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The purpose of our Helpline is to protect people before they buy something they don’t need or that may be in the seller’s best interest rather than their own.

But recently we’ve been getting an increasing number of requests from people who need us to fix what someone else has broken, which is no surpirse to us: the only problems we’ve ever had with our own cars were caused by a technician’s rushed or sloppy repair procedure.

A recent stuy in the U.K. found comsumers are being bled dry trying to fix problems caused by negligent service centers.

We can review your service records and/or inspect your car to see if the place you’ve been taking it to is deserving of your trust and your money. As with all of our services you stand to save far more than our service will cost you…

...and yet every day people allow services to be performed that are suggested simply to increase profits.

You know the routine… you go in for an oil change and suddenly you’re being told you need a transmission power flush (NEVER say yes), new filters, specially formulated oil, etc. It’s a trick of every sales trade – the ‘upsell’.

By the fabricated service schedules shops come up with, every car has the same service requirements (not true) and every car benefits from services not listed in the maintenance schedule (also not true).

Here are a few pointers to keep you from getting taken for a ride:

Never allow any work to be performed that you didn’t originally take the car in for. Dealership service departments, tire chains and especially quick lube services make most of their money upselling people on services that are not needed. Unless the issue will cause immediate harm to your car or your person, get a second opinion and get quotes from other shops.

Never say ‘I need a X,000 mile service’. Instead consult the maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual and make a list of parts that require replacement. Doing so will save you 50% or more!

Unless you make frequent short trips, follow the normal service schedule – this will save you an additional 50%. This is especially true of a car that you are leasing or don’t plan on keeping indefinitely/past the warranty period. Car & Driver torture tests its cars for 30,000 miles and only changes the oil ever 7,500-15,000 miles. With their quick warm-up times and precise engine managment, many modern cars can safely go 10,000 miles between oil changes, especially when using a synthetic oil. (We change our own oil once a year – two of our cars are now over a dozen years old. One of our former cars was bought back by the dealership to be used as a service loaner because even though they were aware we serviced less frequently they also knew we were fanatical about the quality of oil and replacement parts used).

Don’t ‘power-flush’ anything. Doing so to the transmission (particularly at higher mileages) can lead to transmission failure. Doing so to the power steering or engine is a needless expense.

The technician may point out your oil is dirty and show you how black it is to sell you something. Kindly explain to him that means its doing its job (oil turns black after just a few hundred miles).

Don’t let them perform ‘services’ that amount to their simpy pouring a bottle of something into our engine or gas tank. Oil treatments do nothing but make the oil thicker than it should be, while fuel injector cleaner mixes with oil and makes it syrupy as well.

Call our helpline at 617.308.1136 before approving any work- there is no charge for the first 5 minutes.

Saving money on unnecessary services will benefit the environment and allow you to afford higher quality replacement parts (e.g. tires, brakes, synthetic lubricants) or a safer car the next time around. You’ll notice most services are things that are a) easy for the shop to do and b) impossible to feel the effect of.

You work hard to earn your money – spend it wisely.

Remember the Easy Spirit commercial with the ladies in heels playing basketball?

We get the same sense of absurdity when we think about the tires that most Americans are on as they head into another winter. Ever notice how the first cars in the ditch are SUVs and AWD cars followed by the occasional FWD car? Here’s why:

Ironically, many light trucks and SUVs come on tires that are ill suited in the snow. Their rubber compounds must be hard to withstand the weight of your average SUV when loaded and not fall to shreds at the first sign of rough pavement. In addition, SUV tires are wide for better traction in sand and mud and to give them that butch look mom’s prefer. Unfortunately this is the opposite of what you want for ice and snow traction; narrower is better. When you combine this with the fact that most SUVs have lots of torque and are rear wheel drive without traction control until 4 wheel drive is engaged, it’s easy to understand why they become so unweildy in the winter and are eager to exit the roadweay backwards.

