Car maintenance bibles: Sitemap

Site map for the carbibles.com website. Basic car maintenance tips for the motoring enthusiast.

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The Brake Bible Brakes - what do they do? Thermodynamics, brake fade and drilled rotors The different types of brake Bicycle brakes Drum brakes - single leading edge. Drum brakes - double leading edge Disc brakes Radial Calipers Full-contact Disc brakes The Siemens VDO Electric Wedge Brake Brake pad compounds Brake squeal Brake actuators Cable-operated Solid bar Single-circuit hydraulic Dual-circuit hydraulic Brake-by-wire Mechanical advantage - why you can stop a 2-ton car with one foot Mechanical advantage as applied to hydraulics Power Brakes and master cylinders The components of a master cylinder Cross-linked brakes - why there are two brake circuits A word about handbrakes Anti lock Braking Systems - ABS Newer generation ABS systems ABS and skid control Political correctness and the push for ABS in every vehicle ABS in snow and ice, and on gravel The hidden gremlin of ABS - what they don't advertise Aftermarket ABS systems Brake-assist and collision warning systems Other Brake Technologies Brake hoses Rubber hoses Steel-braided hoses Brake fluids D.O.T ratings Brake warning lights And finally....LED replacement bulbs	The Suspension Bible What does suspension do? A modern coil-over-oil unit Front suspension - dependent systems Front suspension - independent systems MacPherson Strut or McPherson strut Rover 2000 MacPherson derivative Coil Spring type 1 Coil Spring type 2 Multi-link suspension Trailing-arm suspension Moulton rubber suspension Transverse leaf-spring Corvette leaf-spring Rear suspension - dependent (linked) systems Solid-axle, leaf-spring Solid-axle, coil-spring Beam Axle 4-Bar de Dion suspension, or the de Dion tube Rear suspension - independent systems Ford Control Blade™ Suspension Hydrolastic Suspension Hydragas Suspension Hydropneumatic Suspension Hydraulic Suspension Ferrofluid or magneto-rheological fluid dampers - Audi Magnetic Ride. Linear Electromagnetic Suspension Air Suspension Variable-camber suspension for steering Anti-roll Bars & Strut Braces Suspension bushes Variable stiffness anti-roll bars The Ins and Outs of complex suspension units Compression damping Rebound damping Damping controllers Spring preload Sprung vs. unsprung weight Progressively wound springs Electronic damping force controllers Torsion bars Lift Kits Lowering Kits
The Steering Bible Steering : essential to driving Basic steering components The Ackermann Angle Steering ratios Turning circle Steering System designs : Pitman arm types Worm and sector Worm and roller Worm and nut or recirculating ball Cam and lever Steering System designs : Rack and pinion Variable-ratio rack and pinion steering Vehicle dynamics and steering - how it can all go very wrong Understeer Oversteer Counter steering	The Bike Suspension Bible Motorbike suspension geometry 101 Anti-Dive forks TRAC Headshaking, tankslapping and steering dampers Motorbike suspension - front end Motorbike suspension - back end Twin-shock, regular swingarm Monoshock, older style, regular swingarm Monoshock, newer style, regular swingarm Monoshock, single-sided swingarm One shock or two? The frothy subject of frappuccino damper oil BMW and their contribution to the world of motorbike suspension Rear monolever Rear paralever, first generation Rear paralever, second generation Rear paralever, third generation Front telelever Front duolever A word from Norman Hossack himself
