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April is for Taxes and Car Care

April 18th, 2011 CarMD

Written By: Kristin Brocoff  Kristinsblog@carmd.com

To quote Ieon C. Chen, CEO of CarMD.com Corp., “There are three certainties in life – death, taxes, and at some point in time, your car will break down.”  Every hard working American knows that April is tax time, but not everyone is aware that April is also Car Care Awareness month.  I thought it a fitting time to remind our CarMD family that just like preparing for taxes, it’s important to prepare a solid vehicle maintenance program to help avoid any inopportune break downs.

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Here’s To Good Motoring and Maintenance!

March 28th, 2011 RichardA
By: Leon Kaplan, “The Motorman” KABC Radio

I’m pleased to pen this piece because I know that, like me, CarMD is committed to educating drivers about the importance of good maintenance.

Statistics show that people are keeping their cars longer than ever before.  It’s certainly no secret that your car or truck is often the second – or even the first – biggest investment you make.  To help extend the life of your vehicle and save you money over the long haul, it’s important to invest a little in maintenance along the way.  Here are some maintenance tips to follow:

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Caring For Your Car Helps Your Wallet, Your Safety and Your Environment

February 8th, 2011 RichardA

As many of you know April is Car Care Awareness month and April 21st 2011 is Earth Day.  I was very happy when I was asked to write this column for CarMD to help people better understand the importance and the impact that taking care of your car has on your wallet, your safety and on the environment.

Your Wallet

In these economic times everyone is keeping an eye on the bottom line.  Gas prices are approaching record highs and not much relief is in sight.  Making sure that your vehicle is well maintained helps your vehicle run more efficiently and more smoothly.  I can see your eyes rolling, but consider these simple tips which are easy to implement and will definitely help save you money at the pump.  Of course everyone’s situation is different, but implementing these simple changes could save you thousands of dollar – or more – over the course of a year.

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Confessions of a Taxi Cab Rider

December 20th, 2010 KristinB

Written By: Kristin Brocoff  Kristinsblog@carmd.com

During two recent trips to New York I observed that most of the taxis I rode in had some sort of dashboard warning, such as a check engine light, on.  This concerned me because this light is designed to notify drivers when they have a problem ranging in severity from something that pollutes the environment to a serious safety issue.

About 10 to15 percent of vehicles on the road are considered gross polluters, which mean they emit so much pollution they account for more than half of all vehicle-produced smog.  I wonder how many taxis fall into that “gross polluter” category?  And while I haven’t been able to find a clear answer to my question, I did learn that 86 percent of the taxicabs operating at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport have improperly issued vehicle inspection stickers.   I also found that back in 1993, Los Angeles County cracked down on a scheme that allegedly sold emissions certificates to fleet operators, such as taxi owners, who wanted to avoid emissions-related tests and repairs.

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Flashing Check Engine Light

December 15th, 2010 ArtJ

Written By: Art Jacobsen artsblog@carmd.com
In today’s Fault Code Spotlight I will explain one of the most common and severe fault codes in your vehicle – misfire. Misfire is a very serious problem and one you should never ignore. The fault codes that you will see for misfire are:

P0300- Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected

P03nn – Cylinder nn Misfire Detected where nn is a 2 digit number (01, 02…11, 12) indicating the cylinder in your vehicle 1-12.

P0313 – Misfire detected due to low fuel level

P0314 - Misfire detected single Cylinder not determined

P0315 -Misfire Detected due to crankshaft position sensor

P0316 – Misfire detected during engine startup

The most common method for detecting misfire is called crank pulse fluctuation. At an engine speed of 7,000 rpm, your vehicle’s computer is processing 2,800 crank pulses every second! The onboard computer works with the crank pulse sensor to look for fluctuations in the signal to determine if your engine is misfiring. It then triggers the check engine light if it sees a problem.

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Where’s The Cap?

December 8th, 2010 KristinB

Written By: Kristin Brocoff  Kristinsblog@carmd.com

Earlier this month, I rented a car. Being the ever-frugal business traveler, I opted to refill the tank before returning it to the lot. Imagine my surprise when I pulled up to the pump and found I was driving a vehicle with no gas cap. I don’t know why I was so shocked. I knew capless fuel tank technology existed. I’d read about how it works. But for some reason it just didn’t seem natural to skip the “unscrew gas cap” step that’s been entrenched in my brain since I started driving some umpteen years ago. It got me thinking about the pros and cons of the capless gas tank and how it might affect CarMD customers.


Ford introduced its Capless Fuel Filler, which it calls the direct fill system (DFS), during model year 2008. The technology is now found on many Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles, with many other manufacturers worldwide following suit. This new technology is designed to be better for the environment by minimizing, if not completely reducing, escaped gas and hydrocarbons. The DFS system automatically seals the filler neck when you remove the nozzle and swivels out of the way when you insert it. The door to the fuel tank is locked until you swipe the key or unlock the vehicle doors, which also minimizes gas-siphon thefts.

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