There was a time when getting lost required some commitment. A driver would unfold a road map across the steering wheel, locate two towns that appeared to be printed directly on top of one another, th
Changing a car battery used to be one of the cleaner bargains in home mechanics. Remove two terminals, undo the clamp, lift out the old battery and fit the new one. The clock might need resetting a
The charging session is complete. The battery has enough range, the dashboard looks satisfied and everyone is ready to leave. The plug, unfortunately, has made other plans. Pressing its rele
Electric cars have developed a sound of their own. Not the familiar chug of an engine or the rising growl of an exhaust, but a smooth, slightly eerie hum that seems better suited to a spacecraft glidi
Walk past a parked car after dark and the cabin can seem completely asleep, apart from one tiny red light pulsing on the dashboard. Blink. Pause. Blink again. Since red dashboard lights usua
A car battery does not need to be completely dead to leave the car behaving as though it is. Sometimes the battery is charged and perfectly willing to work, but the electricity cannot get past the
A parked car should understand the concept of being parked. The engine is off. The keys are inside the house. The garage has been quiet for hours. Then something beneath the car begins to hu
Red goes to positive. Black goes to negative. It is the sort of rule that feels too simple to forget. It is also incomplete. When jump-starting many modern cars, the final black clamp is not suppos
Watch the back of two cars at the same intersection and you might notice something odd. The first car hits the brakes, then one of its red brake lights starts flashing. The second car does the
There are few sounds more discouraging than a car almost starting. The key turns. The dash lights flicker like they are thinking about it. The engine gives one slow, tired grind, then another