Did You Change Your Oil?
Copyright 2006 Donovan Baldwin
The year was 1976, the place was Milton, Florida, a small, semi-rural community in the Florida panhandle, not far from Pensacola, where I had grown up.
I had recently returned to northwest Florida, after working as an accountant for the Florida State Department of Education in Tallahassee and Sarasota, to take the position of Business Manager for the Santa Rosa County Mental Health Clinic.
It was a beautiful sunny day, and I was standing outside Red's service station on one of Milton's street corners (You remember service stations, right?) while a set of tires was being put on my car.
I had a lot of my automobile maintenance done at Red's, and frequently bought gas and had oil changes done there.
He was a nice guy, his prices were reasonable, and the service was great.
As he often did with his customers, Red came out and visited for a couple of minutes.
I had been watching the activity on two of the other corners, and reflecting on changes occuring.
I asked Red if the two new convenience stores with self-service gas pumps had hurt his business much.
I was surprised to hear him say that they hadn't.
In the few minutes I had stood there, I had seen several cars pull into and out of the self-service setups, while only a few cars had come into Red's.
When I pointed this out to Red, he laughed a little bit and acknowledged that he didn't sell as much gasoline as he used to, but his business had actually picked up in repairs, oil changes, tire sales, repairing radiators, and so on.
He pointed out a lady who had just fueled her car across the street and was driving away.
He said, "Actually, I'm doing more business now than I used to, now that these self-service stations have become so popular.
Take that woman for example.
She put gas in her car, but she didn't check the oil, the radiator or the tires."
He went on to explain that when a customer filled their own tank, they seldom checked any of those items or even looked the car over for possible defects or potential breakdowns, such as frayed belts or leaking hoses.
Neglecting simple items such as these frequently led to expensive repairs later.
Not only that, failing to keep the car tuned up regularly and do such simple things as put air in the tires when it was needed could decrease fuel economy.
Failing to keep tires properly inflated caused much more rapid wear, and, he pointed out, since self-service stations had become popular, he was selling more tires than ever.
He went on to mention that he and his mechanics got to know their regular customers, checking all these points for them, showing them wear and tear on belts for example, or filling the battery or radiator when they got low, and reminding them of the need for upcoming maintenance events such as periodic oil changes.
I could certainly understand those points.
When I was a boy, my father always took the family car to Mr.
Allday's Pure Oil Station on Navy Boulevard, in Warrington, Florida.
The ritual was always the same.
My dad would get out of the car as Skippie or Slim or Mr. Allday himself came up to the car.
I could almost chant the refrain.
If my father didn't get to say it first, Skippie or Slim would say it for him, "Check it all around, Mr. Baldwin?
You take 28 in the tires don't you?"
Then, they would open the hood, check the battery, the radiator, the belts, the hoses, the air filter, and, after that, they would check the tire pressure and fill any that were starting to get a little low.
They would, as Red said, remind my dad that he was coming due for an oil change or point out that one tire was showing a little wear and might need to be replaced, "...not right now, but you will need to take care of it in a few weeks."
You know, it's a funny thing, but after several years, when Mr. Allday decided to buy a Texaco station down the road, my dad and several other customers who had sworn by Pure Oil suddenly changed their allegience to Texaco and became regulars at Mr. Allday's new station.
I took a couple of lessons from this.
For one, I have always tried to keep track of my car maintenance, scheduling oil changes, checking belts and hoses, and keeping the tires properly inflated.
This has helped with my fuel economy, saved money on tires, and probably lots of money on repairs.
When I went out into the real world of work and business, I always tried to anticipate what I needed to do to help my customers, employers, or coworkers.
Anticipating their needs, or my own, could often prevent a small or potential problem from growing into a big problem.
It has become hard to find a good "service station" attitude these days.
Whether I go into a restaurant, a book store, a department store, or hardware store, I seem to find those who want you to "serve yourself".
When I CAN find a clerk and ask a question about the use or effectiveness of a product, for example, I am often met with a blank stare or have to listen to answers that have nothing to do with my question.
By the way, when I do find that gem, the person who knows what they are talking about and is willing to provide "service" I almost always seek out the manager and let them know how pleased I was.
That being said, here's my gentle reminder to you.
I'm not there to do it for you, so the next time you fill up your tank, pop the hood, take a look under there, put the gauge to the tires, and try to remember the last time you had your oil changed.
You DO remember the last time you had your oil changed, don't you
ETV Corporations VisiTyre Battery-less Tire Pressure Monitoring System and NHTSA Legislation are Hot Topics at SAE 2005 in Detroit
Sydney, Australia (ContentDesk) June 3, 2005 -- As one of the few interactive displays at this years SAE World Congress and the only TPMS technology company in attendance, VisiTyre drew a continuous stream of industry delegates to their Australian Trade Delegation booth, where a real time demonstration system highlighted the system's ability to immediately report pressures and temperatures of all four wheels plus the spare continuously from the moment of ignition, whether the tires were stationary or rotating. "The VisiTyre Inductive Coupling Technology provides a real solution for many of the contentious safety issues of the Final Rule of the TREAD ACT '' commented Phil Cohen, ETV's Chief Technical Officer, "TPMS disablement by tire replacement is just not an issue with VisiTyre technology, it is inherently transparent to all replacement tires regardless of ferrous or carbon content".VisiTyre utilises electromagnetic inductive coupling to create a ?power in - data out' non contact communication...
