Thom's Four Wheel Drive

Fall is here and its arrival means fewer hours of daylight and upcoming holiday travel. Before hitting the road, it is a wise idea to make sure your vehicle’s lights are in proper working order, says the non-profit Car Care Council. “Lights play a critical role in safe driving, as the chance of an accident increases if you can’t see or be seen,” said Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. “From the driver’s seat you may not notice a light that isn’t working, so inspect all of your car’s lights and replace those that ... read more

Following unprecedented rainfall on the Atlantic coast, flooding is taking its toll on car owners. Many in the affected areas have driven through high water that may have damaged their vehicles. Even though your vehicle may not have been flooded or completely covered in water, the non-profit Car Care Council recommends that you follow these guidelines to check for damage due to water intrusion or contamination: • Check interior carpets, upholstery and door and trim panels for dampness. If they are wet, then the vehicle will need professional attention. If you simply le ... read more

There's so much to think about when driving: surrounding cars, your speed, pedestrians, reckless drivers. It hardly seems fair that we have to worry about animals too. But it's a danger we can't ignore. U.S. drivers are just as likely to have a claim involving a collision with deer, elk or moose than they were last year, according to new claims data from State Farm. The odds drivers will have a claim from hitting one of those animals is 1 out of 169, the same as it was in 2014. An estimated 1.25 million claims happened in the past year resulting from t ... read more

It's normal for all the warning lights on your dashboard to light up when you turn over your engine. It's when one of them stays lit that you may need to visit your mechanic. That's certainly the case when the warning signal in question is for your air bags. The alert on your dash can take several forms: an icon of a person in a seat belt facing a large circle, the words "air bag" or the initials "SRS" for supplemental restraint system. Whatever it looks like, it's your cue to visit your local auto repair shop. The air bag light being on means thes ... read more

You probably don’t give a second thought to what happens when you turn the key in the ignition – unless it doesn’t work, that is. The car battery, which is responsible for providing that initial spark to start up a vehicle, is often overlooked until something goes wrong. Care for it Drivers need to put in some effort to care for their car batteries. It starts with regular monitoring and maintenance – for instance, the batteries should be periodically checked to ensure they have enough power to last through a season. Extreme ... read more