At Tuffy, we are most concerned about your safety while you are in your vehicle. This blog is dedicated to auto safety. We will provide information on auto safety and related topics twice a month to help keep you safe and your car on the road. If you have topic suggestions, please contact us at
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Auto Safety Blog #11: Augmented Reality for Advanced Safety |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 08 March 2011 00:00 |
It’s a beautiful evening and you decide to take a drive down a winding country road. The sun has just set, and the air is moist. The fog soon rolls in, and you can barely see the car ahead of you. You click on the fog lights, which help a little, but the thicker the fog gets, the harder it is to see. Finally, you have to pull over and wait for the fog to clear a little before driving on.
This frustrating experience will soon be a thing of thing of the past. As technology advances, auto safety features that were once science fiction become a reality. Within eight years, augmented reality windshields may become a standard feature on most cars.
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Auto Safety Blog #10: Get Help Keeping Safe: Accident Avoidance Systems |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Monday, 21 February 2011 19:37 |
We’ve all been guilty at one time or another of taking our eyes off the road for a few seconds only to find that when we look back our vehicle has drifted out of its lane a few inches. Sometimes we are notified by the honking of horns and sometimes by the twisting of metal and screeching of tires. This experience may soon be just a memory for everyone.
The basics
Accident Avoidance Systems (AAS) are designed to help keep you safer on the road. There are two major types of AAS that we will discuss in this article: lane departure systems and forward collision systems.
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Auto Safety Blog #9: Keep Your Children Safe with Car Seats |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 14 December 2010 00:00 |
 When you’re driving, you need to focus on the road, other vehicles, and traffic signals. The one thing you don’t want to worry about is the safety of your child. A properly installed car seat, with the child securely buckled in, leaves you free to keep your eyes and mind on driving.
The basics
Child car seats can be complex. Which one do you get? Where do you install it? How do you install it? Let us demystify this complex problem for you.
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Auto Safety Blog #8: At Tuffy, We Have Safety in the Bag |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 23 November 2010 00:00 |
 We all know accidents happen. We’ve been quoted statistics all of our lives. Now, we have an encouraging statistic for you: According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, fatal auto accidents have decreased significantly over the last five-year period.
Enhanced safety systems in vehicles, such as airbags and modern seat belts, play a huge role in reducing fatal auto accidents.
The basics
Airbags can be found in various places throughout the vehicle. Typically they are located in the steering wheel, on the dash, and on the side of the seats in the case of side curtain airbags. The airbags deploy under certain circumstances determined by the sensing and diagnostics module in the car.
Each passenger seat has a seat belt. Modern seat belts include a retractor pretensioner module that is wired to the sensing and diagnostics module. Under accident scenarios, the retractor pretensioner module does not just stop the seat belt from providing slack, it actually retracts the additional slack to keep you in position for the best protection during an accident.
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Auto Safety Blog #7: A Clear View Ahead |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 09 November 2010 00:00 |
 It’s first thing in the morning and there is dew on your car’s windshield. While you are getting ready to drive to work, you quickly flip on the windshield wipers and the perfect beads of water are replaced by stripes of water that you can barely see through. It must be time for new windshield wipers.
The basics
Visibility is vital to safe driving. During inclement weather, your windshield wipers can help you see clearly, which improves your safety and the safety of those around you.
Wiper blades have changed very little over the years aside from a few gimmicks. They have two parts:
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A rubber strip cut like a blade
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Metal and springs to hold the blade to the windshield
The rubber blade makes contact with the windshield and squeegees the water away from the windshield surface to improve your visibility.
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Auto Safety Blog #6: Keep Your Engine Purring with Oil Changes at Tuffy |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 26 October 2010 00:00 |
 Your car weighs roughly a ton, and the engine that powers it needs some serious weight too. So how come your engine purrs like a lap cat? It’s all about the oil.
The basics
Oil is the life blood of your vehicle’s engine. While your car is running, the oil circulates through the engine. It lubricates the parts to keep them all moving with very little friction, which makes the engine run smoothly—and even purr.
Two things work to keep the engine running smoothly: cleaners added to the oil and oil filters. The cleaners do just what you might imagine. As the oil moves through the oil circulation system, the cleaners do their part to keep the engine clean and free from contaminants. The oil filter removes the worst of the foreign materials from the circulating oil.
Types of oil
There are three main types of oil, the normal petroleum-based oil, semi-synthetic oil and full synthetic oil. Your car’s manufacturer specifies which type of oil to use for the best performance. |
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Auto Safety Blog #5: Get Charged Up with Tuffy |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 12 October 2010 00:00 |
 The starting and charging system makes sure you can start your car and use all of the features that need electricity to operate.
The basics
The Starting System
The starting system is made up of the starter motor and the ignition switch. The starter motor is a high-torque electric motor that literally turns the engine until the cylinders can combust fuel, starting a chain reaction that keeps the engine running. The starter motor draws its power from the battery. It requires quite a bit of power, so if your battery is running low, your car may not start.
The Charging System
The charging system is made up of the battery and alternator. The alternator is connected to the engine by a belt that spins the alternator to generate electricity like a generator. This electricity recharges the battery and provides the power needed to run all of the electrical components in the car. The battery stores electricity for later use to operate the starter motor. |
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Auto Safety Blog #4: Help Keep your Engine Cool at Tuffy |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 28 September 2010 00:00 |
 The purpose of the cooling system is to keep the engine running at an optimal temperature to allow the engine to run efficiently.
The Basics
While most people think of the engine cooling system as the green fluid often called engine coolant or antifreeze coolant, the coolant is just a small part of the engine cooling system. The coolant acts as a medium as it passes through the cooling system. It starts in the radiator and is pumped by the water pump through hoses to the engine block and then back to the radiator. It takes the heat from the engine and transfers it to the fins on the radiator allowing the air to cool the fluid and the cooling system itself. The thermostat controls the cooling fan on the radiator determining when it needs to be on or off and also connects to the driver's control panel to indicate the coolant temperature. |
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Auto Safety Blog #3: The Ups and Downs of Suspension and Steering |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 14 September 2010 00:00 |
 The basics
The suspension system keeps the car riding and turning smoothly. It absorbs the bumps in the road to make your ride comfortable and also counteracts normal shifts that occur when you accelerate, turn, and brake, so that the tires are always in contact with the road. The steering system allow the car to maneuver and corner in order to go where it is intended to go.
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Auto Safety Blog #2: Stay Grounded with Tires from Tuffy |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Tuesday, 31 August 2010 00:00 |
 Tires keep your car on the road and in your control.
The basics
Tires provide the traction that you need to steer and stop. And when it starts raining, the gaps in the rubber channel water to help you maintain that traction.
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Auto Safety Blog #1: Brake for Safety |
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Written by Tuffy Pete
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Friday, 20 August 2010 12:30 |
 You always want to have enough time—and road—to stop gradually. But, sometimes you don't. You need to know that your brakes will stop the car quickly when you need them to.
The basics
Brakes work with your tires to stop your vehicle. More specifically, brakes use friction to stop the wheels of your car. There are two main types of brakes: disc brakes and drum brakes.
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