Our general FAQ section provides clear answers to the most common automotive questions that apply to all vehicles, regardless of make or model. From understanding routine maintenance schedules and oil change intervals to learning about warning lights, smog checks, brakes, tires, and general car care tips, this category is designed to help every driver. Whether you’re new to car ownership or just want reliable advice, our general FAQs give you the knowledge to keep your vehicle safe, reliable, and road-ready.
Should Tire Traction (Traction Control) Be On or Off? Keep traction control on for everyday driving; only turn it off briefly in specific situations like getting unstuck from deep snow, mud, or sand, or during controlled track/off-road driving by experienced drivers. Traction control enhances safety by limiting wheelspin, but there are rare cases where a …
How to Read the Gas Meter in a Car Look for the fuel gauge on your instrument cluster: it shows the fuel level from E (empty) to F (full), sometimes as a needle, percentage, or bars; a low-fuel light indicates you’re nearly out, and an arrow next to the fuel-pump icon shows which side the …
How Many Calories Are in a Cup of Gasoline? Roughly 1,800 to 2,000 dietary Calories (kcal) are contained in a U.S. cup (about 236.6 mL) of gasoline, depending on the blend. In practical terms, this is the theoretical chemical energy available by combustion—not energy the human body can safely or meaningfully metabolize. Below, we explain …
What Is Rack-and-Pinion Steering Gear? Rack-and-pinion steering gear is a mechanism that converts the driver’s rotation of the steering wheel into the side-to-side motion that turns a vehicle’s front wheels. It pairs a round gear (the pinion) with a straight, toothed bar (the rack). As the pinion rotates, it slides the rack left or right, …
The Basic Parts of a Car: What Every Driver Should Know A car’s basic parts include the power source (engine or electric motor), transmission, drivetrain (axles and differential), suspension, steering, brakes, wheels and tires, the body/frame, electrical and electronic systems (battery, alternator or inverter, wiring), fuel/air/exhaust, cooling and lubrication systems, interior controls, and safety features …
What a Cold Air Intake Does — Function, Benefits, Trade-offs, and Real-World Expectations A cold air intake replaces or modifies the factory airbox and ducting to feed the engine cooler, denser air through a less restrictive path, which can modestly increase power (often 0–5% at wide-open throttle), sharpen intake sound, and marginally improve throttle response; …
Can EBD be turned off? Yes and no: in virtually all modern cars, Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) is not a user-selectable feature and cannot be turned off with a button or menu. It remains active by design as part of the anti-lock braking system (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC). It can only go offline …
7 Telltale Symptoms of a Failing Camshaft Position Sensor The seven most common symptoms of a bad camshaft position sensor are: an illuminated Check Engine Light, hard starting or no-start (often worse when hot), rough idle or engine misfires, hesitation or poor acceleration, engine stalling, reduced fuel economy, and erratic transmission shifting or limp mode …
How to Know if Your Car Needs a New Thermostat Your car likely needs a thermostat replacement if you notice erratic temperature gauge behavior, overheating or extremely slow warm‑up, weak cabin heat once cruising, coolant leaks at the thermostat housing, or a check‑engine light with codes like P0128 or P0125. In short, a thermostat stuck …
Can You Replace a Torque Converter Without Removing the Transmission? In nearly all cases, no—you cannot replace a torque converter without removing or at least separating the transmission from the engine. While you can access and remove the torque converter bolts through an inspection cover, the converter itself is splined to the transmission input shaft …
Is a Gas Engine an Internal Combustion Engine? Yes—generally, a “gas engine” is an internal combustion engine (ICE). In everyday American usage it usually means a gasoline (petrol) engine, while in British and technical contexts it often refers to engines that burn gaseous fuels such as natural gas or biogas. In both cases, the engine …
How a Vehicle’s Oxygen Sensor Works An oxygen sensor measures how much oxygen remains in the exhaust and signals the engine computer to adjust fuel delivery, keeping the air–fuel mixture near optimal for power, efficiency, and emissions; most modern cars use a heated wideband sensor upstream of the catalytic converter for precise control and a …
The Correct Order to Hook Up Jumper Cables—and Why It Matters Connect the cables in this order: 1) Red clamp to the dead battery’s positive (+) terminal, 2) Red clamp to the good battery’s positive (+) terminal, 3) Black clamp to the good battery’s negative (−) terminal, 4) Black clamp to an unpainted metal ground …
What Is the Use of a HUD in Cars? A head-up display (HUD) in cars projects key driving information—such as speed, navigation cues, and safety alerts—into the driver’s line of sight on the windshield or a small transparent screen, helping keep eyes on the road and reducing distraction. In practice, HUDs improve situational awareness, support …
Why drag cars use nitromethane Because nitromethane carries its own oxygen, drag racing engines can burn far more fuel per unit of air than with gasoline or methanol, generating extreme, short-burst power—over 11,000 horsepower in today’s NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car—while the fuel’s cooling and knock-resistant properties help engines survive those few explosive seconds …
What Is a Coil in a Car? A coil in a car typically refers to the ignition coil, an electrical transformer that converts the vehicle’s 12 volts into tens of thousands of volts to fire the spark plugs. In modern vehicles, the engine control unit (ECU) precisely times the coil’s energy release so the air‑fuel …
Can You Drive With a Bad Intake Camshaft? You might be able to drive briefly if the problem is limited to a sensor or variable valve timing actuator, but it’s risky and often unsafe; if there’s mechanical damage, low oil pressure, or timing issues, stop driving and arrange a tow to prevent catastrophic engine damage. …
What Is a Road Train Truck? A road train truck is a heavy-duty tractor hauling multiple trailers linked in series—typically two or three and sometimes more—used primarily on long, low-traffic freight corridors to move large loads efficiently. Most common in Australia and, to a more limited extent, parts of North America and Scandinavia, road trains …
What Happens When a Harmonic Balancer Fails When a harmonic balancer fails, engine vibrations escalate quickly, the serpentine belt can slip or come off, and critical systems like cooling, power steering, and battery charging may stop working—making it unsafe to continue driving. In many engines, a failing balancer can also throw off crankshaft timing signals, …
What Is the Meaning of Vehicle Art? Vehicle art is the creative decoration, customization, or transformation of cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles, and other transport into mobile works of art that express identity, tell stories, serve commercial or political messages, and shape public space. More broadly, it refers both to art applied to vehicles (paint, decals, …
How to Tell if Your Timing Belt Is Bad You can’t always confirm a bad timing belt without inspection, but watch for age/mileage beyond the manufacturer’s interval, rough running, ticking or slapping noises from the timing cover area, oil leaks around the timing cover, trouble starting or a sudden no-start with unusually fast cranking, and …
What Is the “Top” of an Engine Called? The top of an engine is typically called the cylinder head, and the very uppermost visible piece is the valve cover (also called a rocker or cam cover) that sits on top of the head; mechanics also refer to this area collectively as the “top end.” This …
How Long It Takes to Get a Vehicle Title in Maine Most people receive a Maine vehicle title about 2–4 weeks after the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) gets a complete, accurate application; dealer sales with liens typically take 30–45 days. Seasonal backlogs, corrections, or missing documents can extend delivery to 6–8 weeks. Note: Maine …
Which cars have both a supercharger and a turbo? Several production cars use both a supercharger and a turbocharger—a setup often called “twincharging.” Standout examples include Volkswagen’s 1.4 TSI Twincharger models (such as the Golf and Polo GTI), the 1980s Nissan March/Micra Super Turbo, the Lancia Delta S4 (road-going Group B homologation), and Volvo’s 2.0-liter …
Can Radial Tires Be Directional? Yes—radial tires can be directional. “Radial” describes how the tire’s internal plies are constructed, while “directional” describes a tread pattern designed to rotate in one direction for performance benefits. Many radial tires are non-directional, but a significant number—especially performance and winter models, and most motorcycle radials—are directional and must be …
How to Make the Most Aerodynamic Dragster The most aerodynamic dragster uses a slender, smooth, symmetric body with a rounded ogive nose, a long, gentle boattail, minimal frontal area, enclosed or faired wheels, and carefully managed underbody airflow—validated by testing (CFD, wind tunnel, and coast-down) and balanced for stability with small aft fins and proper …
What is the “Works” car wash? The “Works” car wash is typically the top-tier, all-in-one package at many drive-through or express car washes, bundling a basic exterior wash with extras such as foam conditioning, wheel and undercarriage cleaning, wax or sealant application, rain repellent, tire shine, and a spot-free rinse. The exact contents vary by …
Can a non-working warning light be detected? Yes—most modern systems can detect when a warning light is not working through startup self-tests, circuit monitoring, and diagnostics. In older or very simple designs, automatic detection may be absent, but you can add lamp-test features or use manual checks to confirm an indicator’s health. Understanding how various …
What a Restrictor Plate Does—and Why It Matters A restrictor plate limits flow by narrowing a passage. In motorsport, it restricts the amount of air an engine can ingest, reducing horsepower and top speed to improve safety and competitive parity. More broadly, restrictor plates are used anywhere a precise cut in flow is needed—engines, turbo …
What time does the Indy 500 race start? The Indianapolis 500 typically goes green at 12:45 p.m. Eastern Time, with U.S. television coverage beginning late morning (often around 11 a.m. ET). The race is held on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and exact timings can shift slightly for broadcast windows, …