Why do my headlights get yellow over time?

 

When you look at older cars, you can notice that their headlights are yellow and foggy. Unfortunately this happens as your car ages due to a few conditions. The first being oxidation. Oxidation is when your headlights get foggy and cloudy due to the UV rays  from the sun. From the manufacturer, your headlights come with a clear coating to prevent oxidation, but over time it does wear off. Once it is worn off, the sunlight turns your plastic headlights yellow. Other things that can affect your headlights are:

• Debris: Rocks, road salt, and other road debris hit your headlights as you drive. Over time this wears down that protective coating and creates scratches. 
• Dirt: Dirt will collect on your headlight causing the light beam to appear dim. This can alter the way you see as you drive down the road. 
• Water Vapor: When headlights are made, they are manufactured with a watertight seal. Unfortunately, over time this seal can break causing condensation to form inside. This cannot be wiped away unless you take apart your headlight. The water that is inside will scatter the light, making it even harder to see at night. 

Fortunately there are some things you can do to keep your headlights clean and clear. 

1. Try to park your car in shaded areas to limit the exposure of the sun, thus slowing down the oxidation process. 
2. It is important to wash your car often, and when you do, make sure you hit those headlights. Washing them with regular car soap will remove any dust, dirt, and debris causing your headlights to appear foggy.
3. You can polish your headlights with a polishing agent and cloth. This will remove yellowing. 

Unfortunately, yellowing of headlights comes with the aging of your vehicle. Fortunately there are several ways you can slow down this process. We here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope you found this helpful and stay safe on the roads! 

Tip Tuesday: Hurricane Vehicle Preparation

We are in the midst of hurricane season and it is very important that you take certain precautions when a storm is on the way. You know batten down the hatches, secure lawn and patio furniture, secure your garbage and recycle bins, and don’t forget about your vehicle! A hurricane is upon us this coming week so this Tip Tuesday will go into a few things you can do to prepare your vehicle to be safe during the storm. 

First and foremost, it is important to have a full tank of gas; just in case you need to evacuate.

• Make sure your wiper blades are in good condition, if they are streaking, it might be time for a new pair.
• Be sure to check your vehicle battery level. If your battery is dead, your car will not start and you don’t want this happening to you in an emergency situation. 
• Take some photos of your car before the storm comes. Just in case your vehicle gets damaged from any debris, having these photos will come in handy when trying to file an insurance claim. 
• If you have a garage, park your vehicle inside. If you don’t have one, or you can’t fit all your vehicles inside, park your vehicle against your house. This will protect it from being battered from the winds. Also do not park your vehicle under or near any trees, power lines, or anything you know that could damage it. 

After the storm passes, you should make sure your vehicle has no damage. This would be a great time to use those photos you took before the storm came! If you are going to travel on the road, it might be difficult due to down trees and power lines so just be aware and careful. There also might be flooding on the road, be sure not to drive through any water as you don’t know what could be in it. 

Hurricane Laura is coming and hopefully with these tips and tricks you can properly protect your vehicle. We here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope that you stay safe out there! 

Weird Wednesday : Buried Car

It is time for a new segment, introducing... Weird Wednesday! Ever so often I will be finding a weird but cool story to write about. I thought it would be fun. So for our first Weird Wednesday, have you heard of the Plymouth Belvedere that was buried? 

Miss Belvedere was buried in 1957 in a time capsule in Tulsa Oklahoma to celebrate 50 years of becoming a state. This vehicle was buried with a bunch of other items that were popular with the people of Tulsa and the times. The car was even buried with gasoline because the people were unsure what would be used in the future. The Belvedere was to be unearthed 50 years later, in 2007. The car was shrink wrapped to protect it from water and rusting and buried in a vault. Since it was buried during the Cold War, the people of Tulsa made sure it was submerged into a vault that could withstand a nuclear explosion. 

Miss Belvedere was not only a part of the time capsule but she would be a prize to someone when unearthed in 2007. To enter the contest, the people of Tulsa had to just guess what the city’s population would be in 2007! The guesses were buried with the car. 

Fast forward to 2007, June 15 to be exact, Miss Belvedere and the other relics were to be unearthed! As the capsule was opened, onlookers saw Miss Belvedere sitting in stagnant water. The vault built was supposed to withstand a nuclear explosion but was not designed to be waterproof. Examiners actually found out that the Plymouth Belvedere was completely submerged in water a few several times over the 50 years. 

Unfortunately Miss Belvedere was completely rusted from the inside to the outside. The interior disintegrated, the engine was rusted so bad that there was no hope it would run again. The people of Tulsa were heartbroken. The winners of this vehicle had died by the time they unearthed it. So Miss Belvedere went to the winners' sisters! They had a goal to restore it, but unfortunately was put on the wayside for years. Miss Belvedere eventually had some of the rust removed over the years and in 2017, was put in her final resting place, a museum in Illinois. 

The picture above was Miss Belvedere in 2017. You can see that she looks significantly better than she did that day in 2007. I hope you enjoy this new segment! This was a really interesting story and we here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center, hope you loved reading along! 