ETV Corporations VisiTyre Battery-less Tire Pressure Monitoring System and NHTSA Legislation are Hot Topics at SAE 2005 in Detroit
Toyo tires > ETV Corporations VisiTyre Battery-less Tire Pressure Monitoring System and NHTSA Legislation are Hot Topics at SAE 2005 in Detroit
World Renown, Pitts Performance Go Kart Racing Center, Launches Ground-Breaking e-Commerce Website That Delivers Karts and Parts Directly To the Track or Home
(ContentDesk) September 14, 2005 -- Blown a gasket on your kart at the track? Snapped a water pump belt or throttle cable? Need parts delivered fast?
How about a custom go kart, turn key kart, fun kart, mini bike, gas / electric scooter, engine or name brand racewear ? all delivered to you with racing speed and orderable online. For the first time, California's most reputable kart company is placing all of their kart racing products at www.pittsonline.com and getting them to you as fast as you can say? Pitts Performance.Pitts Performance, a full service go kart center, has been supplying parts from sprockets to Top Kart Chassis's, Honda engines, Bridgestone tires, Mychron data acquisition and many other kart accessories, brand name karts such as CRG, Tony Kart, Top Kart, Nevoso, Manco, and Twister, as well as top-of-the-line racewear from Sparco, Momo, Gearbox, MIR, Simpson and Alpinestar to...
Toyo tires > World Renown, Pitts Performance Go Kart Racing Center, Launches Ground-Breaking e-Commerce Website That Delivers Karts and Parts Directly To the Track or Home
Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
It's true! Most people won't buy from you the firsttime they see your offer.In fact, a large majority won't purchase the secondtime either. That's why you need to put your wonderfuloffer in front of them with hard-hitting messages thatpresent different benefits and close the sale.Buy you might know this already. Therefore, the realquestion is how many automatic messages should youhave?The magic number seems to be seven. And here's how tomake everyone of your responses sell hard!GIVE THEM A REASON TO OPEN THE E-MAILYou're offer isn't going to get read unless youpresent them with an offer that builds curiosity or makes astrong promise in the subject.Throw the word FREE in your message. Or just design alittle teaser so the reader can resist opening themessage and finding out what you mean.Another technique that works in getting your messagesopened is to present a series of 7 tricks or secretsthat come every few days.
In order for the recipientto learn everything from the series they'll...
Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
Toyo tires > Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
It's true! Most people won't buy from you the firsttime they see your offer.In fact, a large majority won't purchase the secondtime either. That's why you need to put your wonderfuloffer in front of them with hard-hitting messages thatpresent different benefits and close the sale.Buy you might know this already. Therefore, the realquestion is how many automatic messages should youhave?The magic number seems to be seven. And here's how tomake everyone of your responses sell hard!GIVE THEM A REASON TO OPEN THE E-MAILYou're offer isn't going to get read unless youpresent them with an offer that builds curiosity or makes astrong promise in the subject.Throw the word FREE in your message. Or just design alittle teaser so the reader can resist opening themessage and finding out what you mean.Another technique that works in getting your messagesopened is to present a series of 7 tricks or secretsthat come every few days.
In order for the recipientto learn everything from the series they'll...
Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
Toyo tires > Turn Your Auto-Responder Into An Auto-Moneymaker!
Tips To Get Your Car Through A Cold Winter
Everyone wants to save money on car repairs, right?Make it a point to schedule into your calendar a winter booster check for your car.Keep these tips in mind for your winter travel, and you'll have a safer winter travel season all around!A gas tank which is kept filled helps keep moisture from forming. Make it a habit to go ahead and fill up when your tank is half empty.Change your oil and oil filter every 3,000 miles or so if your driving is mostly stop-and-go or consists of frequent short trips. Personally, I'd change my oil every 2000 miles, regardless. It will save you loads of trouble in the long run. Go ahead.
Schedule it into the planner.Wiper blades are one of those things we usually never think about until we need them, and they're not working! Have you ever tried driving in sleet and snow with impaired visibility, thanks to dud wipers? Talk about nerve-wracking! Go ahead and replace old wiper blades. If your climate is harsh, purchase rubber-clad (winter) blades to fight...
Tips To Get Your Car Through A Cold Winter
Toyo tires > Tips To Get Your Car Through A Cold Winter
How To Save At The Gaspump
With some analysts predicting gas prices to peak at as much as $2.50 per gallon or more, those of us on a budget will have to find ways to meet the higher cost of fuel or cut back on our gas consumption. Five weeks ago I was able to pay $1.77 per gallon at a local station; the price has now jumped to $2.19 per gallon and climbing. So now when I fill up my 13-gallon gas tank I'm paying $5.46 more. Filling up twice a week, or about 10 times a month on average, will cost me $54.60 more each month. Fortunately, I have some wiggle room in my personal budget to meet this increase.
For those who don't have that flexibility, here are some tips to help you survive the pumped up prices awaiting you at your neighborhood gas station:Maintain Your VehicleKeeping your tires properly inflated,your engine tuned, and checking your oil regularly are a few small ways that will help you save on fuel consumption and costs. Under-inflated or over-inflated tires can cause poor handling. You'll also...
How To Save At The Gaspump
Toyo tires > How To Save At The Gaspump
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