A Roadside Emergency Kit

For optimum performance of your car, you may have ensured regular servicing and invested in best auto performance parts in Canada, but while going on long road trip for business or vacations, it is wise to be fully prepared. A flat tire from a nail on the road or any problem due to adverse weather or road conditions can spoil your trip. But if you are prepared with a basic roadside emergency kit, such problems may not be very complex or time consuming to resolve.

You can purchase a readily available pack from the market or collect the different items together to have your own kit, some of the things that should be a part of a useful roadside emergency kit include:

  • Flashlight
  • Batteries
  • Gloves
  • Tow rope
  • Jumper cables
  • Flat tire repair essentials
  • Funnel/cone
  • Plastic water bag
  • Rain poncho
  • Plastic zip ties
  • Emergency blanket
  • Wet naps
  • First aid kit
  • Help flags

The first aid kit should contain:

  • Injury information card
  • Cotton balls
  • Plastic bandages
  • Small antiseptic towels
  • Large gauze
  • Rubber gloves
  • Any general medications that you may be on

Of course you would need to customize your kit as per your personal requirements and the terrain/weather of the places that you will pass through on your road trip.

Three Typical Brake Problems in Vehicles

To ensure the finest auto performance, it is essential to take good care of all parts of your car. During the periodic service of the vehicle and fitting of any new auto accessories in Canada, the functioning of all parts and systems must be checked. At times, you might have faced major or minor barking problems in a vehicle.

Weak brakes, squishy pedals and grinding sounds are some issues that have commonly plagued vehicles. If the brake pedal of your cat goes too far down, before it stops, you may be facing one or more of these issues:

Low level of brake fluid: Brakes fail to function efficiently if the fluid level is low. It must be topped off to the mark on the side of the reservoir.

Contamination in brake fluid: Even though brakes in all four wheelers operate in a closed system, contaminants may still enter and affect the working. Air may seep into the system through any little hole, and you may also get moisture in the system due to condensation. Though there is not quite a way to diagnose this, but bleeding the brakes will eliminate the poor stuff and replace it with new and clean fluid.

Poor brake power boost unit: If the brake booster develops a problem, there will be issues in effectively bringing the vehicle to a halt. Most of the brake boosters are vacuum controlled, so you would need a special device to measure vacuum. This links with the brake booster. If the results are poor, you would need to replace the boost unit.