An increasing number of cars – especially sport sedans- come from the factory on ‘3-season’ tires. Such tires are designed under the assumption that the car will not be driven in the snow or even at temperatures below about 40 degrees F (below that temperature the rubber becomes hard and slippery). In the case of a car that’s available with front wheel drive as standard and all wheel drive as an option, testing shows that the all wheel drive increases the chances that the tail will side out and reduces cornering and braking grip. (Click here for proof).

The so-called ‘all-season’ tires on most cars are not designed to be driven through deep snow or ice (in fact in most cases they’re particularly bad on ice). To be called an all season, a tire simply must exceed a 25:75 ratio of channels:blocks. Arranging these blocks for long wear, hydroplaning resistance or low noise reduces traction in the snow, and using a rubber that last upwards of 30,000 miles severly reduces grip on ice. (Click here for more on the shortcomings of ‘all-seasons’ during the winter season).

Regardless of what you drive, if you encounter snow or ice we suggest a tire with the ‘mountain with snowflake’ symbol signifying the tire has been tested in winter conditions and meets certain minimum standards. (And in fact testing as shown that you’re best chance for avoiding an accident is to drive a rear wheel drive car with traction and stability control and these ‘mountain on snowflake’ tires).

Don’t see yourself changing from summer to winter tires? Don’t sweat it – unless you take your car to the track or regularly drive your cars til the tires cry out for mercy, an H or V rated ‘European winter’ tire will be suitable for use throughout the year. (The BMW CCA’s technical advisor also advocates this). Such tires give up less than 10% in the dry to other tires but gain you about 30% in the winter – a worthwhile tradeoff in our eyes. In fact there has been a recent trend towards so called ‘dual season’ winter tires or ‘performance’ winter tires that offer as more grip in the dry than an all season. We’ve been runnning these year round on a half dozen cars and the drivers can’t tell there’s anything different about the cars until it turns snowy or icy.

So as we see it there are 4 basic categories of tires:

no M&S logo on the tire means it’s unsafe below 40 degrees

a M&S logo means it might be capable in light snow but not on ice

a mountain on snowflake symbol with an H or V rating can be used year round if you encounter heavier snowfall or icy conditions

a mountain on snowflake symbol with a Q or S rating – particularly Multicells such as most Bridgestone Bizzaks or a tire with a name ending in ‘Ice’ – should be used in the winter only; they wear quicky and grip poorly on dry or warm days.

Feel free to contact us for a list of suggested tires based on your specific car, budget, driving style, and road/weather conditions.

NOTE: Just because your car passes safety inspection doesn’t mean its ready for winter. In fact most mechanics don’t suggest replacing tires until they’ve reached the legal minimum – 1/3rd what is required by safety and tire experts. Click here for more information.

In a world that is more concerned with appearances than performances, ‘rims’ are growing in size at a dizzying rate, even from the factory.

Take for example the newest Civic: the standard wheel is now a 15, most Civics ride on 16s, 17s are standard on the Si, an 18 optional. Compare this with the Civic of 10 years ago: standard 13s, the largest size available was a 14, performance tuners knew that the car was best on 15s. Same with the BMW 7 series: 15s were standard, now its 18s. (Choose any car, you’ll see the same pattern, even in those rare cases where the size or weight of the car has decreased…)

With so many people thinking bigger is better, it’s difficult to convince people of the truth: bigger wheels are ruining the way today’s cars ride and handle.

It’s basic physics, really – ride and handling are largely a function of wheel weight. The lower the ratio of wheel:body weight (also referred to as unsprung:sprung mass), the better the ride quality. The lower the wheel/unsprung weight, the greater the tire’s adhesion to the road surface. The lower the rotational inertia, the better the acceleration, braking and steering response.

If you’re interested in performance rather than appearance, we suggest doing what we do to our own cars:

1) Get a lighter wheel in the same diameter. Factory wheels are often cast rather than forged for cost reasons, and stylists don’t care about how much a wheel will weigh so long as it looks good. By lowering your wheel weight alone you’ll see dramatic improvments in ride quality, acceleration, braking, and handling. (Steve Dinan takes this approach on his versions of the M3 and M5).

