Enjoy Freedom of the Road

But have your car, truck or SUV checked before leaving your McHenry home

It’s summer in McHenry, you’ve got your car, truck or SUV and the roads will take you almost anywhere you want to go. That’s some serious freedom stretching out along the concrete and asphalt, beckoning you to explore the sights and activities that abound on a summer day.

Those roads will take you near or far from your McHenry home. And they’ll bring you back when you’re ready to return. Well, that’s the plan anyhow.

What could spoil the plan?

This time of year, you could run into road construction. While inconvenient, there’s always alternate routes so you can continue on your way. But, if your car, truck or SUV breaks down, that’s another matter.

What could possibly go wrong to leave you stranded on the side of the road somewhere? There are any number of possibilities.

You could have a flat tire. That’s one of the most common possibilities. You pickup a nail or a screw somewhere and, next thing you know, you’re riding on the rim. Better hope your spare has air. And you might want to check it before you leave your McHenry driveway.

You could run out of gasoline. As long as your gas gauge works, and you keep an eye on it, this isn’t very likely.

You could drop a muffler or have some other malfunction of your exhaust system. But exhaust systems don’t generally have cataclysmic failures suddenly. You’re liable to notice an increase in the volume of the engine before exhaust parts start falling off the car. In any case, have your exhaust system checked out the next time you have the oil changed.

Your car could overheat. This is customarily the result of a faulty cooling system; you haven’t enough coolant, the coolant is old and ready to be replaced, the thermostat is stuck, the radiator is clogged, the water pump isn’t pumping and/or you have a leak. Once again, have the cooling system checked out before you hit the road. And, speaking of oil changes, having the oil changed on schedule will help when the temperature begins to rise. It will add life to your engine along the way.

Your charging system could fail. If the charging system fails, you’ll keep driving for a little while. But that’s only because the car is running off the battery. When the battery is dead, you’ll want to drift your car onto the shoulder of the road. Keep in mind that, if you run the battery down, you won’t have juice to run the emergency flashers. Better make sure you have emergency flares or reflectors, and have your charging system checked.

Brakes can fail. Suspension parts can fail. Your windshield wipers, lights or turn signals can fail. The car, truck or SUV’s air conditioning can fail.

Whatever the possible problem, the best way to avoid issues that leave you stranded is to have your vehicle checked out before you leave your McHenry home. It’s the best way to ensure that the freedom of the road continues to stretch out wherever you want to go.

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