|By Chilton Staff| Beginning with the first automakers in the early 1900s, manufacturers sometimes scribed serial numbers or other identifiers on vehicles, engines, and transmissions. Half a century later in 1954, federal rules began requiring automakers to stamp a unique vehicle identification number, or VIN, on each car and truck, primarily as a way to … Read more
|By Chilton Staff| What makes a home? For many, protection from the elements and warmth is essential. Those same essentials are what can make your vehicle a cozy castle for creatures great and small. On wintry nights, a warm engine, tasty wires, and other chewable components can make a vehicle into an inviting “mobile home” … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Chilton has set the standard for auto repair know-how for over 100 years. Gale is pleased to share that ChiltonLibrary, trusted by do-it-yourselfers and the automotive trade, is migrating to a new user experience later this fall. Widely known for authoritative, money-saving car-care guidance your patrons need for most years, … Read more
| By Chilton Staff | Called the “River of Life,” the Columbia River through the Cascade Mountains is an area of spectacular beauty. Flanked by forested hills misted by waterfalls, brimming with salmon, and home to millions of creatures from microbiota to beaver and bears, the Columbia Gorge has been sacred to the Chinook peoples … Read more
| By Chilton Staff | Many people believe that a two-to-three-year-old car is a better buy than a new one. This may be true. The new car suffers the heaviest depreciation in the first few years and is usually not old enough to present a lot of costly repairs. Whatever the age of the used … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Before you get stuck in the snow, here are some items to keep in your vehicle and some tips on how to get moving again from ChiltonLibrary. First, some items to keep in your vehicle: Small or collapsible shovel Boots (if you don’t regularly wear them) Sturdy pair of gloves … Read more
| By James Ormsbee, Manager, Chilton | Like most of America, I’ve been at home. For weeks now. I only head out when I need to. So last week, I had to run a few errands. When I started my truck—a 2006 GMC Sierra—an intolerable whine developed from under the hood, which only grew louder … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Champaign County residents can access reliable automotive help online 24/7 through ChiltonLibrary, a resource available on the Champaign County Library website. Trusted by automotive enthusiasts for more than 100 years, ChiltonLibrary supports “do-it-yourselfers” of all skill levels. No other source contains more years, makes, and models. “ChiltonLibrary helps patrons save … Read more
| By Gale Staff | The Columbus Public Library offers ChiltonLibrary, providing residents with 24/7 car care knowledge including maintenance and specification tables, step by step service and repair instructions, a labor estimating tool, vacuum and wiring diagrams, close-up photographs and illustrations, and of course a print tool so you can print out exactly what you … Read more
| By Holly Hibner | Here in Michigan, we take our automobiles pretty seriously; it is very common for laypeople to perform routine maintenance and basic repairs on their own vehicles. My husband wouldn’t dream of paying for an oil change or a tire rotation! But when both got new vehicles in 2016, general maintenance wasn’t as easy … Read more