2) if you have a sport package or other option that increased wheel size from the factory, trade your wheels with someone who doesn’t read our site and has the base model car, then wrap them in tires equal or better than those you have now. (Most comparisons between base and sport package cars are not scientific because you’re comparing different suspensions, wheel sizes and tire types.) As with option 1, the lighter wheel and lower rotational inertial will work in your favor, plus the stealth quotient will mean those who challenge you on the street (or toting radar guns) won’t know how fast you’re capable of going.

NOTE: We advise against larger wheels and low profile tires on trucks and SUVs in particular. Not only are the suspension systems ill suited to keeping a low profile tire properly oriented in relation to the road surface, but doing so lengthens braking distances and increases the chance of a rollover due to the already overtaxed brakes and high centers of gravity. (When choosing Original Equipment tires and sizes, engineers choose tires that slide early, keeping the vehice on all fours. Increasing grip makes it more likely the SUV or truck will tip up on two wheels).

We’ve been using this link for about a decade now to check:

sidewall (height) – Aesthetically you want at least twice the sidewall height as there is ‘gap’ between the fender and the top of the tire’s sidewall – any more and the car appears ‘lifted’ a la Infiniti G35x, E-class 4MATIC, etc. Translation: going to a lower profile may cause the car to look higher, meaning you’ll be tempted to change the springs, which most often requires you change the shocks, which may lead to your hating the way your car ends up feeling…)

difference (in circumference) – A positive change will effectively raise the car’s final drive ratio, slowing acceleration and responsiveness. A negative change has the opposite effect, helping the car accelerate quicker. (We’ve been able to tell a difference of less than 2%; don’t be surprised if you can too…)

UPDATE: Here is another calculator worth checking out…

Most older Hondas and Acuras we’ve ridden in have automatics with frighteningly severe shift quality. Granted Hondas have always shifted firmly to prolong transmission life (slow shifts cause more wear) but something seemed amiss…

Then we remembered: most Honda autos require a Honda specific fluid. Here’s a quote from the owner’s manual of a 1997 Accord:

always use Honda Premium Formula Automatic Transmission Fluid. If it is not available, you may use Dexron III automatic transmission fluid as a temporary replacement. However, continued use can affect shift quality. Have the transmission drained and refilled with Honda ATF as soon as it is convenient.

A brochure for Genuine Honda fluids states:

Honda’s special proprietary formula offers superior anti-shudder performance (resulting in smoother shifting) and prolonged life, Use of non-genuine brands can impact the performance of your transmission in the form of poor shifting, shudder and low fluid pressure.

Given the business practices of the average mechanic or quick-change artist (and how few people get their higher mileage cars dealer serviced), we’d say its fairly unlikely the Honda or Acura you’re driving or considering as a used car purchase has been running on the correct fluid. (Only dealers and a small handfull of Honda specialists stock the fluid).

And its not just the automatics that are under threat. Honda once suggested conventional 5W or 10W30 motor oil be used in its manual transmissions but has since taken the time to come up with a purpose-designed lubricant called Honda MTL. Thinner than oil, thicker than manual transmission fluids, the Honda formulation is optimized for the finicky and delicate synchronizers in Honda gearboxes. As one message boarder explains:

aftermarket MTL [is] too slick. Redline and Royal Purple users have been having the same problems. The synchros can’t get up to speed quick enough because of the decrease in friction. Many top brand tuners still recommend using only Honda MTL in the trannies. I definitely do. Their engineers aren’t dumb; they formulated their MTL the way they did for a reason.

Unfortunately, while dealership parts departments stock Honda MTL, the service departments we’ve polled don’t use it (it’s easier- and cheaper – to get all your lubricant from the same 55-gallon drum). Every service advisor, mechanic, and parts guy we asked admitted they use Honda MTL in their own cars but as one said”In a customer’s car? Why bother? They’ll never know the difference…”

(And you won’t – until your transmission starts failing).

