Porsche UK Car Care Tips
Porsche UK
The Porsche UK is one of the finest manufactured cars on the market. And anyone that owns a Porsche is aware that they own a masterpiece of craftsmanship.
Porsche’s in the UK don’t come cheap, which is one of the reasons why the owner of a Porsche in the UK is touch more concerned when it comes to the general upkeep of their vehicle.
I love Porsche, and as an owner myself there are a few things you can do to ensure that the life of your “baby” is extended for many more years to come.
Porsche UK: Winter Maintenance
Porsche winter car care doesn’t have to be excessive. First it makes sense to check your tyres for pressure and tread depth to make sure everything is in order. A trip to your local auto clinic, to have your tyres and fluid levels checked and perhaps even a once over should do the trick.
Weather in the UK is sometimes unforgiving, and you never know when the snow is coming. Being trapped in the snow can be a right palaver, a great way to prevent this happening is to carry a bag of kitty litter and salt in the boot that can be used for tyre traction, with a de icer and ice scraper to remove ice from the windscreen.
Porsche UK: Spring and summer
As chilling as winter may be, spring and summer is generally not to far away.
With more frequent use during the spring summer months, it’s at this time of year when Porsche UK owners really enjoy their vehicles. That being the case, checking your oil and oil filter makes sense.
With the warmer weather be sure to also have your cooling system inspected, and in particular the hosepipes for leaks. Check your drive belts for any suspect cracks and make sure that your antifreeze is fresh to prevent the coolant from boiling in the summer heat. Just like in the winter take a little time out to make sure your tyres are at the correct pressure, preventing excessive petrol use and tyre wear.
Porsche UK: Bodywork and Interior
Irrespective of the time of year, if you’re anything like me I always like the bodywork of my car to be in tip top condition. Come on… a Porsche is meant to look great at all times, and there’s nothing worst than a grimy, dirty looking Porsche.
Salt can be a killer of bodywork. So when the weather starts to warm up I would suggest that any build up of salt that has occurred during the winter months is removed. Pay particular attention to the wheels; using a jet wash should do the trick.
As a Porsche UK driver, I find spring to also be the perfect opportunity to check for any damage that may have happened during the winter months. Unfortunately bodywork scratches, or small stone cracks in the windscreen can easily happen. Fortunately, if the damage created is small there’s no need to replace the windscreen, a simple repairing chip should do the job.
Dirty interior mats and carpets can be made to look as new using a decent carpet shampoo. Interior Vinyl can also treated to prevent cracking, and with your windows cleaned of grease, and the washer fluid topped up you should be ready to go.
Porsche UK: Regular Check ups
I always intend to get as much mileage out of my car as possible. So I advise having the oil checked several times a year, and changed around every 5000 miles.
As a Porsche UK owner, when having your oil changed it offers a great opportunity to have your Porsche specialist look over the overall condition of your vehicle. Checking your engine and electrics doesn’t take long, and may save you big money in the long run.
Finally
My personal opinion is that a Porsche is worth every penny it costs to own one; just make sure that those pennies don’t add up unnecessarily. And with very simple car care and maintenance carried out on a regular basis, you can have the pleasure of driving your Porsche for years to come.
Feel free to get in touch, we look forward to helping you.
To health and vehicle happiness,
Your fearless mechanic,
Phil
If you own a car, live in London, and fed up of trying to find a reliable London garage or in paying extortionate manufacture repair charges… then join the movement!
With about 2.5 million cars in London, somebody somewhere at this moment in time is trying to find a London garage to attend to mechanical repairs.
The thing is, with a huge metropolis comes a host of London garages. But in the era of right here right now, where convenience is key, and with the high price of manufacture repair costs, the question is – not just how to find a good local London garage, but how to spot a reliable one?
So without further ado, here are my 7 tips to helping you find a reliable London garage.
How to find a reliable London Garage
1. Good Garage Scheme
A good suggestion is to begin your search by looking on the Good Garage Scheme website.
On the website you can make a choice of London garages based on real customer reviews and feedback, as opposed to being drawn into biased advertisement claims that London garages are well renowned for. The Good Garage Scheme will also help you find the closest London garage specialist to you. All you have to do is type your postcode into the search and “Bob’s your uncle,” a list of options will appear.
2. Flashing Lights
Convenience may be an important factor in your choice of London garage, but think twice about going for a garage that has the largest, brightest “in your face” media advertisements, or those flashing lights, website banners/paid ads on Google. Businesses that do this type of advertising tend to be large national companies with a big punch of spending power.
The question is – are they too busy spending money on mass advertising trying to win business, rather than on their mechanics to provide a genuine, great personal service?
3. Knightsbridge Anybody?
Location, location, location – sorry for the pun… but have you ever noticed that petrol seems to get cheaper the further out from London you get? Funny enough, the petrol is the same but the price is difference.
