If you are planning a road trip, you should always remember our take on an old maxim: An ounce of preventative maintenance saves you from the 10-ton flatbed cure. This means that people who ensure the roadworthiness of their vehicles before they take a road trip are likely to avoid breaking down and having to call for a flatbed tow truck. The inconvenience of breaking down when you are away from friends and relatives who can give you a lift goes beyond money. Do you really want to skimp on that service now and find that you are stranded several states away in the middle of nowhere?
The thing with automobiles is that problems have a way of creeping up on you when you least expect it. Danger usually rears its ugly head when you are driving along, and the additional vibrations break loose a fitting or the pressures blow a gasket. The extreme temperatures and intense operating conditions that your automobile must endure on interstate freeways and hill climbs are extreme. The excess heat alone is known to cause transmissions to fail and engines to seize up.
Using a full synthetic oil can reduce the chances of overheating and premature wear by evenly distributing the temperature throughout the oil. Most of the wear incurred by an engine is because of hotspots in conventional oil that can cause the heat to build up.
This is especially true on road trips when your car is facing heavy duty cycles. We only use high-quality oils at Jiffy Lube that come with synthetic additive packages to reduce the risks of premature wear and failure. These oils contain pour enhancers, anti-oxidants, graphite, molybdenum, and other additives that help absorb the acids created by the combustion process. High-quality motor oil is engineered to be alkaline in order to protect your engine from the softening effect of acids that build up in motor oil and is only about 75 percent oil.
When you request a Jiffy Lube oil change, we also use the ideal oil for the season and vehicle. If you have a higher mileage vehicle, you will want to run an oil with a heavier weight to protect the engine parts better. You will also want to run a heavier oil during the summer months to retain a coating even at high temperatures. This is because motor oil becomes like water as it heats up from a cold honey consistency. If the oil is too thick in the cold weather, this leads to the accumulation of heavy wear during cold starts because the oil is not able to reach the parts that it needs to protect.
Most of the wear incurred on your drivetrain is during cold starts and heavy-duty cycles that you encounter on a road trip. In any case, if you are going to upgrade your auto with a full synthetic fluid, you may need a new gasket to prevent leaks. Synthetic oil tends to creep into any pores in your gaskets because it does not contain any paraffin waxes to seal and band-aid leaks. Alternatively, you may be able to get away with a stop-leak additive product when you have your synthetic oil change done.
Items Often in Need of Repair
If you are looking over your vehicle and it appears to be fine, you may be missing the details. An alternator may have severely worn brushes that are barely charging the battery. The battery may have damaged or weak cells that burned out the alternator by constantly demanding electricity. The only way to know would be a quick verification with a multi-meter.
Your tires may look fine but may have very little tread left on them or dry rot. This can lead to a blowout at high speeds or hydroplaning if you encounter some inclement weather. Although your antifreeze may look like it is full at the level, it may be diluted or contaminated and, therefore, less effective in protecting your engine from overheating, freezing, and internal oxidation.
If your vehicle has a rough idle when you stop at a light, and you feel the vibration, this may be a sign that you have a vacuum leak. A vacuum leak is caused when air leaks into the engine from any hose or seal connected to the head. This will even affect your braking and make it hard to stop because the brake booster in a power brake system functions very poorly with low vacuum. You will also find yourself burning through way more fuel than you should be. Therefore, having a professional check your auto out before a road trip is critical. I always book a Jiffy oil change near me when I need service.
These are just a few examples of the many subtle problems in your vehicle that may exist at any given time. They may not have a dramatic impact when you only use your vehicle to travel around your local area. However, once you set out to take a road trip on those great interstates, those problems can turn into catastrophic failures. You may wind up blowing a head gasket in some remote area where it is difficult to get a tow.
Protecting your auto from embarrassing breakdowns is as easy as scheduling an appointment at your local Jiffy Lube oil change center. Jiffy Lube provides a full array of protections when they do a roadworthiness inspection. They may suggest any of the following services listed in the Road Trip Vehicle Readiness Checklist below.
Road Trip Vehicle Readiness Checklist
Jiffy Lube can inspect and may recommend repair, service, or replacement of any of the following common wear items when it appears that they are deteriorating or past their factory maintenance schedule. In addition, Jiffy Lube will repair any cracks or chips in your windshield to prevent them from spider-webbing. This is the reason why I always book a Jiffy oil change near me when I need any service.
• Oil and filter
• Transmission fluid
• Gear oil
• Check Engine lights
• Fuel system cleaning
• Alignment
• Hoses
• Belts
• Air Conditioning
• Wiper blades
• Lightbulb
• Engine coolant
• Tire
• Brake
• Battery
Jiffy Lube® recommends following manufacturer recommendations, where applicable, for maintenance schedules and service intervals.
Not all services are offered at each Jiffy Lube® location. Please check with your local Jiffy Lube® service center for specific services offered.
Go to ChicagolandJiffyLube.com for locations and services.