2022.06.13 Hyundai Motor Group
Don’t panic! Unexpected Car Maintenance Issues in Summer
Summer can be the most disturbing time of year for drivers. The Kia Seltos tells you how to respond.
Here comes the season of fresh green - and it’s getting hotter. But you can go wherever you want, as long as you have your own car. All you need is your favorite BGM and a cold beverage. However, unexpected car troubles may arise while driving a car in the summer. What are the situations, and how should we deal with them? I checked it out with the Kia Seltos.
Unwelcome guest: A bug in your car
An insect vigorously flying towards you would be one of the most unwelcomed guests. It is also very disturbing when this happens when you’re in a car. Most drivers must have experienced this when driving with the windows open. Imagine you were concentrating on driving, and a bee suddenly shows up. Your body would shudder. The best way to deal with bugs like this is to park your car in a safe area and open a window.
The problem is when you can’t spot it. In this case, increasing the cabin temperature can help. Simply park your car under the sun, open the window, and turn on the heater. Most bugs hate hot air, so they would get out of the car. If this does not solve the problem, close the window until the bug dies from heat. Bees can resist up to 50°C, but the cabin temperature parked in the midsummer sun would easily exceed this. You’ll be relieved if you later find a dead bug while cleaning inside.
Disturbing dead bugs
Flying bugs are a nuisance both during and after driving. In midsummer, even a short drive leaves a lot of bug splatter. Although it doesn’t affect driving, bug stains are an ugly eyesore, and it won’t come off easily when you leave them, affecting the car paint. Bug stains or bird poop are mildly acidic and can burn coating on your car. Therefore, it is recommended to wash it off with water right after you find it.
If the bug stain is fresh, you can easily remove it with just a pressure washer in the car wash. But if that doesn’t work, consider using a car wash product - like a bug cleaner. These products contain proteolytic enzymes to wipe away bug stains. Simply spray the bug cleaner before washing the car, and after a moment, spray the pressure washer to wash it off.
How to remove tree sap or pine rosin
In summer, drivers use the underground parking lot more often because of the scorching heat of midday. According to data from the Korea Transportation Safety Authority, the temperature of the dashboard exposed to direct sunlight in summer is over 90℃. When the midday temperature exceeds 30°C, the vehicle cabin temperature rises to a maximum of 85°C. Therefore, drivers look for shaded areas if they have no choice but to park outdoors. But under the trees, you need to be careful. Shade would be nice, but tree sap often falls onto your car.
Tree sap or pine rosin can also penetrate and damage the coating of your car’s paint surface, so it’s best to remove it quickly. When it is sticky, it can be washed off relatively easily with water, but once it hardens over time, it cannot be easily removed. In that case, spray a tar remover or a bug cleaner containing a tar remover substance, leave it for a while, and then wash it off with a pressure washer.
When the new wiper makes a noise
Cars are exposed to a lot of pollutants such as dust and exhaust gases while they hit the air. When these contaminants accumulate, an oily film is formed. In particular, when it rains under high fine dust or yellow dust concentration level, pollutants tend to stick to the car and accumulate. It is recommended to remove the oily film on the windshield regularly, as it causes blurred vision and diffuse reflections at night, which interferes with safe driving.
The oily film is also one of the causes of the friction noise of the wiper. If the glass does not wipe clean even after the wiper blade has been replaced, or if the wiper produces noise and vibration, the oily film is most likely the cause. Usually, oily film can be easily removed with glass cleaner, but it is difficult to remove the old oil film as it acts like oily grime. In that case, you can spray water on the windshield and apply an oil film remover to wipe it off thoroughly.
When rain gets into the cabin
Rain is good for cooling off the hot summer days, but it’s an unwelcome guest when driving. When it rains heavily, even if you open and close the door as quickly as possible, interior materials such as door trim are likely to get wet. You’re also worried that the seat will be damaged when you sit in the car with wet clothes. Of course, the car seat is coated with anti-fouling and water-repellent coating, so a little bit of moisture is not a problem.
However, it is never good to leave it wet for a long time. In particular, for natural leather seats, moisture takes away the oil from the leather, which may cause cracking of the seat in the long term. If the foam inside the seat gets wet, it is recommended to remove the seat from the car and dry it completely in a dry environment. Otherwise, the moisture that penetrates deep inside the foam can cause mold.
How to get rid of a musty smell in an air conditioner
Turning on the air conditioner in summer often produces an unpleasant odor. This is due to contamination of the cabin (air conditioner) filter or mold inside the air conditioner. Replacing cabin filters is easy, but removing mold is not. Therefore, it is best to prevent it.
The reason mold develops inside the air conditioner is simple. The evaporator of the car air conditioner gets cold as soon as it works. The air conditioner makes the air cold when it passes through this evaporator. However, since the surface of the evaporator comes into contact with warm air, water is bound to form - hence an environment with high temperature and humidity where mold and bacteria can thrive.
It is necessary to remove the moisture after using the air conditioner to prevent this. About 5 minutes before arriving at the destination, press the A/C button of the air conditioner to stop the compressor, and press Outside air on high to remove moisture. It is also recommended to regularly replace the cabin filter, which filters out foreign substances in the air coming in from the outside. It is usually good to change after 6 months of use or 10,000 km of driving.
On the other hand, cars with the After Blow feature do not require this process. After-blow is turned on when the driver turns off the engine, and the blower motor for air circulation is automatically operated for a certain period of time to dry the inside of the air conditioner. This can dry out the condensate left in the air vent as well as the evaporator. It is very convenient to maintain the condition of the air conditioner and effectively removes moisture inside the cabin.
A journey with your car brings you comfort and joy anytime, anywhere. These disturbing moments in summer are only temporary. Just by observing your car a little more and knowing how to deal with these situations, you will be able to drive comfortably.
Photography by Jin-Ho Choi