The Engine Oil Bible What does my oil actually do? How do I read the numbers around the 'W'? For example 5W40? A quick guide to the different grades of oil What the heck was Black Death? Black death for the 21st century What does sludge look like? Curing sludge When is sludge not sludge? VW / Audi sludge problems Toyota sludge problems Saab sludge problems Mineral or synthetic? Synthetics Pure synthetics If I put new, fully synthetic oil in my older engine, will the seals leak? Mixing Mineral and Synthetic oils - the old and busted concepts Mixing Mineral and Synthetic oils - the new hotness Flushing oils Do I need a flushing oil? Using Diesel oil for flushing The question of phosphorus and zinc So what should I buy? Marine Diesels and other special considerations Marine Oils Engine Oil Shelf Life "High mileage" oils What about own-brands? Viscosity and Viscosity Index (VI) Servicing and checking So how often should I change my oil? Maintenance minders - when the car tells you when to change the oil What else happens when I change the oil then? Checking the oil in your engine, and topping up Wet sumps vs. dry sumps Can I use car engine oil in my motorbike then? Sulfated ash Can I use diesel engine oil in my petrol engine? And so to engine additives Nanolubricants An alternative to engine additives: pre-pressurisation Case study: MOROSO Accumulater Oil filters and filtration Magnetised oil traps An alternative to custom magnetised oil traps Magnetised oil traps - doing it yourself The importance of neodymium magnets Larger filters on standard cars? A Practical example of the proper procedures saving an engine This is all great. Now how do I actually change my oil? Using oil extractors Finally, and just as importantly: Disposing of used engine oil	The Wheel & Tyre Bible How to read your tyre sidewall markings DOT Codes and the 6-year shelf life The E-Mark Tyre size notations Ultra high speed tyre size notations Classic / vintage / imperial crossply tyre sizes Classic / vintage radial tyre sizes Vintage Tyre Size Conversion Chart Alpha numeric load-based tyre sizes for vintage cars Metric Tyre sizes and the BMW blurb Land Rovers and other off-road tyre sizes LT (Light Truck) imperial tyre sizes Porsche N-rated tyres Lies, Damn Lies and Speed ratings Load indices A Word on "guaranteed" tyres Car tyre types Tyre constructions A subset of tyre construction : tyre tread Tread patterns Tread depth and tread wear indicators Minimum legal tread depth does not mean "safe" Aquaplaning / hydroplaning Road surface design Aquachannel tyres TwinTire Run-Flat Tyres The Michelin PAX tyre size converter Michelin Tweels Stiffened sidewalls - Goodyear Eagle with ResponsEdge Kevlar puncture resistence - Goodyear Wrangler 'SilentArmor' Coloured dots and stripes - whats that all about? Running in your new tyres Learning from others - tyre reviews Fat or thin? The question of contact patches and grip Caster, camber, alignment and other voodoo Rotating your tyres Diagnosing problems from tyre wear Checking your tyres Lies, damn lies, and tyre pressure gauges Tyre pressure and gas-mileage What's the "correct" tyre pressure? Nitrogen inflation TPMS - Tyre Pressure Monitor Systems The NHTSA ruling Indirect TPMS Current / First / Second generation Direct TPMS Next-generation TPMS The low-tech approach The ultra-low-tech approach Wheel dimensions The wheel offset calculator Matching your tyres to your wheels Why would I want to change to alloy wheels and new tyres anyway? The tyre size calculator A Speedometer error means an odometer error too Aspect Ratio and Rim / Pan Width An ideal rim-width calculator The Plus One concept A case study in changing wheels and tyres
The Fuel & Engine Bible Suck, squeeze, bang, blow Nikolaus Otto This history of the internal combustion engine Engine layouts The difference between 4 stroke and 2 stroke engines How 2 stroke engines work How 4 stroke engines work 4 stroke Diesel Engines 2 stroke Diesel Engines "Clean" diesels? Toyota's D-Cat and DPNR Interference vs. non-interference engines Top Dead Centre (TDC) and ignition timing Spark plugs How does the fuel-air mix happen? Magic? Carburetors Fuel injection Valves and valve mechanisms Variable Valve Timing Rotary / Wankel engines Engine Cooling Systems Air cooling Oil cooling Water cooling Overheating on a snow day Why is good engine cooling important? Case Study : the BMC Mini Minor And so to fuel (or gasoline or petrol) Octane ratings - how to stop detonation Measuring