Performance Unlimited Blog

If you confront a real ghost on the road in McHenry this Halloween, even if it’s frightening, it’s probably nothing to worry about. But we don’t often see real ghosts roaming on the streets of town. Therefore, if you see a ghost this Halloween, just to be safe, assume it is a child dressed in a costume for the holiday. Halloween is a favorite holiday for children in McHenry. They get to dress up in scary outfits and go door to door collecting candy. There are pumpkins to carve and houses to decorate.  Some may go to the Haunted Hayride 7 to 10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Oct. 12-13 and 19-20 at Petersen Park that benefits the Wonder Lake Water Ski team. But that’s generally for older kids who are up to that level of spooky. The little ghouls and goblins, however, will wait with bated breath for the actual day of Halloween.   When Monday, Oct. 31, comes around, and the real Halloween, it’s an evening made for little kids. And, not surprisingly, they’re pretty excited abo...

It took hours to get home from work that night. Usually, the ride was about 45 minutes but with the snow and ice that hit the McHenry area, the roads were slick and dangerous. North of Libertyville, vehicles heading west on Rt 137 had to climb a hill while the light at Milwaukee Avenue was green. The road was so slick that the cars had to wait back from the bottom of the hill to get up some speed to climb the slippery hill. And once they got going, they had to keep going. Letting off the gas could leave a car stranded on the hill. Such was the case in the right lane. A car made it halfway up the hill and couldn’t go any further. Either the driver failed to keep the car’s upward momentum going or their tires lacked sufficient tread to make the climb. With that one driver stuck on the hill, those trying to get through the light were reduced to one lane. The vehicles waiting for their chance to climb the hill were merging down below the hill. Only four cars were making it through when the...

Having the confidence that your car, truck or SUV will start every time you go out to your McHenry garage or driveway and get behind the wheel this winter depends. It depends on how well you’ve maintained your vehicle and whether the starting and charging systems are up to the job. If you’ve ever gotten in the car, truck or SUV and turned the key only to find that your vehicle won’t start and you’re stuck in your McHenry driveway or garage, or stuck somewhere away from home, you know how inconvenient that can be.  We tend to take our vehicles for granted and that includes the battery. But, when the battery in your car, truck or SUV fails, it tends to rush to the forefront of your priorities. That is inconvenient anytime of year but far more so in the winter. It’s also more likely in the winter. Most people think that winter is the hardest on a battery. Actually, the summer heat is really brutal for car, truck or SUV batteries. The problem is that winter is harder on your vehicle in...

Imagine if your car didn’t have any heat as you drove through this Johnsburg winter. You could bundle up and get used to it but it wouldn’t be the same; it wouldn’t be like those days when the car warmed up and warm air poured from the vents filling the cabin with comforting heat. When you’re warm inside the car, the cold passes by outside with little effect on your comfort inside. Winter is like a movie you watch from your seat in the car. From Johnsburg to any destination in the Northern hemisphere, you’re cocooned in an environment that separates you from cold outside. That heat you’re counting on to keep you warm while driving does more than provide comfort; it also keeps your windshield from frosting as you drive. You count on the defrosters for the ability to see where you’re going. They help to keep you and your loved ones safe, not to mention people in other cars you might run into if you couldn’t see. Can you count on the heat to fill your car’s cabin with warm air and to defr...

This time of year, it’s easy to think of another Wonder Lake winter fondly. Well, if not exactly fondly, without too much dread yet. It’s only as winter truly begins to set in that we start to contemplate what it really means – the cold, the snow and ice, slippery conditions, cars, trucks and SUVs that don’t want to start. We could also add rust to that list. A Wonder Lake winter is an opportune environment for rust. It will cause rust on fences, mailboxes, and just about anything made of metal that is exposed to the elements. This includes your car, truck or SUV. Rust is just chomping at the bit to get at your vehicle and winter starts a feeding frenzy. Rust is actually the name for the iron oxide that forms on the surface of metal components when exposed to moisture and oxygen. In the summer, moisture will roll off your car, truck or SUV’s smooth and shiny surface. The paint inhibits its access to the metal underneath. The sun dries puddles and water evaporates in the heat. But winte...