* credit of information and photos from here

Tip Tuesday: Hot Car in the Summer

Imagine this, you walk outside your house to get into your car. It’s been parked outside in the sun for several hours. The weather outside is not too hot, it is about 77 degrees. Then once you open your door you get that puff of super hot air. Of course this is not a pleasant thing to encounter. If the temperature outside is 77, your car sitting in the sun can increase 30-50 degrees. Which makes the temperature inside your car 107-127 degrees, that is super hot. 

That being said, here are some ways to help keep your car, and yourself, a little cooler while using your vehicle this Summer. 

1. If you wear shorts or a dress and have a leather interior, there’s nothing worse than sitting on your seat and burning yourself. For this you could use some sort of cloth covering. You can keep a towel on your seat or even use cloth seat covers. Yes, these will still feel warm to the touch, but won’t burn you like the leather will. 
2. To help not get too much sun coming in your car, you can use a sunshade for your windshield. This will help reflect the sun off and not have it beating in. 
3. If you have a black interior, your car is most likely going to be super hot. There are dash mat covers you can put on your dashboard to help keep more heat out.
4. If it is a clear day with no rain in sight, you can crack your windows when you park your vehicle. This will let some of that steam out and allow fresh cooler breezes to come in and cool off your car as well. 

Summer is almost on its way out as we quickly approach August. Hopefully these tips and tricks will give you some relief while using your car in hotter months! We here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope you have a safe and happy Summer season! 

How should I care for my spare?

Being inside for the last few months has definitely warranted a vacation right? Well, a popular travel method this Summer is packing the kids in the car and taking a road trip. If you are planning to hit the road, it is a pretty good idea to make sure your car is ready for that trip. A very important and sort of overlooked item to check is your spare tire. 

Most vehicles come with spare tires and they can be hidden in various locations. Some are underneath your vehicle, some are in the trunk, and some may even be on the rear door like a Jeep Wrangler. If you happen to get a flat tire during your travels and your spare tire is flat, that will cause you to have some problems. 

Here are a few tips to make sure that your spare tire is ready to hit the road with you.

1. The tire pressure should be up to par. Each vehicle has a different recommended tire pressure and you can find that in your manual.
2. If you have a vehicle with a full sized spare, this should be involved with your recommended tire rotation schedule. Doing this will ensure that your tires wear evenly. 
3. If your full sized spare tire tread measures 3/32nds or less, your spare should be replaced.                                                               

Luckily for vehicles that come with temporary spares or a donut, you really only need to worry about tire pressure. Since a donut is smaller than a regular tire, it’s pressure will be different  than the tires on your vehicle. You can find all this information in your owner's manual. 

Be sure to take care of your spare before going on that road trip. All of us here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope that you have a safe and happy Summer! Happy motoring!     

Can salty air damage my car?

Most of us know that salt can be damaging to our vehicles during the Winter months, but have you ever thought of salty air or sea air? If you live by the shore or travel there often, your vehicle might have damage from the salty air. The air at the shore, especially when it is humid, holds a lot of salty moisture. The metal on your vehicle can corrode 10 times faster in those conditions instead of being in a dryer air. 

The damaging sea air starts to cause problems with the exterior of your vehicle, but it can also affect surfaces in the engine compartment. Having the hot sun beating on your paint isn’t the best either. Luckily there are some things you can do to help fight against the salty air. 

If you can park your vehicle underneath some sort of covering, whether it be a garage at your house/beach house or a parking garage. This will not only protect you from the air but the sun's rays as well. 

If you see any chips in your paint, cover them with touch up paint. This will ensure that you prevent any rust underneath. 

Once you return home from a beach vacation or if you live by the shore, it is recommended you clean your vehicle often. Washing your car will get rid of the salt and other residue that sticks to your vehicle. Giving it some wax is another added measure that will coat your paint and protect it from salt and other debris sticking. 

We here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope you have a safe and fun vacation and Summer Season! Hope these tips help you protect your vehicle from sea air and other debris.  

How hot can my car get inside?

Greenhouses are specifically designed to absorb and hold heat. As sunlight pours in through the glass or plastic it heats everything up inside. Your vehicle does the same. Heat radiates from all the components on the inside of your vehicle and can not circulate out if the windows are shut. This is why car manufacturers make vehicle AC units powerful. 

The fastest rise of temperature in your car occurs as soon as you turn off your AC. If your vehicle is parked in the sun, after about an hour, the temperature inside could rise 43 degrees higher than the outdoor air. After the 90 minute mark it could rise to 48 degrees higher. So if it is 90 degrees outside in a matter of 90 minutes the inside temperature of your car could reach 138 degrees. Imagine leaving groceries in that? Knowing this, keeping a freezer bag or a cooler in your car for your groceries is a good idea. 

A lot of stores in NJ are open now, it is important to keep this in mind when shopping. We here at Jerry Noonan’s Auto Center hope you are continuing to stay well. Have a great Summer!