Flat Tires and Slick Surfaces: Keeping your Car in Control

Posted on by webspiman

Our Seattle auto body center sees a lot of damaged cars come in that ran out of control when their tires suddenly lost their grip with the road.  Whether through a flat tire or a slippery spot in the road, these kinds of situations can happen unexpectedly and are frequently not your fault.  In order to minimize any potential damage to yourself or to your vehicle, try keeping these tips in mind.

Blowing a Tire: If you think that one of your tires has blown out, keep your cool and don’t hit the brakes too quickly.  Your compromised tire pressure is less able to handle a sudden drop in speed, and you might lose control if you slow down too quickly.  Keep your car moving in a straight line as much as you can and ease off the gas until you’re at a comfortable enough speed to pull over.

Going Into a Slide: Sliding on a slippery surface is a lot like blowing out a tire, in that you don’t do yourself a lot of favors by slamming on the brakes.  Again, ease off of the gas pedal and turn the wheel into the skid as much as you can.  Try looking towards where you want to go rather than where you are going, as your hands tend to follow your eyes.

Stay focused, follow this advice, and you should be pulling yourself through these potential disasters with a minimum of damage.  When the road should get the best of you, though, be sure to bring your vehicle to Greenwood Collision.

https://autos.aol.com/buying-guide/Safety/avoid-common-car-accidents/

Avoiding Bad Drivers on the Road

Posted on by webspiman

Our Seattle auto body shop knows that there’s little as frustrating as having to deal with an accident that wasn’t your fault.  It only takes one bad driver to ruin two drivers’ days, no matter how good of a driver is in the other car.  You may never be able to entirely avoid the distracted motorists and road-rage barbarians of the world, but by following these tips you can at least minimize your chances of coming fender-to-fender with one.

  • Keep Your Cool: Aggressive driving can be contagious.  If somebody is cutting you off or showboating on the road, don’t encourage them.  Remind yourself that the law of averages is bound to catch up with this driver eventually, and that you don’t have to be in the crossfire when it does.
  • Treat Intersections with Particular Caution: Intersections are magnets for collisions.  Be mindful of the fact that some drivers are going to be pushing the limits of yellow lights, or talking on a cell phone when they should be focusing on their turns.  An extra check in both directions can pay big dividends.
  • Turn and Look Behind You when Merging: There is a big blind spot that you can only compensate for by physically turning and looking over your shoulder, and it’s all the more important to watch this blind spot in an age where the person behind you has a tendency to speed up when he sees your turn signal.
  • Avoid Driving at Dangerous Times or in Dangerous Areas: You probably know of certain places, or certain days of the year, which are prone to drinking.  Drunken driving accounts for a full third of auto accidents, so it may pay off to plan on avoiding the road entirely when the revellers start stumbling into their driver’s seats.

Is Your Distributor Cap Preventing Your Car from Starting?

Posted on by webspiman

Every so often, particularly during the wet winter months, your distributor cap may be responsible for your no-start problems in your car.  Therefore, before you call your Seattle auto body shop, save a little unnecessary effort by familiarizing yourself with your distributor cap and learning how to check it for problems that may prevent your engine from starting up.

First off, you need to know where to find the distributor cap.  This is a fairly easy task, because all of your spark plugs should be connected to it.  If you’re having trouble, locate a spark plug and follow the wire it’s attached to until you reach the epicenter of all of your spark plug connections.  This is your distributor cap.

When you find the distributor cap, inspect its condition.  Is it cracked, loose, or scored with carbon?  Any of these could allow moisture inside the distributor, which can send your car’s electrical current haphazardly throughout the engine instead of into the spark plugs.  This may be the reason your car isn’t starting.

https://www.howtodothings.com/automotive/how-to-check-the-distributor-cap
https://autorepair.about.com/od/troubleshooting/a/ts_no-start_2.htm

Don’t Use Do-It-Yourself Windshield Repair Kits!

Posted on by webspiman

There are several product lines out there that promise quick, cheap solutions for all your cracked windshield needs. Though many enthusiastic do-it-yourselfers may find such a prospect attractive, this is one area where you’re well-advised to stick with the expert help of your Seattle auto body shop.

