How does a crossover differ from an ordinary passenger car of the same class? It has more ground clearance and a larger body, and is also heavier. In this case, the engine and gearbox may be the same as those of the sedan (as in the case of for example Hyundai Crete and solaris).
All this increases the load on the units and significantly reduces their resources, warns the expert “Behind the Wheel”, the oldest and most authoritative automotive publication in Russia, Alexey Revin.
Even when driving on the highway, the crossover encounters a stronger oncoming vehicle. In the city and on the country road, the engine has to accelerate a heavier body. At the same time, the gearbox is also loaded more heavily.
But there is an easy way to increase the crossover resource. Firstly, do not close the air inlet with nets so as not to obstruct air access to the radiators, and secondly, clean and flush these radiators more often so that the units do not overheat.
Expert opinion
Alexey Revin, driving expert:
– If the crossover periodically goes on unpaved roads, the dirt quickly closes the cooling radiators of the engine and gearbox. This can cause overheating and fine mesh protection nets in the grille and bumper will only aggravate the situation. Therefore, crossovers need to be more frequent and qualified to wash radiators.
You should wash all radiators, not just the air conditioner, which is visible from the outside through the windows in the bumper. For example, the engine radiator is just as dirty.
In the event of overheating, oils and other working fluids quickly lose their properties, and this becomes another problem that shortens the life of the engine and gearbox. That’s why craftsmen often recommend installing cooling radiators on gearboxes if the design doesn’t provide for it – working at the right temperatures significantly extends the life of these complex units.
You can find more ways to increase the crossover resource in Alexei Revin’s original article “How to extend the life of a crossover – 7 secrets that car manufacturers are silent about.”
A picture: “Per the driving”, Alexandru Acea / Unsplash