Winter Mobility Mechanical Aspects

December 5th, 2007 by Shenron

Under the strain of extreme cold some lower grade metals and alloys become brittle, prone to cracking, additional stress on them can cause mini breaks that lead to eventual failure of the part. The addition of salts on the roads to melt the ice becomes a much bigger problem as winter wears on, and if your car is unprepared you will likely reap the consequences as the weather warms, as corrosion will being in any of these micro-cracks and cause your vehicle to rot from the inside out. That may seem like something that is impossible – but just because it looks fine does not mean that it is fine. Let’s start with the most basic thing that makes a car, well, a car. The wheels. Your wheels play the most important part of your transportation. Not even your engine will be as important considering you could always get a few horses to pull you. The rubber on those tires is going to take a beating from the salt, and the cold – not to mention driving with them in the snow and maintaining control, but I will touch on that later. If you can invest in a special winter set and want to go that route it will save you a lot of cash in the long run, however if you are like most people you will not do that.

So, how do you keep your wheels safe and sound in the winter? Simple my dear Watson – you cannot. Your wheels will have to bear the most abuse, but if you want to keep some control you might consider getting your break pads and power steering looked at, as your break fluid and steering fluids need to be able to withstand the freezing temperatures, also you can save the rubber if you rinse off the tires on a warmer winter day.

By rinsing the salt off the tires you will keep them from really having a problem. If your power steering fluid is bad, or can freeze in the cold climate, get it flushed and replaced, same goes for the break system. If your break pads haven’t been replaced in a while – do it now, and buy an extra set as your will want to replace them after winter so that none of the salts remain on them. Or you can have the current ones cleaned after winter so that corrosion does not occur.

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