Q: My son just confessed he’d had a slow leak in a tire for months that he just kept pumping up, and now he’s had the valve stem replaced and everything is hunky dory. I’m a little obsessive about tires, I admit, but I’m concerned that something that simple can’t have really corrected the situation and there will be a catastrophic blowout. What do you think?
A: Valve stems are indeed a good bet for the slow-deflation problem. They live right down there where the rubber meets the road, of course, and the heat, cold, chemicals and muck they’re assaulted with can cause them to deteriorate over time.
Moreover, there’s been a recall of million of valve stems manufactured in China, and that increases even more the probability that the flattening phenomenon was caused by a bad valve stem.
That said, I’d implore your son to monitor air pressure very carefully for a few weeks to make sure there’s no deflation, as there are other reasons a tire could go slowly downward. I’m guessing there will be no air loss and you and he can rest easily henceforth. If, however, the leakage has continued, he should see a tire expert immediately to get to the bottom of the matter.
Q: Okay, Sharon, you’ve convinced me: I want to try carnauba wax on my car. Is this really difficult? I am a senior citizen and I’d prefer not to invest in an electric buffer. And will I get swirl marks if I do it by hand?
A: I think you’ll love the results. But first: Do not buy an electric buffer. That would virtually guarantee swirl marks (and worse). Every car-body guy (and the one car-body female) I’ve ever discussed this with agree that it’s almost impossible for the inexperienced to do a decent (read: not completely screwed-up) job with a buffer, despite the claims on late-night TV.
I will confess that I’ve never challenged that advice by trying it myself. My one look at the hood of a car that was mechanically buffed by an “advanced student” convinced me that I had no interest in subjecting my own vehicle (or wallet) to experimentation.
All you need is elbow wax. No special skills required. But I recommend the paste wax, and like all pastes, it’s going to be a little more work and more time-consuming that the liquid waxes. You might want to break the job down into two mornings.
Swirl marks? If you have a black or deep colored car, you’re almost certain to get minute swirl marks – with this or any other wipe-off wax (as opposed to those spray-on types) if you get inches away and study it. My former vehicle, jet back, had almost-invisible swirls after the first wax job. On my current vehicle, deep gray, you can’t see a swirl anywhere.
To minimize swirls the car must be white-glove clean so you’re not picking up a little piece of dirt that acts as an abrasive. As you roll up your sleeves and tackle the polishing project, make sure the wax applicator is absolutely clean (even the tiniest piece of grit can wreck everything) and invest in a good buffing cloth.
Finally, many experts now say you should not use the conventional circular-motion application and buffing. If you apply the wax and buff in a front-to-back motion there’s less chance of creating anything that’s visible, they say.
Q: We parked under a tree for a long appointment and now we’re discovering sap splats on the roof. What do we do?
A: Within moments of falling on it the sun baked that nasty mess into your roof. And there’s real danger that as you try to remove it you’ll get a ring where the sap was. Don’t try the soap-and-water approach; use a light rubbing compound or paint cleaner specifically made for removing sap. Carefully rinse off whatever compound you used. Don’t panic if you see there’s a difference in the finish where you rubbed. You will have removed wax as well as sap. So wax the whole roof with good quality wax, and you may be okay.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Philly.com Promotions