Though you’re sure to save a little money with a home repair kit, few people find the results to be worth the cost. These kits generally supply you with a low-quality resin, which frequently changes color, falls out, or causes further damage to your windshield. This problem is only compounded by the sub-par tools that go with a do-it-yourself job; professional equipment is able to leave your repair smooth, so that your wipers don’t trip up on it. It’s able to create a vacuum in the cracked area, so that no air particles are trapped inside the resin to compromise the integrity of your repair. These are things that cannot be offered by a kit.

So remember to take all of your cracked windshields to a real collision expert. We’ve got the best tools, the best materials, and the know-how it takes to make your repairs last.

About Windshield Replacement |
Pro Windshield Repair

Cracked Windshields: Repair or Replace?

Posted on by webspiman

Windshield cracks happen. Even if you’re the world’s greatest driver on the world’s safest roads, you’re eventually going to see a tiny break start to snake its way across that once-pristine pane that keeps the bugs out of your teeth. So what do you do about them? Are they anything to worry about? When is it time to call upon your Seattle auto body shop for repairs?

The good news is that there are actually some pretty simple standards to tell you when a windshield can be repaired or when it needs to be replaced. These all depend on the specific type of crack, its location, and its size:

  • Crack: A simple fracture line. Cracks can be repaired if they are no longer than fourteen inches in length.
  • Bullseye Cracks: Circular cracks caused by a sharp impact. These cracks are repairable if their diameters do not exceed one inch.
  • Star Breaks: Groups of cracks emanating from a central point in a star-like shape. These can be repaired if the diameter does not exceed three inches.
  • Combination Breaks: These combine the features of different kinds of cracks, like a star break within a bullseye. If the diameter of the body of such a crack (excluding any “legs”) does not exceed two inches, it can be repaired.
  • Surface Pit: This is a nick in the outer glass layer of a windshield that has not penetrated into the inner plastic layer. If the diameter of a surface pit is at least one eighth of an inch, it can be repaired.

However, if your crack meets any of the following criteria, the windshield will have to be replaced:

  • The crack extends from an edge and lacks an impact point (a “stress crack”)
  • The crack extends to more than one edge.
  • The crack is in the driver’s direct line of vision.
  • The crack is contaminated to a point that it might not fill properly.

Source

Jump Starting Your Car

Posted on by webspiman

While Greenwood’s Seattle auto body shop is well suited to solve all of your bigger car problems, a jump start is a task that you should be able to take care of by yourself. If your car isn’t starting and you blame the battery, get yourself some safety goggles, a good pair of jumper cables and a friend with a functional car. Then follow these simple steps to get your engine running again.

WITH BOTH CARS TURNED OFF, open the hoods and locate the batteries of each car. Each battery will be clearly marked with a positive (+) side and a negative (-) side. It is important to keep track of these, because attaching the wrong cables to the wrong sides can do serious damage to your engine. Attach the red cable to the positive ends of each battery. Attach the black cable to the negative end of the good battery, and then to a section of unpainted metal on the dead car. DO NOT ATTACH THE BLACK CABLE TO THE DEAD BATTERY, AND DO NOT LET THE RED CABLE TOUCH THE BLACK CABLE OR ANY OTHER PART OF THE CAR WHILE IT IS CONNECTED TO YOUR BATTERY.

Now that the cars are connected, turn the key on the car with the good battery. Leave it running for a minute or two to allow a charge to build up in the dead battery. Now you can try to start the car with the dead battery. If the car turns over, go ahead and disconnect the cables and be on your way. If you continue to experience problems, it may be time to contact your auto body shop.

Jump Start Guide

Keeping your Teen Driver Safe

Posted on by webspiman

In the first half of 2011, the reported number of deaths of sixteen and seventeen-year-old drivers rose from 190 to 211. This represents an eleven percent increase, and the end of an eight year streak of declining deaths of young drivers. Your Greenwood Auto Body Shop in Seattle sincerely hates to see our customers come to any harm that cannot be fixed with a garage full of tools, so we offer these tips for keeping your teenager safe on the road.

Though it’s difficult to pinpoint a cause for this increase in deaths, some point the finger at the improving economy. A healthier economy means more teen drivers on the road; it means more money for gas, late nights out, and all of the hottest, most distracting new gadgets that your favored electronics store can cram into your teenager’s hand. It’s important to instill into your kids the dangers of phoning, texting, and web surfing while driving, particularly now that maps and gps systems have become available to tempt the disoriented new driver.

