CAR DOCTOR Q&A
Q. I have a question. Recently, I was driving home after buying some gas for my snow thrower when some gas spilled. Now my car smells like gasoline. I tried leaving the windows open all day, but the next day the smell was back. I turned the heat up to try to evaporate the gasoline, but that did not work either. What can I do?
A. Start with a thorough scrubbing of the area where the gas spill happened and cleaned up with a wet-vac. Dish detergent and water work well, some other popular remedies are vinegar and soap and water. Then cover the area with “oildry” or cat litter (odor absorbing preferred) and allow at least 24 hours and then vacuum again. Finally use Febreze or something similar. These products use cyclodextrin which somehow (weird science) binds with the offending molecules and eliminates the smell. The same chemicals are used in medicine and even some deodorants. Some people try to mask the smell with mint or even a sock filled with coffee. I have found that eventually over time with ventilation the smell will go away on its own.
Q. Wondering if you could weigh in on a friendly dispute I am having with my brother. Here is the situation: When I pull up to a traffic light that I know will be red for a minute or so I always shift my car into park and take my foot off the brake. As I see it there are two benefits: 1, it takes pressure off the brakes, letting them cool and prolonging their life, and 2 it eliminates the chance of the car lurching forward if I get distracted. My brother, on the other hand, says this strains the transmission excessively by being constantly shifted from drive to park and back. What do you think?
A. An age-old debate. When brakes were weaker (four wheel-drum brakes) and required a bit more pressure even just to hold a car in drive it probably had some benefit. Also, older cars typically idled higher which required more brake pressure. Today, A light touch on the brakes is all it takes, and you are not putting much stress on the pads and calipers. Also compared to some of the new cars with electronic transmission linkage, brake repair would be cheaper than electronics repair. Today unless you are sitting in traffic for a longer time (traffic jam) then shift into park which also allows the transmission temperature to stay lower. One finally thing, if the car were in park and you got hit from behind the transmission could be damaged. In addition, if you did get hit it would be safer to have your foot on the brake which may keep you from getting pushed into the car in front of you.
Q. I have a 2016 BMW 428i. The door lock mechanism sometimes sticks in a locked position, and when I try to exit the car. The locking mechanism does not release when door handle is pulled. I have to press release button (unlock) to exit car. Any thoughts as I believe this is a safety issue.
A. I checked the technical database (AllData) that I use and there are no BMW bulletins on this issue. It has been my experience that this issue is typically caused by a faulty door lock actuator. I agree that this could be a safety issue and should be reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. You can find out more information on their website and mobile app www.safercar.gov.
Q. I live where it gets really cold, one recent morning it was minus one and the wind was 30-25 miles per hour. On the weather it said depending how long you are outside the windchill temperature would be minus 30. I got really concerned that my car may not be protected to this temperature. Does windchill effect cars?
A. Wind/air will cool a heat source quicker (blowing on hot soup) but once cool will have no effect to the actual temperature. According to the National Weather Service “Wind Chill is a term used to describe what the air temperature feels like to the human skin due to the combination of cold temperatures and winds blowing on exposed skin. Most vehicle’s do just fine with a 50/50 mix of engine coolant and water which protect against freezing to -34 degrees and will also raise the boiling point. In colder climates mixing the coolant at 75 percent antifreeze will bring the freezing temperature to -50 degrees but lowers the engine coolant boiling point.