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12 Bonehead Basics of Car Maintenance
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You know, That Guy who thinks that the best way to keep a car from overheating is to roll down the window. That Guy who hires the neighborhood kid to wash his car 'cause he’s allergic to “going outside and doing things.” There are lots of ways to be That Guy, but only one way not

to be: by regaining your self-sufficiency and learning the basics about car care. Using STP® is a good first step. And while we can’t do the rest for you, we'll give you a few pointers. Check out the tutorials. Take a look at the videos. And get under your hood. Good luck, and Don't Be That Guy.

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  • Feb
    04
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    Fear and Loathing in Pismo Beach (Part 2)

    Posted in: This Guy Wisdom
    Shaq Diesel
    When in Pismo…

    ...CONTINUED FROM LAST WEDNESDAY’S POST…

    Right, so where were we? Oh, yeah. Chuck and I are four-wheeling around the dunes in Pismo Beach. Nighttime. And it’s a blast. Then suddenly, I hear this whirring sound. The Jeep’s tires are spinning. But we’re not going anywhere. Just digging ourselves deeper and deeper into the sand.

    “I’m not worried,” says Chuck. Now, when a man tells you he’s not worried when you didn’t even suggest he was worried in the first place? Well, that’s a pretty good sign he’s worried.

    “Nope,” says Chuck, “I’m not worried at all.”

    I look out my window. In the dark, I can see that not only are we stuck, but we’re stuck at a 45-degree angle. The passenger side of the car is leaning down the edge of a steep drop.

    “Hey,” I tell Chuck, “there’s a pretty steep drop here.”

    “Oh,” he says. “Well … I’m not worried.”

    “You ever roll this thing before?” I ask.

    “Don’t say the R-word!” says Chuck.

    Okay, now I’m definitely a little worried.

    “We gotta get out,” says Chuck. “We gotta lower the tire pressure.”

    We get out of the Jeep. It’s pretty cold out. We take all the tires down to 15 PSI. About ten minutes later, we’re back in the car.

    Chuck has decided to back it down the ridge instead of driving up — the plan seems to work. We make it down, out of the sand trap, without any “R-word” action. It takes a while to get out of the dunes after that, but eventually we escape to the beach and head back to the motel. Chuck’s girlfriend whips up some guacamole, and we have a few plastic motel cups of Patrón to celebrate our escape from the sand.

    The next day, I awoke to some great salty air and sunshine. Chuck and his Wrangler were long gone. Back to El Cajon, I guess. As for myself, I had a new lease on life, having survived a harrowing night. I decided to start checking things off the old bucket list. To start, I bought some cricket and mealworm candies and snacks at Hotlicks — gifts for the lady (she thought they were disgusting).

    So, moral of the story: If you’re ever in Pismo Beach and stuck in the sand, deflate the tires. More surface area on the sand equals more traction.

    And don’t bother with the salt and vinegar crickets. Not so good. And if you see Chuck, tell him I say hey — and that I hope he’s been keeping his Jeep out of the holes.

    — JI, STP® blogger

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