It’s also a good idea to limit the number of other teens your teen driver has in the car at a time, or limit any nighttime driving. Not only does this provide additional challenges to a driver, but it can also mean that your teen isn’t getting enough sleep to wake up fresh for school in the morning. Groggy morning driving is another menace on the road, and another habit that should be broken to keep your teenage driver out of the statistic books.

Safe Driving for Teens Source Article

Drive Safe This Winter!

Posted on by webspiman

It’s no mystery that winter is a prime time for auto damage. Extreme cold and harsh, wet weather is hard enough on your car without the added dangers you face on the road. To keep you safe when Jack Frost starts knocking on your windshield, your Seattle auto body shop offers these tips:

Prepare your car. You don’t want to get caught off guard if there’s any chance that you could get snowed upon. In addition to snow chains, it’s a good idea to have a supply of sand or kitty litter to throw under your tires in case you get stuck. You’ll also want to find a brush for removing snow from your car; it can be easy to damage your paint job when scraping away snow, so look for a brush that is specially designed for this job!

Practice. If you have the luxury, you might consider finding an open parking lot or other wide, empty space where you can practice braking on icy surfaces. Proceed cautiously here, and allow enough space to assure that you’re not going to damage anything. A few trial runs across a slippery surface may help to keep you from panicking whenever you might get into a real slide.

Drive safely. Under normal conditions, you would be maintaining a following distance of three seconds. When the road is slippery, you should increase this number to eight or ten seconds. Also, you should never be using cruise control on a slippery surface.

Be ready for a skid! If your car goes into a slide, take your foot off the gas. Don’t slam on the brakes, steer your car towards where you want to go, and let it slow down enough for you to regain control. If you get stuck, try to pull out with your front tires as straight as possible; this will reduce the resistance they will encounter and improve your chances of freeing yourself.

Follow these tips this winter and you should keep any damage to your vehicle to a minimum. When all else fails, though, you can always give a call to Greenwood Collision. Through rain, sleet, or driving snow, we’ll get your car back on the road as soon as possible.

Safe Winter Driving Article Source

Checking Your Car’s Fuses

Posted on by webspiman

Some people are surprised to learn that their cars have fuse boxes. It’s here that some of the simplest solutions to problems with your lights, radio, or possibly even ignition system may be found. As much as we appreciate your visits to our Seattle auto body shop, Greenwood Collision recommends that you familiarize yourself with your vehicle’s fuses; though it may seem like a daunting prospect, it’s an easy part of troubleshooting your car’s problems that can save you a lot of time and money.

Many of today’s cars have two fuse boxes: one underneath the dashboard and one under the hood. They should be marked clearly and feature a diagram that will tell you which fuse corresponds to which system. If your headlights are not working, for example, seek out the fuse marked “headlights” and pull it out. Some cars will supply you with a tool for removing the fuses, but it should be easily done with your hands as well. You’ll see a melted “bridge” going between the fuse’s blades if it has been blown, at which point you should replace the fuse. Your new fuse must be of the same amperage as the old one; you’ll be able to find a fuse’s amperage based on its color coding. Simply push the new fuse into place as if you were pushing a plug into an electrical outlet.

By familiarizing yourself with your car’s fuse boxes and keeping some extra fuses on hand, you may be able to save yourself a few unnecessary trips to your auto shop. Failing that, however, you can at least help your auto mechanic narrow down the cause of your problems. So get to know your fuses! It’ll pay off in the long run.

Fuse Replace Article Source

Keys Won’t Turn in Your Ignition?

Posted on by webspiman

From time to time, you may get into your car and find that your key is just not turning in the ignition. This can be for many reasons, but only a few of them should require the help of your Seattle auto body shop. Therefore, before you call in for a quote, try running through the following tips.

First of all, it pays to know your car. Some cars will require that you depress the brake, clutch, or both while you turn the key. Some automatic transmissions will require that you put the car in “park” first, and some manual transmissions might require that you shift the car into neutral. If none of these work, the culprit might be the steering lock. This is a mechanism that locks the wheel in place when you remove the key from the ignition, preventing car thieves from steering the car after they hotwire it. You may only need to turn the wheel slightly to the left or to the right while you turn the key to circumvent this problem.

If your key still isn’t turning, then there’s probably something wrong. If you have any spare keys, try using them first to make sure that it’s not the key’s fault. Jiggle it slightly as you turn, and maybe something will click into place. If this fails, the problem is most likely hidden somewhere in the steering column. It’s at this point that you will need to get a skilled mechanic on the job.

Ignition Issue Article Source