Fall semester car check-up
Jordan Kinsey
Correspondent
Though a majority of undergraduate students at Florida A&M commute to school, many are not knowledgeable about keeping their cars in good condition.
According to the 2012-13 common data set report published by the FAMU Office of Institutional Research, 73 percent of undergraduate students reside off campus or commute to school.
Local mechanic Karl Handverger, owner of Bob’s Transmission on Monroe Street, said the care a person puts into a car is essential for its functioning.
Handverger, who worked at Tallahassee Ford, Champion Chevrolet and Lincoln Memorial before he bought his own transmission services shop, suggests students get their oil changed regularly and rotate their car tires, in addition to checking the tire threads.
“[During] every other oil change, [it] is a good idea to rotate the tires,” Hadverger said. “So if you are doing oil change every 5,000 [miles] then rotate every 10,000.”
While some students are less familiar with cars, not all students are blank when it comes to them.
Tia Haynes, a senior architecture student from Tallahassee and owner of a 1998 Mercedes Compressor Coup, said she pays close attention to her car and encourages other students to do the same, especially the condition of their tires.
“Check to see if you need new tires because sometimes your alignment may be off,” Haynes said. “Just get your tires checked whenever you go get your tune-up and oil change.”
Delvert Camfield, a fleet maintenance supervisor at FAMU with more than 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, offers to tips to students on vehicle maintenance.
Camfield said students should verify their turning signals are working, check their tires’ pressure, look under the car’s hood for vital fluids, change their oil every 3,500-4,000 miles, make sure they have the proper mixture of water and antifreeze and keep the transmission serviced up to 24,000-30,000 miles.
“General maintenance is the most important thing,” Handverger said. “The money you put into it is going to return in longevity.”