Holiday motoring: six vital checks

Press, 21 December 1978, Page 10

Holiday motoring: six vital checks

Motoring

So you’re all set for your holiday. You’ve saved all year, made all the reservations and everything’s set. You just want to pile the kids into the car and take off. But hold on a second. Have you thought about your car? That, machine which has served you faithfully over the last year on short round-town trips and the occasional country jaunt is now suddenly going to be asked to pull a huge caravan at speed or cart a whole family over Arthur’s Pass.

If you want to enjoy trouble-free motoring on your holiday it is wise to give the family car a thorough check, or you could be writing out a different sort of check halfway up the North Island, or wherever you go on holiday.

Start with the tyres. Make sure they are clean, not cracked and have sufficient tread. And because they are going to be asked to carry larger-than-nor- s mal loads it pays to increase the tyre pressures all round, by about spsi on the recommended pressure

Another big problem encountered on summer motoring holidays is j engine overheating. It’s i easy for the driver and passengers to leap into • the nearest river to cool ■ off, but some simple ? checks will ensure that your car does not let you down. Check that there, are no leaks in the cool-: ing system — tell-tale rusty patches will tell you where water is leaking. If the system has not been - flushed for some time drain the radiator, remove the bottom hose, insert a garden hose and turn it J on, so the water boils out! the filler-hole at the. top. • While you are at it, I check the cooling-system : hoses. They should be soft ■ and supple — push your - thumb into each hose and : if the indentation does not i pop back out the hose should be replaced. Also check the fan-belt, to ensure it will stay inone piece throughout your - journey. If there are any . cracks in it, it will prob- . ably break soon, and if ; your wife isn’t wearing < pantyhose and you don’t have a spare fan-belt you

could be in for a long walk. One vital check is the exhaust system. If this is leaking and fumes are being sucked into your car it could prove very dangerous to your family's health — in extreme cases it can be a killer. Any. holes in the exhaust system should be repaired, anyway, as they will only get worse and bring you the unwanted attention of ’ the men from the M.O.T. I Most motorists in New Zealand are probably now very aware of the fact that a well-tuned car can give worthwhile petrol savings, as not a day goes by without some sort of advertisement on television, radio or in newspapers pointing this out. Having your car in the best possible state of tune is not quite so important for round-town motoring, but for long trips it is vital. You will probably recoup double the cost of the tune-up in fuel savings alone, and a well-tuned car is also more likely to get you home without trouble, too. Although you will be hoping that no rain will come your way on holiday, it is wise to check your car's wiperblades, as they could be worn. Replacing them is a simple, inexpensive job and could save your expensive windscreen from being badly scratched. We’ve looked at all the things which help your car go, now we’ll deal with the car’s brakes. Make sure they are adjusted properly — i.e., that there is no excessive pedal travel — and that there are no tell-tale wet smudges at the back of the wheels. These indicate leaking brake-lines and the system should be checked by a garage. “The Press” hopes that these hints will be helpful and wishes all its readers happy holiday motoring.