To help save drivers' time and money, while being environmentally efficient, auto experts are busting industry myths on car maintenance. In fact, most manufacturers recommend more than 5,000 miles between oil changes instead of the traditional 3,000.
Making this adjustment can save eight to ten gallons of oil a year and put as much as $76 back in your pocket. Following new recommendations can also help improve the environment.
Here are some more of the most common maintenance myths that have been adjusted based on new technologies:
- Tune-ups. Today's engines have computer-monitored systems that still need to be checked but don't need a traditional tune-up every few thousand miles.
- Wheel Alignment. It's not always necessary to have them aligned every time they are rotated.
- Unnecessary services. Routine maintenance services such as fuel injector cleaning and transmission fluid flushes aren't necessary as often anymore.
Produced for General Motors
Duration : 2 min 40 sec
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Technorati Tags: general
Medialink (June 2007) — Seattle’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and target global warming are among the most aggressive in the U.S. Due to this strong environmental leadership, the city has one of the greenest transit agencies in the nation. Now with the addition of 500 more buses, they will have the largest fleet of hybrid-articulated buses in history with a total of 736 buses and hope other major cities will quickly follow suit.
Powered by hybrid technology from General Motors, GM’s strategy is to save as many gallons of fuel as possible by applying the technology first to high-volume and high fuel-consuming vehicles such as mass transit buses and SUVs. Currently, more than 700 buses with GM’s 2-mode hybrid system have been delivered to 54 cities across the U.S. and Canada, saving an estimated 1 million gallons of fuel annually. The addition of these 500 buses, will bring the total to more than 1,200 buses, saving an estimated 1.75 million gallons of fuel annually.
In fact, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a one-year comparative study between conventional diesel buses and diesel hybrid electric articulated buses currently in Seattle. The report showed that the hybrid powered buses had a 27 percent higher fuel economy on average when compared to the convention diesel buses and total operating cost were lowered by 15 percent. The full study can be viewed at: http://www.nrel.gov/vehiclesandfuels/fleettest/pdfs/40585.pdf.
Transit buses with the 2-mode hybrid system deliver significantly better fuel economy than traditional transit buses, cut certain emissions up to 90 percent and have operating sound levels approaching that of passenger cars. Other benefits of the hybrid system include reduced maintenance costs resulting from extended brake, engine oil and transmission oil life, superior torque, and improved acceleration.
Produced for General Motors
Duration : 0:2:48
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Technorati Tags: bus, emission, gas, general, greenhouse, hybrid, motors, seattle, Technology
