Putting best foot forward

You have to love South Africa and the times we live in. No two days are the same and each week serves to highlight the glaring gaps in almost all aspects of our colourful country.

For instance, why do you think traffic on the N1 - the highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria - was disrupted when the ANC Youth League walked all the way to Pretoria? The answer is simply because we do not have sidewalks or pavements.

Surely if we had pavements the economic freedom fighters, aka marchers, could have shared the road with all other economic freedom fighters, aka motorists, as we collectively went about fighting for our financial emancipation?

On a serious note though, I hope all those who walked wore good shoes, because the lesson therein for motorists is to ensure your car's tyres are well maintained, particularly as we head towards the festive holidays.

It wouldn't be surprising to learn that the protesters developed blisters, corns or bunions, which can be likened to bubbles on your tyre.

These are unsightly and painful, and could lead to bigger problems, and while bunions might sentence you to a life of wearing unflattering health shoes, a bubble in a tyre might well end your life.

Think of it this way, your car's tyre is equivalent to the shoes we wear. If your shoes are worn, the likelihood of slipping and falling is high, and while embarrassing, chances are you will live, but if your tyres are badly worn or damaged, you might not live long enough to contemplate the consequences.

Check your tyres, particularly after driving on an uneven road, or after hitting a pothole, and should you find any irregularities, replace the tyre immediately.

For instance, when the sole or heel of a shoes needs replacement, we attend to both shoes, so that they are even when we wear them.

Similarly, when replacing damaged tyres, you should ideally be replacing two tyres at a time (unless it's a puncture).

And when replacing any two tyres, it must be the two tyres on the same axis, meaning either the two front tyres or the two back tyres.

And never replace the two on either the left or right side of the car - that would be like tying your ankles together and then expecting to be able to walk - awkward!

Speaking of awkward, our president recently pulled the car mat from under the well-heeled feet of our ex-police commissioner Bheki Cele, by suspending him from duty.

After months of spluttering like a car with faulty spark plugs each time Public Protector Thuli Madonsela revved her findings, Cele must have felt like a flat car battery.

Similar to a flat car battery, he might need jumper cables or a push start to get his political career back up and running again. And as we head into the Christmas break, now would be a good time to ensure your battery won't let you down. An easy way to check is to do a visual inspection of the battery terminals.

These should be clean, and without corrosion build-up.

If the terminals have some corrosion, an easy way to clean them is to use a steel brush or a pot scourer, and a can of Coke.

Make sure that the car is turned off and that the battery is disconnected first.

Pour the Coke on the terminals, let it settle for a few seconds then put some elbow grease into it and start scrubbing! This should remove the corrosion and increase the electricity flow - meaning you'll get a good cranking voltage.

In weather news, the summer rains are finally upon us, and the only sound louder than a taxi drivers' horn is the welcome sound of thunder.

It might be a good time to check the effectiveness of your car's wiper blades before the next torrential downpour.

The blades should make full contact with the windscreen at all times, and dispense with the rain water as effectively as the cheerful housewives advertising multi-surface cleaners in television commercials.

The only time it is acceptable to use the word streaky is when ordering bacon and if your wipers are doing a streaky job, be like Elton Jantjies and give them the boot.

While on the subject of sport, congratulations go out to the Golden Lions for their victory over the Sharks in the Currie Cup final.

John Mitchell's boys epitomised a well-oiled machine, which, in motoring terms, could be likened to checking your car's engine oil.

This is one of the easiest and most important maintenance activities you can ever execute. Running an engine without oil will cause it to seize, leaving you at the mercy of lift clubs or worse - public transport.

The best time to check your engine's oil is when the engine is warm (not hot) to the touch.

If the oil level is significantly below the full line on the dipstick, take your car to your nearest petrol station for a top up.

Be sure to note that the oil is clear and fluid, not black and jelly-like. If discoloured, get a mechanic to check the engine immediately.