Q: My new car came with wheel locks. I understand why these became popular when fancy wheels were a new thing. Now, nearly every new car has alloy wheels. Because you have to carry the lock key in your car, a wheel thief would just have to break into the car to find it. Are these locks really still useful? How many wheel thieves are around these days?
A: Wheel and tire theft tops $1 million a year, according to Geico. Wheels are easy to steal, easy to sell and hard to track.
No longer relevant
Q: Some years ago, I remember hearing that it was a good idea to turn off the air conditioning a few blocks before your destination. Is that really a thing?
A: It really was a thing, but not lately. People used to complain of odors coming from the A/C vents in the morning. Microorganisms were growing in the dark, warm, moist environment of the HVAC case, and running only the blower on high dried out the case.
Pinging likely normal
Q: When I turn off my 2015 Volvo S60, I hear a pinging noise. I use 87 octane gas. Do I need to go with a higher grade?
A: Is the pinging noise coming from under the hood or under the car? If under the car, it's the normal contraction of the metal, particularly the exhaust system. If the pinging is coming from the engine compartment, the problem might be run-on. But I haven't seen that since the carburetor days.
Running scared
Q: My wife had her brakes inspected. The remaining life of the front pads was measured at 15% and the rear pads at 5%. She turned down the shop's offer of replacement, but before she left, they made her sign a statement that said, in all caps: "VEHICLE HAS NO BRAKES — CUSTOMER DECLINED WORK. VEHICLE OWNER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR SAFE REMOVAL OF CAR FROM LOT." While I admit that a 5% brake pad is really low, does it actually warrant this warning, or was this just a scare tactic trying to get her to pay $1,100 for new brakes?
A: This would scare me out of dealing with this shop again.
