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Your battery does not actually power your vehicle's internal and external lights, windows, sound system, defroster, and many other powered features of your vehicle. Surprisingly, it's your alternator. Your battery only provides the initial burst of electrical power to start your car.

The alternator is a part that contains a belt-controlled pulley, and it is bolted on the main engine block. While an engine runs, the spinning pulley causes the alternator to generate the required electricity for many vital engine functions. 

If you own a voltmeter, you have everything you will need in order to test the battery in your car. Before you can test the battery, you must turn off the ignition in the car and make certain the vehicle’s lights are off. Before connecting the voltmeter to the car battery, check to see if there is any corrosion on the battery terminals. Remove the corrosion with a wire brush or terminal cleaning tool.

Connect the positive cable (red) from the voltmeter to the positive end of the battery. Connect the negative cable (black) from the voltmeter to the…

The tire pressure lights alert drivers when something is potentially wrong with the car tires. Keep these things in mind if the pressure light comes on in your vehicle.

If it is the cold of winter, low temperatures could cause the pressure to drop and trigger the sensors to tire trouble. When the heat of summer is extreme, it could raise the pressure in the car tire and trigger the sensors. Usually when the temperature drops, the sensor will turn off. 

Your vehicle's brakes are one of the most important safety features. Without them, you wouldn't be able to stop your car and would surely get into an accident. To avoid this, it is wise to make sure to keep your brakes maintained and in optimal condition to help avoid any potential problems.

The general recommendation for when to have your brakes serviced is if they either haven't been serviced in the past year, or in the last 12,000 miles. 

Winter driving is not only stressful, with black ice and drivers who think they are all in four-wheel-drive snow trucks, but it can also be a rough ride. The extreme changes in temperature, combined with salt and snow plows, can create large pot holes and uneven driving services. There is an advantage to this, however. Winter provides a great opportunity to pay attention to your suspension and determine whether or not it may need to be brought to BMW of Nashville for servicing.

As the shocks and struts on a vehicle start to wear out, they become less stiff. 

Windshield wiper fluid can make your driving experience much more satisfying by giving you a cleaner windshield to look out of as you navigate the streets of Brentwood, TN. A growing number of fluids that are out on the market have advanced detergents in them that help to clean even the most stubborn of windshield gunk off of a windshield without streaks. Water simply cannot do that.

Windshield wiper fluid also can be bought in a variety of colors. 

You’re driving down the highway in Brentwood, TN during a storm and you notice police, firefighters, and towing sirens several hundred yards ahead by the shoulder lane in front of you. Calmly, you slow your vehicle down, and make your way into a lane on the left. Good job! You have just followed the Move Over law.

Move Over laws state that you must yield to ambulances, police, construction workers, towing, and drivers that apply emergency lights on a road or highway. 

Tire tread is a part of your car that is actually of great importance, although many Brentwood, TN drivers may not know why it’s so important to maintain. Tire treads are the grooves or cutouts in your tires. The reason behind these treads is to allow water to pass underneath your tires when you drive on them. Without adequate tire treads, driving over water would be quite dangerous and possibly result in hydroplaning or slipping.

Tire treads must be at least 2/32 of an inch deep to be street legal, however even deeper is recommended. 

Our cars, big rigs, tractors, and trucks have many fluids that keep them running. Just like our bodies, if we didn’t have fluid in them, we wouldn’t make it. Make yourself aware of these fluids and how to best deal with maintaining regular levels in them with the help of the service team here at BMW of Nashville.

People sometimes don't know whether or not they want OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) or aftermarket parts for their vehicles. If your vehicle needs any type of part replacement, you need to explore both options with care and dedication. Our team here at BMW of Nashville is happy to help illustrate some of the key differences.