octane - RON, MON What factors affect detonation? Octane and altitude Octane and power Octane and gas mileage Octane boosters Lead Replacement Petrol (LRP) and valve seats The supermarket petrol debate Fuel filters - without them, all this means nothing Why filter the fuel? Won't the debris just burn? Why change the filter? Where is my fuel filter? The magnet-on-your-fuel-line gimmick E85 Ethanol - the magic bullet? Clean exhaust - it depends on your definition of the word "clean" E85 in non-flexible fuel vehicles E10: you're using it right now Tax credits, subsidies and tariffs - the real story behind E85 What's that you say? You want fuel efficiency and less cost? LPG / LNG / AutoGas - Liquid Petroleum Gas / Liquid Natural Gas Hydrogen The "Run your car on water" brigade - HHO Gas-mileage, mpg and why American cars can never match the EPA estimates Torque and BHP Horsepower and altitude "Tuning" your engine - how to get more power Chipping / remapping Factory upgrades High-flow filters Cold Air Induction (CAI) kits Throttle body heater bypass High-flow exhausts Keying your spark plugs Gas-flowed or polished cylinder heads High-lift or lightweight cams Water injection cooling Intercooling Water-assisted intercooling Charge cooling Refrigerated intercooling / chargecooling Nitrous Oxide - NoS An Alternative to more power : less weight A second alternative to more power : less load on the engine Turbos and superchargers Exhaust wrap Fuel additives and retrofit "efficiency" devices MPG Caps, FFI The MPT SmogBuster The Tornado Fuel Saver Magnetic Fuel treatments The Electronic Engine Ionizer The Ecotek CB-26P The "+20bhp chip" conversion Voltage stabilisers and grounding kits Hydrogen Generators Resources for the curious	The Transmission Bible Transmission, or gearbox? Manual gearboxes - what, why and how? A quick primer on how gears work Making those gears work together to make a gearbox Grinding gears The synchromesh What about reverse? Crash gearboxes or dog boxes Before the gearbox - the clutch Burning your clutch A slipping clutch Motorcycle 'basket' clutches Sequential gearboxes - what, why and how? Automatic gearboxes - what, why and how? A quick primer on how planetary gearsets work Locking planetary gearset components The automatic gearbox hydraulic system - how it changes gears Park it! Torque Converters TipTronic Gearboxes Semi-automatic Gearboxes DSG / DCT Gearboxes - what, why and how? CVT (continuously variable transmission) - what, why and how? Two pulleys and a belt. It really is that simple Toroidal CVT (Nissan Extroid) Differentials - they're why you can turn corners Open Differentials Limited-slip differentials Torsen differentials How does a Torsen 'sense' torque? Locking differentials AWD couplings 2WD, 4WD, AWD FWD, RWD, FE, ME, RE The Hybrids Bible Why do hybrid vehicles make sense? Helping to solve the mpg problem Hybrid Engines IMA - integrated motor assist (Honda) Hybrid Synergy Drive (Toyota) Dual-mode or 2-mode Hybrid (GM) The battery question Plug-in hybrids Diesel-electric hybrids The cost of hybrids Renting hybrids First responder safety and hybrids Are Hybrids really "green"? It's not all about the powerplant - aerodynamics are important too Reducing aerodynamic drag Drag Area Reducing the coefficient of drag What's the most aerodynamic shape? Did Citroën really get there first? Other items Speeding facts and myths Product Reviews Pulstar pulse spark plugs FFI mpg caps magic fuel pill FFT Fuel Treatment The Tornado Fuel Saver TomTom Go510 GPS Navigator Wearable Action sport camcorders ScanGauge II Automotive Computer CarMD Automotive diagnostic tool Rain-X Latitude & Bosch Icon wiper blades BrightCar mileage tracking software GasDandy mileage tracking software Signal Sorcerer traffic light changer PressurePro TPMS Michelin Digital Tyre Pressure Gauge Michelin Digital Tyre Inflator Basic car maintenance tips Fuel economy tips Cheaper car insurance tips Automotive abbreviations As featured in .... F.A.Q Links Blog Forum Traffic microsimulation