Keep Your Car Running Great
Timely maintenance does more than keep your Nissan running smoothly. It can help increase your car's trade-in value, improve its mileage, and save you time and costly repairs down the road.
Belts. With the engine off, check your car's belts for cracks and missing pieces. To check for proper tightness, press down on the belt with your thumb. If the belt gives more than half an inch, it needs tightening.
Hoses. When the car is cold, feel your car's hoses for bulges, cracks, soft spots or brittleness. With the engine running, look for (but don't touch) bulges or leaks. If you detect any, have the hose replaced. Note: Avoid replacing air conditioning hoses yourself. Their pressurized gases can cause serious injury.
Air Filter. Again, depending on the condition of the roads traveled by your Nissan, routinely check your air filter for accumulated debris.
Battery. Check your battery terminals regularly, removing any corrosion with a toothbrush and a mix of baking soda and water.
Tires. Check your tire pressure (with tires cold) once a month or more. Keep tires inflated to manufacturer's recommendations, which can be found on the driver's side door frame placard and in the owner's manual.
Wipers, Washers, Horn And Lights. Finally, be sure to check the operation of your car's wipers, windshield washers, horn and lights. Tip: Isopropyl alcohol makes wiper blade clean-up a snap!
If you have any questions about anything under your hood, on of our Nissan Service specialists will be happy to answer your questions.
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Gas Saving Tips
Avoid excess idling. Idling longer than 60 seconds consumes more gas than stopping and restarting.
If your stop will take longer than a minute, turn the engine off to save gas and help the environment. Even on cold mornings, 30 to 45 seconds is plenty of time.
If you see a gasoline tanker at the gas station, come back another day! Tankers can bring up sediment in the station's underground tanks, which can clog fuel filters and fuel injectors causing poor performance and potential repairs.
Get the junk out of your trunk. The more you carry the more fuel you burn. For every extra 100 pounds that a vehicle carries, fuel economy drops by 2%.
Inspect your tires once a month. Under-inflated tires can cause a loss of fuel economy and premature tire wear. Tire pressure care is the least expensive form of preventive and safety maintenance.
Don't top-it-off! Overfilling results in sloshing over and out of tank, leading to inefficient gasoline use. After the first click of fuel nozzle, you are ready to go.
Fill up early or late. Gas has greater density at lower temperatures. Fill up during the cooler early-morning or late-evening hours, and you'll get more gas for your money.
Drive sensibly. Rapid acceleration and braking wastes gas. Avoiding jackrabbit starts and stops can increase fuel economy by 5%.
Observe speed limits. Fuel economy drops 2% for every mile per hour that you drive over 55. Just slowing from 75 to 65 mph can increase mpg up to 15%.
Use cruise control. Maintaining a steady speed can increase fuel economy by 10%. If you're traveling on the highway, use your cruise control.
Tighten the gas cap. A loose, damaged or missing gas cap can allows gas to evaporate and cause a loss of up to 2 mpg.
Close the windows. At highway speeds, open windows cause air drag that burns extra fuel. Rolling them up can increase fuel economy by 10%
Checking Fluids
Coolant. Check the level of coolant in your radiator by looking at the coolant overflow tank. Maintaining a 50/50 mix of antifreeze will keep your engine cool in hot weather and prevent damage when temperatures fall as low as 40 below zero. Note: Do not remove the radiator cap until the engine is turned off and has cooled down.
Oil. Depending on the driving conditions your Nissan is subjected to, change your oil and filter as recommended in your Owner's Manual. Also, use the recommended oil grade. Power Steering Fluid. To check, pull out the dipstick, wipe it clean, and insert it again. Pull it out again and check the level. If it is below the HOT range, add the recommended steering fluid up to the upper level mark. Note: If the fluid level is extremely low or fluid has been replaced, contact your Subaru dealer.
Brake Fluid. Check the fluid level on the outside of the tank using the lines on the reservoir as a guide. If the level is below MIN, add brake fluid from a sealed container to bring it up to MAX. You'll notice a significant drop in fluid levels when there's a leak. Note: Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. Any absorbed moisture can cause a dangerous loss of braking performance. If your brake fluid tank requires frequent refilling, there may be a leak. Contact Anchor Nissan immediately.
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Wiper Care
Wipers take a beating from extreme temperatures, acid rain, road salt, sand, and ice scraper abuse. The rubber can crack, split, tear, become contaminated with road film or chemicals or warp from long exposure to heat, cold or ice. Improvements are being made in blade materials, but air pollution still takes its toll.
You can clear up many windshield problems by replacing the blades. If water beads up on the glass, or if wiper action creates a hazy, oily film, clean the glass and replace the blades. Beading and hazing are most often caused by car wax build-up or driving behind a vehicle that was losing brake fluid or engine oil. If wipers leave streaks or "skip" on each stroke, the arm may be bent or applying incorrect pressure. Blades and arms should be inspected every four to six months.
Meanwhile, every time you wash your car (weekly, hopefully), clean the rubber blade with a mild detergent and rinse with water. You'll remove most pollutants attacking the rubber, help increase blade life and reduce windshield smearing. If taking a rear wiper-equipped Subaru through a commercial car wash, temporarily tape the rear wiper to the glass to avoid damage during the wash.
If you're tired of finding your wipers frozen to your windshield, try setting them away from the glass before you leave your parked car. Most Subaru wipers can be gently pulled outward and set before snow or freezing rain so they will be ready to work when you need them most.
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