Fall Vehicle Maintenance Checklist for Minnesota Drivers

If you care about the lifespan of your Chevrolet, it's essential to have your car routinely serviced. The following are six key aspects of good Chevy maintenance that should never be missed. And many drivers ensure that they never accidentally forget a vital maintenance task by scheduling services at their local Chevy dealership. more Refresh Your Motor Oil and Filter The longevity of your car depends largely on the condition of its engine. Motor oil lubricates all the moving parts and cleans out debris, playing a vital role in protecting your engine from wear and tear. It's essential to keep your engine's oil as fresh as possible at all times. For most drivers, this means having an oil change at least twice a year. As the oil circulates, cleaning contaminants from the engine parts, it sweeps all the dirt and fragments into the oil filter, which gradually becomes full. Therefore, during your regular oil changes, the filter will also often need to be replaced. Keep Coolant Levels Topped Up Coolant also protects your car's engine by preventing it from overheating. It's therefore also important to always keep your coolant in good working order. While coolant ordinarily doesn't need to be changed as often as motor oil, you should check its condition frequently and flush it every 30,000 miles or so. Your coolant might also need to be changed at the start of winter; during the colder months, a special type of coolant can protect against freezing. Flush All Fluids Periodically As with the motor oil and coolant, each fluid in your car serves an important maintenance function. With this in mind, check your owner's manual for the appropriate care schedule required for the transmission fluid, brake fluid, power steering fluid, and windshield washer fluid. Inspect and Rotate Your Tires For both your car's health and your own safety, always ensure that your tires are in excellent condition. Tires need to be rotated at least twice a year to keep them even in wear and size. You'll also need to have your wheels realigned every two or three years, and old tires usually need to be replaced every four to five years. Schedule Routine Chevy Maintenance at Your Local Chevy Dealership As previously mentioned, the surest way to keep your car alive and fully functional for as long as possible is to schedule routine maintenance at your local dealership. This way, the technicians can politely remind you whenever your car is due for an essential upkeep service. Visit Olson Automotive in Redwood Falls, MN, today to learn more about how to extend the lifespan of your car. We offer the region's drivers a terrific range of new and pre-owned vehicles along with award-winning customer service. Image via Pixabay

Your Chevy's radiator is a vital engine component. It's the centerpiece of the cooling system and is responsible for removing engine heat by heat exchange with the cooler outside air. The radiator and cooling system operates at high temperatures and under high pressure, and this can cause parts to wear out or become damaged. As your Chevy dealer, we'd like you to know a few signs that you may need to visit us for a radiator repair. more Leaking Coolant Coolant is the liquid in the cooling system, and its function is to absorb heat generated by the engine and transfer it to the radiator. Inside the radiator, the coolant enters rows of thin aluminum tubes. Air blows in through the radiator grille and across the tubes, and this air movement removes the heat from the coolant. A coolant leak will immediately reduce the pressure in the cooling system. The reduced pressure causes the remaining coolant to move slower, and this causes heat to build up in your engine. You'll immediately see the increasing temperature displayed on the temperature gauge on your dash. Our technicians will examine your cooling system to find the source of the leak, and then we'll seal it. Once the leak is plugged, we'll refill your coolant. Damaged Radiator Cap The radiator cap screws into the top of the radiator, and it has two seals that ensure an airtight connection. The cap maintains the correct pressure in the cooling system. If the pressure rises too high, the cap opens slightly to bleed off excess pressure and then closes again. As time passes, the constant heat in the system can damage the seals and allow coolant and pressure to escape. If you look at your radiator cap and see white streaks around it, this is a sign that the seals are damaged. The white marks are caused by escaping coolant. As coolant leaks out, it almost immediately evaporates due to the heat in the engine, but it leaves the marks behind. We'll check the condition of the cap and seals and replace them if they've been damaged. Broken Water Pump The water pump's job is to move coolant through the system at high speed. The speed of the pump varies depending on the engine temperature. If you accelerate, the engine gets hotter and the pump speeds up. Conversely, if your Chevy slows down, the pump will slow down in response. The pump is a relatively simple component, but it could fall as it gets older. If the water pump fails, the coolant won't move through the system, and your engine temperature will rapidly rise. We'll replace the damaged pump with a new one, and your cooling system will work correctly again. An overheating engine can suffer serious, even fatal damage. Contact our service department ASAP at Olson Automotive in Redwood Falls, MN. Image via Pixabay

Brakes are a vital part of your Chevy's safety equipment, as they allow you to control your speed and stop at any time. Over time, your brake components will become worn or damaged, and you'll need to visit your Chevy dealer for a brake repair. These are some signs that your brakes are in trouble. more Pulling to One Side When you hit the brakes, pressurized brake fluid forces the calipers to close on either side of each wheel rotor. The calipers contain brake pads which generate friction against the smooth rotor surfaces, and this friction brings the wheels to a stop. To ensure safe and effective braking, all the calipers close on the rotors simultaneously. If your car pulls to one side, one of the calipers hasn't engaged, and that wheel continues to move until it's brought to a stop by the other three wheels. The two causes of this situation are a blockage in the brake hose connected to the affected caliper or a rusted or jammed caliper. Our technicians will need to examine your braking system to identify the source of the trouble and then repair it. Leaking Brake Fluid Brake fluid is maintained at high pressure in the braking system, and this pressure allows it to supply the hydraulic force that makes your brakes engage. The braking system generates heat due to the pressure inside it, and the combination of heat, pressure, and time can cause wear and tear on the brake hoses and lines. If the damage becomes severe enough, the braking system can develop leaks. Leaking brake fluid is very difficult to spot, as it's thin and looks like cooking oil. If your brakes are leaking, the first sign you'll experience is decreased resistance when you step on the brake pedal. The resistance is generated by the pressurized brake fluid. As the fluid level drops, your brake will become less responsive. We can fix this situation by tracing the leak and sealing it, then we'll refill the fluid. Burning Chemical Smell Brake fluid ages like any other fluid, and older fluid loses its heat-resistant properties. As we've seen, the brake fluid is pressurized, and if you have to ride your brakes, particularly on a hot day, the brake fluid can overheat. If the temperature rises high enough, the brake fluid can start to burn and release a foul, chemical smell. Burning won't consume the fluid, but it destroys the fluid's ability to provide hydraulic power. Without hydraulic power, your brakes won't work, and you could have an accident. If you smell a burning chemical smell, pull over ASAP and call us so our technicians can investigate and fix the problem. If your brakes don't work as well as they should, call us ASAP at Olsen Automotive in Redwood Falls, MN. Image via Pixabay