Now I’m by no mean’s advocating that cheap is best – hell no! In fact – generally if you buy cheap you tend to buy twice. But let’s put it this way… perhaps the location where you live may just affect the price you pay. For example if you live in Knightsbridge there’s a high chance that you’ll end up paying significantly more for the same mechanical repair then if you were to look for a London garage further afield. Yeah I said it.
4. That Friday feeling
Fridays are great, it’s the end of the week and hopefully you can look forward to a few days of rest.
Now just like that Friday feeling, there’s nothing that makes you feel more at ease than when you find a London Garage where the owner/manager is at hand to give you confidence, and let you know everything will be alright.
A smaller London garage will tend to have a more personal service, hopefully where the owners will give you that “we won’t rip you off” peace of mind. Everyone also knows that employees work harder, and are more inclined to look after every detail when the boss is around.
There is a chance however, that you find yourself in a situation where the mechanic has talked a good talk, but you’re just not sure, you can’t put your finger on it, but it doesn’t feel right.
In those situations all I can say is “when you know you know,” which means – if in doubt, leave it out. Trust that feeling in your gut – listen to it, because it may just be trying to tell you something.
5. MOT’s
When it comes to MOT’s there are bunch of London garages offering special offers.
So if it’s that time of the year where you’re looking for a good London garage MOT tester, to begin with, ask the London garage you’re considering information on the mechanic that will be testing your vehicle.
Find out about their qualifications and experience as it will help you to paint a better picture about who will be working on your car. It will also give you a vital indication as to whether the London garage you’re contemplating will execute a genuine, honest MOT service.
6. Inspector Gadget
If you’re old enough to remember the days of the cartoon Inspection Gadget, then you can probably recall he was always snooping around trying to investigate the crime.
Now I’m not saying that you should go into each London garage with your magnifying glass, but when you are there, take a good look around.
A tidy, orderly workshop is usually a good sign of caring car mechanics. Ask yourself, would you feel confident leaving your car with a garage that looks grimy?
Yes, of course all garages should have evidence of mechanical repairs, but it’s a “crime” and totally different if the garage is untidy and cluttered with a stack of ‘stuff’ all over the place. Not only is it a health hazard but a safety hazard too. My guess is when you see you’ll know it.
7. So how long have you been doing this for?
Yes this tends to be a favorite question to ask someone, regardless of what job he or she does. And it is a question you should definitely pose when it comes to selecting a London garage.
Try to find out how long the London garage has been operating. Ask them if they have an active social media following? Can they provide genuine, believable testimonials of happy customers? If so, who are they?
Finally
There is so much more I could say, but hopefully you can see that there’s more to choosing a London garage than just selecting an offer from a newspaper, or an advertisement on Google.
I hope that helps, but if you’re still struggling to find someone that can recommend a good, local London garage, feel free to get in touch, we’d be happy to help.
Oh, and remember if else fails… listen to your gut. ☺
To health and vehicle happiness,
Your fearless mechanic,
Phil.
Future car technology will revolutionise the way you drive.
When I was younger, I remember being absolutely obsessed with TV show Knight Rider. Watch the Knight Rider intro and reminisce.
The main character in the show was a guy called Michael Knight (David Hasselhoff), and he had a car named KITT,
And KITT was… special.
KITT could do amazing things; I mean super duper, wishful thinking things like… talk!
Now I don’t mean that “turn left in 40 yards” chat that your GPS garbles out… I mean full blown in-depth conversation like –
“Hi Michael, that is a lovely jacket you have on today.”
To help all you Knight rider lovers out there reminisce, K.I.T.T, was an acronym for Knight Industries Two Thousand… yeah I said it! And K.I.T.T had the functionality to do car fantasyland feats.
For example one press of a button would give you “Turbo Boost”, giving the car the ability to jump over other cars… so cool.
TURBO BOOST!
And yes although I digress, the show Knight Rider was a bit of indulgent, tongue in cheek car fantasy – that offered us a glimpse into the future of car technology. I… was hooked.
Future car technology is now in a period, where just like KITT in Knight Rider, the once impossible, is swiftly becoming the norm. And it’s a time where technological evolution within the automotive industry is emerging at break neck speed.
The development into future car technology is simply relentless – and it needs to be, because with competition between manufacturers is nothing short of fierce, and the race to stay at the forefront of the industry is hot.
GIVE ME MORE…
Drivers now don’t just want four wheels and power, they want slick design, convenience, eco efficiency, more features, more gadgets, more options at a click of a button, with fewer distractions and complex components that are easier to use.
So without further ado here is my round up of the 10 tech innovations, set to revolutionise the way we drive.
1: CARS THAT COMMUNICATE
Imagine approaching an intersection as another car runs a red light. You don’t see them at first, but your car gets a signal from the other car directly in your path to warn you of a potential collision, and your car engages the capacity to hit the brakes automatically to avoid an accident.
Car manufacturers and interestingly the U.S. government, are seriously researching into two technologies that will enable future cars to communicate with each other, and with objects around them.
