Longer and colder nights demand more of your vehicle's electrical and lighting systems. Now is the perfect time to replace or upgrade your Bulbs and Battery.

Make sure you have the best possible view of the road and that other drivers can see you. From replacements for your halogen sealed beams, to HID bulbs, to license plate bulbs, RockAuto.com has all the light bulbs you need to restore or enhance (Extra Bright, Extended Life, LED...) your car or truck; from trusted brands like Philips and Hella.

Waiting to replace a battery that can barely spin the starter risks leaving you stranded. With a modern vehicle, a dying battery also may accelerate wear on an electrical/charging system that is already working overtime to cope with numerous computers, entertainment systems, heated seats and/or other electronics. RockAuto offers ACDelco, Deka, Exide, FVP, Fullriver and Motorcraft AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteries.

Find bulbs for your specific vehicle listed under "Electrical-Bulb & Socket" in the RockAuto.com catalog. To see the battery options we have for your specific vehicle, go to the catalog and click on the "Electrical" category. You can also search for your battery in the "Electrical" category of the "Tools & Universal Parts" tab.

Make your gift giving effortless this year with a RockAuto Gift Certificate and let the recipient get the parts or tools he/she most needs! Gift certificates are available for any amount, are easy to purchase and even easier to use.

When I was a young man, I worked in my brother-in-law's body shop. I did not perform any of the body work, but I was responsible for the mechanical work when needed. One day, a 1970 Maverick came in with front end collision damage. After the bodywork was complete, I was tasked with replacing the idler arm. I proceeded to change it, however, when I tightened the two bolts on the frame, I completely missed the top bolt hole of the idler arm and did not check to see if it was tight to the frame before I claimed the job was complete.

I then drove the car down the road to another shop for an alignment. The technician came out and proceeded to show me the semi-attached idler arm and asked if I wanted HIm to fix it before they did the alignment. I looked at it and replied "Yes please, I can’t imagine who the heck put that part on, but I will give him an earful when I get back to the shop!" Needless to say, I learned to definitely not go by feel and to get visual confirmation if there is something you cannot initially see!

Dean in Florida

Some innovative original equipment (OE) plastic parts have not lasted as long as expected in real world driving conditions. For example, a few of the first OE plastic intake manifold and valve cover designs introduced 30+ years ago warped or otherwise deteriorated relatively quickly. Fortunately, the word "plastic" is as vague as the word "metal." A tin can is not the same as a titanium can. Part manufacturers came to the rescue with replacement parts for older cars and OE parts for new cars that used plastics (or metals) better able to withstand specific harsh environments (heat, oil, fuel, etc.).

One of the latest OE plastic parts to sometimes fail prematurely is the plastic water pump impeller. "Fail first" might be more accurate than "fail prematurely." If the impeller was metal instead of plastic then maybe the water pump bearing would have already failed. A metal water pump impeller's heavier weight is harder to balance and puts more strain on the water pump bearing.

The OE water pump impellers were primarily nylon. Nylon seems like a reasonable choice because nylon not only tolerates water; it is actually rejuvenated by water. Unfortunately, coolant also includes antifreeze and some antifreeze formulas gradually deteriorated the nylon-based plastics.

Typical Water Pumps with Plastic Impellers

Some replacement water pumps switch to metal impellers, but that is not always possible. In addition to weighing less, plastic impellers can be molded in more intricate shapes; optimized to move the correct volume of coolant through the cooling system. Replacement water pumps and the newest OE pumps frequently now have plastic impellers molded from fiberglass-reinforced polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) plastic. PPS withstands antifreeze (and much harsher chemicals). PPS also is not affected by high cooling system temperatures.

Hopefully, long lasting new plastic impellers moving more coolant through the cooling system while putting less strain on water pump bearings is now nothing but good news. See the Water Pump for your specific vehicle under "Cooling System" in the RockAuto.com catalog.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

To read more of Tom's articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.