Spring has arrived in McHenry County, officially, anyhow

Enjoy, but have your car checked out, too

The warmer weather, these last few days, may give you the feeling that the winter of 2016-17 is about over. Actually, there’s additional evidence, and far more concrete; as of Monday, Mar. 30, 2017, winter officially ended.

This doesn’t mean that we won’t have any additional snowfall. It doesn’t mean the temperature won’t drop precipitously into even single-digits. But, it does mean that winter is on its way out. You may not want to put your winter coat, hat, gloves and boots in the attic just yet. And, it’s not a bad idea to keep the ice scraper handy, for a little longer, in case your car’s windows and windshield are covered with frost and ice some morning soon. But …

You can start thinking warm thoughts with the expectation that Mother Nature will cooperate. If it does turn cold and snow, don’t worry, it will soon pass. This winter, though not the worst winter on the books, is tired and ready to hibernate until it returns as the winter of 2017-18, not that we want to think about that yet.

We do want to think about baseball, picnics, outdoor barbeques and festivals; taking the dog for walks without having to bundle up first. Soon, the robins will arrive, buds will show on the branches of trees and buds will poke their little heads out of the ground with the promise of flowers in the garden.

While you enjoy the warmer weather, don’t forget to have the car checked out

Winter, even the milder version we experienced the last few months, is hard on a car. By now, you may be thinking about giving that car a bath. That’s a nice idea – wash away the last vestiges of the snow, road salt and dirt. But, you want to do more than clean the car.

You’ll also want to have the car’s suspension checked – the steering, shocks, struts and such. These parts take a beating even in the mildest winter. It doesn’t hurt to have a qualified auto repair technician take a look and make sure they’re still in good shape and, above all, safe.

You don’t have to make a special trip to check your car to see how it did this winter. If you’re changing your oil on schedule, the next time you bring the car in for an oil change, as if they can give the car a good post-winter going over.

Some of the better auto repair shops will look your car over thoroughly whenever they do an oil change. But, it doesn’t hurt to ask, just in case they weren’t thinking about it.

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