The Motor Medics diagnose vehicle problems for callers on Saturday mornings, 10AM until Noon, on WTYM AM 1380 & FM 103.7.
Dear Motor Medics,
I want to repair the rear defroster on my Chrysler Town and Country van. We haul a lot of stuff in the van for our small business and over the years items have scratched the defroster grid on the glass and I assume that is why it does not work. The button on the dash still lights up. What do I need to do to fix the grid? Some spots are scratched up to an inch or so.
Mark in Cushing, Oklahoma
Dear Mark,
If you have any spots in the defroster grid that are cut you will have an open circuit and that will stop the operation of the defroster. The grid needs to be protected from objects that may scratch it or from things like ordinary tape. We have seen many temporary license plates taped to the window and when removed the grid gets torn. One way to protect a working grid is with window tint if it is legal in your area. Repairing a broken grid can be tricky. There is a liquid product available at some parts stores that will bridge the gap of a cut wire, but it is not meant for long gaps such as you described. If you have several cuts with some being extensive you may opt to replace the glass with a good used part. A used replacement rear glass is a much cheaper alternative to get your defroster back up and running.
Take care, the Motor Medics
Dear Motor Medics,
I just purchased a 2008 Infinity sedan and would like to have a second set of wheels and more aggressive tires for winter. The vehicle also has a tiny spare that is much smaller than the other tires. I want to know if I can get another set of wheels for the car and where I would do that. I also want to know if I must stick with the smaller spare or if I can swap it out with a full-size tire.
Steve in Nebraska City. Nebraska
Dear Steve,
Infinity is a nice car, and most have some very expensive factory wheels. We have several customers of our shop that use a different set of wheels with special tires for the winter season. Most of them chose to go with a set of used replacement wheels that matched what they already had but in some cases such as the more expensive wheels found on higher end cars like the Infinity they purchased a new set of custom wheels for the drier months and used the factory wheels for the rest of the year. Your local tire shop should be able to help you with options. A full size spare may be an option too but remember the storage space for the spare is often only large enough to store the compact spare so you may have to keep it in the trunk sliding around and taking up valuable room.
Take care, the Motor Medics