Auto care
BY DEAN CARROLL
Copley News Service
Add up the amount of time you spend in the car
singing along with the radio or tape player and you'll
probably discover that most of your music listening is
done on the road. For many of us, in fact, the car is
the only place where we have the opportunity to really
enjoy music.
But we may not be enjoying that music as much as
we could. Reception or tape difficulties may prevent a
sound system from performing at its optimum level.
Following are suggestions for improving the sound of
any mobile music rig from a spokesman for Pioneer
Electronics, a manufacturer of sound systems.
An ounce of prevention. Although most of us are
fussbudgets when it comes to keeping our home
stereos clean and tidy, very few of us take the time to
practice a regular program of car stereo hygiene.
Tape players are especially sensitive to dirt, dust and
smoke. If tapes start to sound dull and lifeless, dirt is
suspect No. 1. To remedy the situation use a commer-
cial cleaner, preferably one that comes housed in a
cassette shell. Just moisten the cleaner’s pad with
cleaning fluid and insert the device into the player. A
second or two of normal play should remove all sound-
robbing deposits from the tape head.
A thorough cleaning also may reduce the possibility
of the tape sticking to the player’s moving parts and
unraveling. If that problem persists after cleaning, the
tape player probably needs an overhaul - a job best
left to a car stereo dealer.
Keep cool. Summer is a particularly hard time for
cassettes. Never leave a tape sitting on the dashboard
on a hot day. If you do, the tape probably will warp
and become unplayable. Also, tapes will stick to
heated surfaces, so never pop a cassette into a tape
player until the deck itself has had time to cool off.
You can speed up the cooling process by wedging open
the door that covers the tape slot.
Car stereo
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Reception remedy. Modern car radios are great at
dealing with the problems of radio reception on the
road, but no radio can operate properly without a good
antenna. For the best radio reception, install a
retractable whip antenna. If vandalism is a problem in
your area, use an antenna with a suction-cup mount
that can be removed for safekeeping when you leave
your car. T-shaped wire antennae bonded to the
windshield are immune to theft and vandalism bu they
simply can’t do a good job in areas with weak
broadcasts.
Noise control. The whines and buzzes that sometime
creep into a car stereo are difficult to remove, but if
you're willing to experiment, try the following proce-
dure:
By ERIC JUDE
Copley News Service
Anyone whose car has ever broken down can appreciate the relief
of finding a reasonably priced and skilled automotive mechanic.
Your pick of a mechanic should be as prudent as your choice of a
personal physician. Certain problems require a specialist while others
can be handled by a generalist.
John Stanwood, a 20-year veteran of the automotive trade, offers
some pointers for selecting the right mechanic every time. Stanwood
is the chief automotive instructor at the ITT Technical Institute in
Fort Wayne, Ind., one of a nationwide network of private technical-
career training centers operated by ITT Educational Services Inc.
-Ask a propsective mechanic if he has an associate degree or a
certificate in automotive technology, having completed a minimum of
one year of postsecondary school training.
-Try to find a mechanic with enough field experience to handle your
car’s particular problem. It usually takes two years to become
proficient at routine service and repairs and an additional one to two
years to perform advanced repair work. A difficult specialty, such as
automatic transmission repair, requires even further training.
-A few states have licensing boards that accredit automotive
mechanics who pass state-issued written tests. A mechanic should
post his license if the state in which he is practicing has mandatory
licensing requirements.
-Voluntary certification by the National Institute for Automotive
Service Excellence is widely recognized as the standard of achieve-
ment for automotive mechanics.
By CAROL ROBERTS
Copley News Service
Are you one of those folks who
thinks that all rust does is make big
ugly holes in car fenders?
Here are two true stories about
what uncontrolled rust can do to a
vehicle, according to car expert
Robert Appel, whose syndicated
radio feature ‘“Cartalk’ is heard in
both the United States and Canada.
“A friend’s 10-year-old Dodge
Dart collapsed on its front suspen-
sion while it was sitting peacefully
in his driveway and its wheels fell
off.
‘Amazingly, he had used the car
the previous day for a high-speed
trip. If the rust had eaten through 24
hours earlier, the story would have
Appel said.
‘‘Another buddy had recently pur-
chased a used Toyota Corolla and
returned to the shop to complain of
a strange noise in the front end. He
was informed that the front sub-
frame (to which the steering hard-
ware was secured) had cracked.
The damage was considered unre-
pairable. To continue to drive the
car would be suicidal - steering
control could be lost at any
moment.”
It’s true, Appel said, that newer
cars may rust at a slightly slower
rate because of improved technol-
ogy. But all cars rust, he said.
The basic cause of rust can be
traced to the chemical action, or
interaction, of oxygen and water
when they come in contact with
steel and other ferrous metals.
Although surface rust on
scratches and dents is unsightly, it
is not a major problem, Appel said.
Rust is most damaging when it
starts on unprotected metal sur-
faces located inside an automobile,
such as doors, rocker panels, hoods
and trunk lids, Appel said. And it
begins in the tiniest seams, welds,
By DEBRA COOPER
Copley News Service
From the first day a car is used,
it is exposed to conditions that work
against keeping it attractive. The
shiny finish that first attracted you
to the car can quickly become dull
and weathered from exposure to
something as simple as sunlight.
Although today’s car finishes are
Association.
Obviously, not every car exposed
to these threats has its finished
ruined - there are plenty of shiny
cars on the road. The difference?
Frequent cleaning and polishing,
says the association.
According to the Automotive
ARTOM
shiny
Information Council, most cars
should be waxed at least twice a
year and more frequently if the car
is parked outside.
cracks and crevices. By the time
rust reaches the flatter, more
exposed areas of sheet metal, the
irreversible damage may have been
done.
The best way to avoid rust?
Take the car to a reputable,
qualified rust protection dealer
whose trained personnel will uni-
formly apply rust-inhibiting seal-
ants to affected interior metals.
Despite development of factory
coated or plated metals, no automo-
bile can withstand the corrosive
effects of salt and water without
proper maintenance, which includes
the professional rustproofing by
qualified technicians .
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206 CAREY AVE.
WILKES-BARRE
Phone 825-4581
1280 SAN SOUCI
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WILKES-BARRE
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AUTOMOBILE
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Swoyersville, Pa, 18704 AUTO PARTS NON SHORE. 7:30-21P.M. al -
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