Performance Unlimited Blog

McHenry drivers know that their brakes don't fail often. But, when they do, a critical braking failure can cause serious problems. It's a good idea to have your brakes checked periodically. You’re driving south on Green Street and, just as you come up to Green Street Café, a car pulls out and turns left in front of you. Will you have time to stop? You’re headed east on 120 and, at the last second, without using their turn signal, the person driving the car in front of you decides it’s time for a fastfood sandwich. Can you brake in time? Worse yet, you’re driving down any one of the many side streets in McHenry when a kid chasing a ball runs into the street in front of you. Can you stop in time? In any of those questions, finance and treasure hang in the balance. Even life and emotional welfare are at stake. And there are a couple critical factors that may decide the outcome. Attentive Driving If you don’t notice the car pulling out of the parking lot, the suddenly braking vehic...

Do something exciting this Labor Day; take in some drag racing at one of the dragstrips driving distance from McHenry. Ahhhh, Labor Day in McHenry. We kicked off the unofficial start of summer Memorial Day with the Indy 500. Isn't it appropriate to acknowledge the unofficial end of summer with auto racing? You can kickback, relax, throw some brats, burgers or steaks on the grill and prepare yourself for the autumn ahead. Then again, maybe you’d like something a little more exciting. Maybe you’re interested in something that will get you heart pounding and your blood flowing. Have you considered checking out NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) drag racing on the quarter- or eighth-mile track? At the dragstrip, cars will line up in pairs preparing for high-powered runs down a short straight-away. Their engines will roar at high rpm as racing slicks burn and smoke until the rubber is extra sticky.  Then the drivers will nose their cars up to the Christmas tree. No, this isn’t the tree...

Make sure your engine oil is up to the task as we enter Wonder Lake's dog days of summer. On any given day of the year, when you pull out of your Wonder Lake driveway, you’re giving your engine oil a test, especially during the dog days of summer. Thankfully, engine oil is generally prepared for the test. No cramming necessary – engine oil knows what it’s supposed to do and, if you give it a chance, it will do the job effectively. That’s the problem – ‘will you give your engine oil a chance?’ Engine oil has a relatively short life expectancy. It will only last so long and then …? Well, then it simply doesn’t do its job so well. It doesn’t provide adequate lubrication for the internal components of your engine. The question of whether your engine oil is up to the test depends on the time between oil changes and how you drive your car. It also depends on external factors, such as the outside temperature. Your car may generally idle at 600 to 1,000 rpm (Revolutions Per Minute). At 1,0...

Johnsburg schools are about to open and that means you have work to do getting your brood ready for another school year. Don't let an automotive breakdown disrupt your already busy schedule. Whether you have a toddler heading to Ringwood School Primary Center, James C Bush Elementary School, Johnsburg Junior High School or Johnsburg High School, this is the time of year that you’ll be heading out to do all that back-to-school shopping. In fact, with new clothes, backpacks, pens, folders and whatnot, you’re liable to be rather busy. When you’re busy, so is your vehicle. And if you have a young athlete in the family, a member of the school band, or an aspiring thespian, you may have additional shopping to do getting your boy or girl ready for the Johnsburg school year ahead. All that running around, along with the customary trips you make to work, to the grocery store, to the salon and other stops you make along the way, add up quickly. It’s going to be hectic out there, isn’t it? Wh...

They may have parked their car on the wrong street in Johnsburg as it is covered with bird droppings and sap while attacked by UV rays. Ringwood has escaped from the days of snow, ice and roadsalt that challenges car, truck and SUV owners to maintain the exterior finish of their vehicles. But there are several other antagonists out there ready to attack the bodies of their autos. This time of year, while stones kicked up in traffic near road construction is a hazard that can leave nicks and scratches in the paint of Ringwood owners of cars, trucks and SUVs, even when parked, vehicles aren’t safe from conditions. One threat to that shiny painted finish is the sun. UV rays of the sun insidiously attacks a car’s paint. Those UV rays will suck the color right out of the paint. Left in the sun long enough, a car, truck or SUV’s paint job will be completely ruined. Of course, the sun’s incessant assault on paintjobs is a slow process. The answer to parking a vehicle out where the sun can get...