When buying two new tires, most people – mechanics included – still believe that you should put the best two on front.

They’re wrong.

Testing done by Michelin found that the best two tires should always be placed on the rear regardless of whether you have front, rear or all-wheel drive.

Click here, then on ‘Watch a short video to learn more’ for proof.

(Also read this if you drive a car or truck with all-wheel or four-wheel drive…)

marketing claim:
the Michelin Energy™ MXV4® S8 tire offers an array of improvements over its predecessors including a quieter, smoother ride, improved snow performance, lower rolling resistance and improved handling on dry surfaces.

owner experience:
Was very happy with the tires these replaced (OEM MXV4 Plus) with 52k. NOT HAPPY with the MXV4 S8. Dont believe Michelins hype – they are not better in every way. Handling diminished, ride now jittery (not balance – just harsher), braking distances longer. They are quieter, and I expect they will last, but if youre happy with the MXV4 Plus, stick with them!

our take:
The Michelin Energy MXV4 has long been one of our favorite tires of all time – grippy, quiet, confidence inspiring, surprisingly capable in the winter. The next generation – the Plus version – had better impact absorbtion and uncanny tracking but was slippery when cornering in the wet or snow and loud on some surfaces. Still a number of cars that drive well do so largely because they come from the factory on the MXV4 Plus – take them off and your refinement and fuel ecomomy are often lost. Unfortunately the S8 version is as vague as its predecessor was precise. It exchanges grip 99% of the time for better winter traction and lower noise levels on those rare occasions. Whereas the Plus made the car it was placed on, the S8 detracts from it – witness the feel of the old Accord or Jetta vs. the new ones: in both cases the S8 lends a slippery, vague feel regardless of any improvements made elsewhere in the chassis.

Q: We have an X5 and want to replace the tires. They came with Michelins but we put Goodyears on it last time. Which are better for the car?

A: Which Goodyears did you use? Do you have a

3.0i (17” Michelin Energy )
3.0i w/sport package (18” Michelin Energy)
4.4 i(18” Michelin Energy)
or 4.4i w/ sport package (19” Michelin Diamaris)?

Tire stores like to push Goodyear over Michelin for the same reason pharmacists push generics – because the margins are bigger. The Energy is used by many manufacturers because it gives better fuel economy than anything Goodyear makes. There are better tires than the Energy in the rain and snow but very few have the same steering precision, highway stability, or ride quality/refinement.

If you live where you experience snow I would STRONGLY suggest the Dunlop Grandtrek WT M2. It’s suggested by BMW. Not only are they sure to be more refined than the Goodyears (and only marginally less so than the Michelins) but they’re ineffably grippier when its cold and or snowy and or wet… You will brake, corner and accelerate so well on slippery surfaces that is almost comical to think so many people in all wheel drive cars and SUVs think they have ‘better traction’ when really its the tires that affect a car most.

Here’s what one person had to say re: the Michelins vs. the Dunlops (on an XC90):

They have performed flawlessly so far. The road noise difference between the original Michelins and the Dunlops is minimal, bordering on indiscernable. There is more “feedback” through the steering wheel. It is actually welcome, as the steering of the XC90 tends to be a bit too “numb”. After putting these tires on, the truck felt as though it was cornering better than on the Michelins, and I actually started thinking about leaving the Dunlops on year-round. In combination with the ABS system on the XC90, they worked great while braking on icy roads. Theyve also performed well when driving through large puddles on the highway.

Not many people read their owners manuals. (If they did, we wouldn’t have to post this).

If you have an all wheel drive or 4 wheel drive vehicle, the owner’s manual will likely warn you that replacing only two tires at a time may cause damage.

For more information, go to the ‘Tire Tech’ section of The Tire Rack’s website and read the article titled ‘Matching Tires on Four-Wheel Drive And All-Wheel Drive Vehicles’