Right now, automotive manufacturers like Ford Motors are in the throws of developing a future car technology called Vehicle to Vehicle Communication, or V2V tested as a way to help reduce the amount of accidents on the road.
2: CONNECTED SERVICES
Many modern cars already have the capability to hook your smartphone up to your infotainment system, utilising mobile data connection to provide social media and perhaps web searches to scope out your intended destination for things to do.
Some car companies are already trialing systems that actually find empty parking spaces, identify the charge and then take you to your chosen bay.
Although primarily available in electric vehicles, with the option so to be potentially opened up to combustion-engine cars; future car technology integration with your mobile device will enable you to turn your car on in the morning – without you being in the car, complimented with additional options like, pre-heating the cabin and turning on the heated seats during those frosty winter mornings.
Future car technology will also help the dealers keep track of your car performance, alerting them to problems as they develop, thereby helping to reduce mechanical failures and repair costs.
3: DIGITAL MIRRORS
Increasingly more future car technology development is being put into on-board cameras, with the technology possibly set to replace the conventional rear-view mirror.
Although slightly more expensive than a traditional silvered piece of glass, the benefit of using cameras to see behind you is that provided a wide enough lens or multiple cameras are being used, the days of having a blind spot are over.
The introduction of this future car technology may help reduce minor car parking bumps, together with more serious accidents linked with changing lanes on the motorway.
4: SOLAR CHARGES
Fisker might be dead, but some of the Karma’s technologies should really make it into the mainstream.
As long as the weather is sunny, solar panels can charge the vehicle’s battery power, the air conditioning system and/or the infotainment system. Solar panels are a great way to improve your mileage without sacrificing performance. Sure, you can have it as an option on your Prius, but why isn’t it standard equipment already?
5: ADVANCED FATIGUE DETECTION
“Tiredness kills. Take a break.”
Many drivers would have seen this slogan displayed on UK motorways. And it’s true. Oodles of vehicles already have a system that monitors how you drive, alerting you if it senses you becoming drowsy. But soon to emerge is the next generation of fatigue detection and monitoring.
This new crop of Future car technology systems, actively monitors your heart rate and respiration level wirelessly through sensors built into the driver’s seat. If your breathing or heart rate slows down too much, the system will sense your energy levels dwindling and alert you, telling you to pull over.
6: FULL LED HEADLIGHTS
LED lights on cars have been around for a while, but only in the form of daytime lights. There are a select group of manufacturers who recently have made the use of full LED technology available on their vehicles, but this type of LED lighting is still not mainstream yet.
The benefits is that LED lighting has brighter lighting than regular filament bulbs, improving safety and vision, but using less energy and lasting longer.
7: 3D INSTRUMENTATION
3D technology has received a lot of attention over the last few years, and carmakers are turning their hand to integrating it into their vehicles. The “new kid on the block” which works without the need for 3D glasses, is called ‘autostereoscopic’ technology.
Basically what autostereoscopic offers you is the functionality for your car’s dials and instruments to ‘pop out’ of the dashboard to create a three-dimensional virtual information display – imagine… 3D SAT NAV.
8: 3D SURROUND SOUND
It’s not just the 3D visual elements vehicle manufacturers are looking to develop either.
Companies such as in-car audio specialists Harman, have tried and tested 3D sound systems for cars, incorporating speakers into the dash, doors, parcel shelf and headlining.
Akin to a stereo that can separate the individual audio elements, 3D surround sound will send those signals to the relevant car speaker to create a much clearer, fuller sound to immerse you in the music, as if you were there in real life.
9: ALTERNATIVE FULES
Whoever comes up with a cheaper green alternative for petrol (ha-ha!), will be as He Man said, “Masters of the universe.”
As we all hold our breath, in bated anticipation for Citroën to work out its high-pressure, air hybrid system – the alternative fuels, future car technology race continues to bulge into a multi million pound industry
Simply put… fossil fuels won’t last long, and hydrogen related practices currently require massive containers. And batteries? Well… let’s just say they are heavy without providing enough range.
So right now, the jury is out to see who will come up trumps.
10: AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES
Going one step further than vehicles being able to communicate with each other, automobiles that can actually drive themselves without any human input (like KITT), are just around the corner.
Tested with some success in individual vehicles as well as ‘road trains,’ the technology work by sucking signals and information from other cars in the area. Although autonomous vehicles for the mass market might be a long way off, when compared to some of the Future car technology innovations featured here, believe you me, the technology is just round the corner.
EXCITING TIMES
At the moment, it’s truly an exciting time within the automotive industry, and with the unrelenting pace of development pushing the sector over the edge and into the next frontier, Future car technology is set to place whatever vehicle you have right now, firmly into the history books.
So it begs the question…
Which of these technologies would you like to see on your next car?
Are there any innovations we haven’t listed, you’d like to see developed?
Feel free to share your thoughts with us on our Facebook page.
To health and vehicle happiness,
Phil.