New Noises Lead to Dealership Visit for Long-Term Subaru BRZ

We recently noticed that our long-term Subaru BRZ had developed some new noises — or maybe we were able to hear them more now that it's getting warm in Chicago and we're driving with the windows down.

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We could hear a ticking sound and a squeaky whirring noise coming from the engine bay at idle once the four-cylinder had reached operating temperature, so we decided to take it to our dealership's service department.

How Long Do Tires Last?

We would expect at least 50,000 miles from the tires that come with any new vehicle, but tire life depends on so many factors that it's impossible to give anything other than broad guidelines.

Among the factors are the quality of the tire, the treadwear rating, whether it is a performance summer tire or an all-season tire, the type of vehicle it is mounted on and how it is driven. Performance tires may grip like leeches on dry pavement, but they tend to wear out faster than tires with less rolling resistance. If you drive your vehicle like you just stole it that also will wear tires faster. The Tires 101 information in the Cars.com Advice section, found here, will help you sort out the different types of tires and which is best for your driving style.

Does Engine Coolant Go Bad?

Yes, engine coolant does deteriorate over time, but unless something unusual occurs, you probably won't need to change the coolant in most late-model vehicles until 100,000 miles. Older vehicles probably require more frequent coolant replacement, so check your owner's manual to be sure.

Most manufacturers now use extended-life coolant with a recommended change interval of 100,000 miles. That varies based on maintenance schedules for each manufacturer and individual models. Some Subarus, for example, call for coolant replacement after 13 years or 132,500 miles. Many Ford engines say to replace it after the first 100,000 miles and every 50,000 miles thereafter, though heavy-duty applications (such as frequent towing) should have it done more often.

How Often Should You Rotate Your Tires?

A good time to rotate your tires is when you get the oil changed, assuming you do that at least once a year and more often if you drive, say, more than 10,000 miles annually.

Most vehicle manufacturers recommend that the tires be rotated on the same schedule as oil changes. In most cases that means every 7,500 miles or six months, though some have stretched the oil-change interval to 10,000 miles, such as on many Fords, Volkswagens and Toyotas. BMW allows up to 15,000 miles between oil changes, but that is too long to wait to rotate the tires.

Unless you drive fewer than about 7,500 miles per year, you should probably rotate tires every six months or so.

What's a Cabin Air Filter and When Should You Replace It?

The cabin air filter, a feature found on most late-model vehicles, cleans the air that comes into the interior through the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. It catches dust, pollen and other airborne material that can make riding in a car unpleasant, particularly if you have allergies or other respiratory problems.

Recommendations on when it should be replaced vary by manufacturer — some say every 12,000 or 15,000 miles, others longer — and how often can depend on how much you drive and where. Check the maintenance schedule in your owner's manual. If you drive in heavy traffic in an urban area that has poor air quality, you could need to replace the filter annually or even more often. However, that also could be true in a desert climate where there is a lot of dust.

How to Remove A Sticker From Your Car

Stickers on cars can symbolize just about anything under the sun. They can show support for a certain political candidate, identify you as a proud parent of an honor student or the fact that you just love that one special dog breed. Others are required by local laws, like city stickers. Some even come attached to your new car straight from the dealer.

But political campaigns and straight A's end at some point, and those city stickers need to be replaced every year.

While removing stickers isn't as easy as putting them on, we have some advice that should make the job a little less sticky.

Spring Showers Bring Summer Tires Back to Our Subaru BRZ

It has been a long winter here in Chicago. Even with the dawn of spring we experienced subfreezing temps, snow and just plain awful, gray days. That meant keeping our winter tires on Cars.com's long-term 2013 Subaru BRZ a bit longer than we wanted.

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Conventional wisdom in our office is to swap the tires on or around April 1 ... simply because Chicago weather can be so unpredictable.

We didn't do the deed until April 12. And it snowed the next day.

Can Cheap Gasoline Hurt Your Engine?

First, if anyone knows where to find cheap gas, please let us know. We could use a break from paying close to, or more than, $4 a gallon.

As far as the pump price affecting engine performance or gas mileage, we doubt there is a direct correlation. In fact, the off-brand station that sells for less than the name brands may be pumping gas made by one of the name brands.

That dirty little secret of the retail gasoline business became public knowledge in August 2012 in the Chicago area, northwest Indiana and southern Wisconsin, when oil giant BP recalled more than 2 million gallons of gas contaminated with gunk that was causing cars to run poorly or stall. BP said at the time that most of the gas was delivered to its own stations, but some also was delivered to other brands, found here. Among the other brands were Phillips 66, Speedway and Citgo, as well as retailers such as Meijer, Sam's Club, Road Ranger and Thorntons.

Get Ready for Spring Planting Without Soiling Your Car

Across the parts of the country that are thawing out from a long winter, spring often means trips to the garden center for plants, soil, mulch and other items that could seriously dirty a car's interior.

My daughters and I have a major case of spring fever, a serious problem considering we live in the Rocky Mountains where March and April are the snowiest months. I ordered a few beautiful herbs to plant in a sunny kitchen window just to get the bug out of our systems for a bit. But I still have to figure out how to get bags of soil and compost home without dirtying up the spring clean of my car's trunk.

I polled our savvy staffers to figure out how they transport soil and other lawn and garden favorites without soiling their cars' interiors:

AAA: Cost of Car Ownership up 2% This Year

If you're planning on spending some of your tax refund on a new car or car maintenance, plan to put aside a bit more. According to a AAA study, the cost of owning and operating a vehicle has increased by nearly 2% in 2013.

The results of AAA's annual Your Driving Costs study show that U.S. motorists are paying an average of 1.96% more to own and operate a sedan. The study looks at the annual cost of fuel, vehicle repairs, insurance rates, taxes, license fees, rates of depreciation and average finance charges for a new car driven over five years and 75,000 miles.

"Many factors go into the cost calculation of owning and operating a vehicle. This year, changes in maintenance, fuel and insurance costs resulted in the increase to just over 60 cents a mile," John Nielsen, AAA director of automotive engineering and repair, said in a statement. 

Here's how each category of vehicle fared, based on driving 15,000 miles a year: