Wishing you all the joys of the season and happiness throughout the coming year. Thank you for being our customer and letting us serve as your auto parts supplier!

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RockAuto's Email Gift Certificate delivery is immediate and free. Simply choose the Email format and your friends and family will conveniently receive the E-Gift in their inbox. RockAuto Gift Certificates are available for any amount, are easy to purchase and even easier to use!

Wheels
RockAuto carries an ever-expanding selection of new and reconditioned OEM Wheels, and many factory hubcaps and center caps, too! Do not pay dealership prices for the same wheel or cap you can find on RockAuto.com for just a fraction of the cost (assuming the dealership even has them). Selection is huge and new inventory is regularly added to the RockAuto.com catalog; everything from factory aluminum wheels for the 2000 Chevy Camaro, to ten spoke wheels for the 2014 Toyota Highlander, to machined wheels with "charcoal accents" for a 2019 Acura MDX. Find the factory wheels and caps you desire under "Wheel" for your specific vehicle at RockAuto.com.

TPMS Sensors
Today's low-profile and stiff sidewall tires make leaks and even flats harder to detect which means Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) are more important than ever. RockAuto proudly offers TPMS Sensors from brands like Schrader, BH Sens and VDO / Continental -- trusted by OEMs around the world. RockAuto also offers a first-of-its-kind "Programmed + Clone Capable" sensor, manufactured by Standard Motor Products (SMP), that can save you time and money!

Like the rest of the TPMS sensors listed by vehicle under "Wheel" in the RockAuto.com catalog, SMP's sensors come pre-programmed, and are ready to install. But, some programmed sensors still require a "relearn" procedure after installation, so your computer can recognize each new sensor ID. (Relearn procedures vary by manufacturer - check your Owner's Manual.) SMP's "Clone Capable" TPMS sensors allow you to clone (copy) the IDs from one set of sensors and write them to the new set of SMP sensors. This means that you will never have to "relearn" the sensors in the future.

Find vehicle specific SMP's Sensors alongside other programmed sensors under "Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) Sensor" in the "Wheel" category of the RockAuto.com catalog. We also offer programmable sensors under “Tire” in the “Wheel” category of the "Tools & Universal Parts” tab which can be cloned, but require programming before installation. Drive safe this winter with reliable TPMS Sensors from RockAuto.com!

Lug Nuts
RockAuto now carries premium wheel hardware from McGard! McGard has been a manufacturer of high quality security products (including Tailgate Locks and Lug Nut Locks) as well as chrome plated Lug Nuts for over 50 years. Today, they are a leading OE supplier of Lug Nut Locks to over 30 automobile manufacturers worldwide.

McGard Lug Nut Lock Sets optimize security by using an unlimited number of different computer designed lock and key patterns. McGard lug nuts are strong, safe, durable and guaranteed for life!

RockAuto also has a broad selection of lug nuts to correct OE problems. Dorman's "OE FIX" lug nut solves the failure-prone "Two-Piece OE Design," common on many Ford and Mopar models. Find Lug Nut Locks and Lug Nuts under the "Wheel" category for your vehicle in the RockAuto.com catalog.

If you are a 1959 Plymouth owner or fan, 59Plymouth.net is an online community where you can ask questions and get answers from like-minded ’59 Plymouth owners all over the world; from the Netherlands to Argentina, from South Africa to Portugal, and everywhere in between. Membership is free, and there is a wealth of information, from how to finagle brake fluid into that hidden master cylinder to tips on more involved mechanical procedures and even a fun archive of vintage images.

If you are the administrator or member of a forum and you would like to see your website featured in an upcoming newsletter and receive a discount code to share with your members, contact marketing@rockauto.com.

I was in college in Colorado in 1976, and my wife and I bought a Mazda 626. Our homes were in NJ, and I decided to add an aftermarket cruise control to the car to help make the long drives back and forth more comfortable. I put in the control unit, solenoid and bellows for the throttle, brake switch, and the pick-up and magnet on the driveshaft. The magnet had to be tapped in position so it would not fly off the shaft at speed. Several weeks after adding the system, a horrible noise developed at 55+ mph. When the car slowed, the noise went away.

It had to be a problem with the transmission. I took it out, tore it down in my apartment, used all the same gaskets to rebuild it and stuffed it back in. The horrible noise still occurred. I was frustrated. My wife (who knows everything) said it was something I did with the cruise control. She was right. I wrapped the tape backwards on the driveshaft and over 55 mph it flew out and hit the exhaust. Under 55 mph centrifugal force was lower, the tape fell back in and the noise was gone. I re-wrapped it in the opposite direction and all was fixed...

Often times people that "know nothing" take a simple approach and figure it out with common sense!

Bill in New Jersey

Tell us about your most infamous auto repair blunder or unconventional fix. Use your woe to help others avoid similar mistakes or share off-the-wall solutions that worked (at least for a while!). Please email your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and if you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt (please let us know your shirt size) or Hat if we publish your story. See the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts in the RockAuto catalog. The story will be credited using only your first name and your vague geographic location (state, province, country, continent, etc.) so you can remain semi-anonymous!

LED light bulbs are polarity dependent. It matters which terminals are connected to positive and negative.

A. True

B. False

Answer below

It does not take long working on old cars to realize they have personalities. A cantankerous, rough running motor unexplainably purrs like a kitten after the car gets nothing but a thorough wash and wax. It was probably feeling neglected and unappreciated and just needed some attention. What is unusual is the altruistic car that looks after the other vehicles in the garage. My youngest daughter's 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe is such a vehicle.

This week, its tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) warning light turned on while she was returning from bagpipe practice, but the air pressure in all its tires was correct. At first I thought a stray radio signal might have caused the TPMS to give a false alarm, but then I decided to check the tires on my other daughter's 2005 Mustang. The air pressures were consistently 5 lb. low. She will be driving that car all over town this weekend after coming back from college for the holidays.

I next remembered that winter is here, and I had not yet installed the four snow tires on my wife's car. She retired in August after working 30+ years for the DEA. She likes having the snow tires on even if she can now just stay home sipping tea in her rocking chair during any big storms. Installing snow tires already mounted on their own wheels took me less than 30 minutes.

My son was drawn to law enforcement like his mom. He became a sheriff's deputy this year and works the graveyard shift in a battle-scarred 2017 Ford Police Interceptor Utility (Explorer) that he christened "Watson." My son will not let me touch Watson. He says the sheriff's office has strict rules about not letting civilians rummage around under the hoods of squad cars. Maybe when he was growing up, I talked too fondly about "cop motors" and "cop shocks." He likely fears popping Watson's hood and seeing the motor from his mom's '93 Ford Tempo squatting there. (He overestimates my engine swapping skills.) I will have to trust my son and the motor pool mechanics to keep tabs on Watson's tire air pressures.

The TPMS light in my daughter's Hyundai turned itself off before I even finished catching up on maintaining the tires in the family fleet. I am now passing on the Hyundai's reminder to you. This is a great time to check tire air pressures. Pressure drops in cold weather. Under inflated tires wear faster. The easiest way to improve fuel economy is to keep tires properly inflated. A 5 lb. pressure drop could decrease fuel economy by 1%. That does not sound like much until I remember car companies are now installing complex start/stop systems to eke out every last percentage point improvement in fuel economy. Why not save a little money and gasoline.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the holidays!

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

To read more of Tom's articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.

I bought my 1995 Toyota 4-Runner in 1997. I had always wanted a 4-Runner since seeing the first models introduced in 1984. It has been my daily driver for the past 24 years, and I still enjoy it every day. I have driven both of my children home from the hospital in it when they were born, and now they both drive it on occasion and enjoy it as much as I do. I do all of my own vehicle maintenance and repairs on the four vehicles that I own (the newest of which is a 2005), so being a RockAuto customer for over twelve years has really paid off.

On the 4-Runner, I have replaced engine and transmission filters, brakes, steering, exhaust, wiper blades, belts, ignition, suspension, drivetrain, cooling, body and all parts related to replacing head gaskets; most of which parts have been purchased from RockAuto (and I am sure I missed a few). I do not think I could have afforded to keep my 4-Runner on the road this long had it not been for RockAuto.

Thanks!
Leonard in Pennsylvania (RockAuto customer for over twelve years)

Share Your Hard Work
Do you purchase parts from RockAuto? If so, RockAuto would like to give you the opportunity to have your car or truck possibly featured in one (or occasionally more) of our publications such as the monthly newsletter, collector magnets, RockAuto social media or other commercial use. New, old, import, domestic, daily driver, trailer queen, classic, antique, we want to see them all! For submission instructions and tips for taking pictures of your car, please visit our Photography Tips & Submission Info page

LED light bulbs are polarity dependent. It matters which terminals are connected to positive and negative.

Answer: A. True (Like other diodes, a light emitting diode (LED) needs current to flow in one direction. Some LED light bulbs may have additional circuitry to reverse the current if necessary, but especially with automotive LED bulbs, it is a good idea to test the bulb to make sure it works (switch the terminal connections if it does not light up) before reassembling the dash, reinstalling the taillight, etc.)