• Preventative Vehicle Maintenance

    Here at Chicago Towing, we’re big advocates of providing regular maintenance to vehicles in order to prevent automotive breakdowns before they occur. If, of course, your car does experience a breakdown, our team of expert roadside assistance experts can assist you. In the meantime, however, here’s a list of some excellent preventative maintenance tactics you can implement on your vehicle to help prevent car issues from arising.

    Battery Checks

    Make sure to check your car’s battery. First off, check the battery terminals for signs of possible corrosion or build-up. Build-up can be cleaned with baking soda and a soft toothbrush – the baking soda will neutralize any battery acid. By regularly cleaning battery terminals, you can ensure that they stay working properly . Coca-cola can also be used to clean car battery terminals by pouring it over the battery to remove corrosion.

    Tire Checks

    Make sure that your tire tread and tire pressure are at proper levels. Thinning and worn out tires can be more easily punctured. Use a penny to check that your treads are one eighth of an inch thick – at least. Make sure your tires have no cracks or uneven wear, or cuts – any underinflated tire can rapidly incur stress. Make sure to use a tire gauge to check that your tire pressure is meeting the proper level in your vehicle owner manual.

    Coolant Checks

    Check under the hood of your vehicle to make sure that your coolant levels aren’t super low. If there’s fluid on the ground, coolant may be leaking. You don’t want to see any of the hoses that transport coolant to the car’s engine – so check them when the car is fully off and cooled down. If coolant is low, fill it to proper levels.

    Oil Checks

    Use your dipstick to check your oil levels. If your motor oil is low, have it properly changed by a mechanic or automotive service. If you can’t get to an oil check soon, just try to add more of the proper matching motor oil in the meantime. If you think you have an oil link, rush to get to a mechanic as soon as possible.

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  • 3 Tips for Never Locking Your Key in Your Car

    Getting your keys locked in your car can be a minor inconvenience or a major frustration – even dangerous, based on the time and place. In this blog entry, the emergency roadside assistance team here at Chicago Towing will provide 3 great tips to prevent you from locking your keys in your car.

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  • Car Bouncing Causes

    Strange bouncing motions in your vehicle might be alarming, sudden, and even dangerous especially when you’re on a crowded or slippery road. In this blog entry, the vehicle recovery experts here at Chicago Towing will detail the top reasons your car might suddenly experience bouncing.

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  • Essential Items to Keep in your Car for Safety

    In this blog entry, Chicago Towing’s roadside assistant experts will detail the essential items to keep in your car in order to be prepared for any automotive issue.

    Tire Changing Tools

    Flat tires are probably the most common car breakdown event. Most modern vehicles come with tire changing kits – but purchase one if you don’t have one already. These tools range from spare tires and car jacks to lug wrenches or other specialty tools. 

    Tire Sealant

    If your tire has a very small leak that doesn’t require changing out to your spare tire, tire sealant might be able to do the job until you can bring your vehicle to a tire changing center.

    Jumper Cables

    Dead batteries are another cause of common automotive breakdowns. Always keep jumper cables in your car! If your car battery runs out, you can flag a vehicle on the road down for a jump and they can assist you in using their car’s battery to start your car and turn over your engine! Make sure to pump the gas once your engine turns over to keep it running to help charge up your car’s battery.

    First Aid and Water / Snacks

    Always keep a first aid kit on hand to be safe – as well as emergency water or snacks if you find yourself stranded and/or waiting for roadside assistance. We recommend keeping water in your vehicle in NON-PLASTIC containers, as the plastic can leach into the water under hot temperatures.

    Flashlight

    Bring a strong and powerful flashlight to help be a light source if your car breaks down at night. It’s a much better idea than relying on your phone’s flashlight, which, of course, is in turn reliant on your phone’s battery charge!

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