Jump-starting a vehicle with a dead battery is no laughing matter. It's serious business! Here is how to do it, with a little help from the Honda of Ames service team:

1. Make sure you have access to a vehicle with a charged battery and jumper cables first.
2. Move both vehicles to a safe location.
3. Using jumper cables, attach the negative end to the negative post on the dead battery and the positive cable end to the positive post.
4. Attach the other negative cable end to either the negative post or metal frame of the charged battery and the positive…

All new cars are required by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to have a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TMPS). These systems are shown to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities caused by car accidents. If your TMPS light comes on, you should not ignore it. However, the issue it is alerting you to may not be a major one.

In some cases, the light will come on because it was cold the night before. 

Of all the things that you can do to ensure the safe operation of your car, the most important is to maintain your vehicle's steering components in top working order at all times. Unfortunately, as cars age, the components related to steering will inevitably wear out and eventually fail. Because catastrophic failure of steering parts can create extremely dangerous situations, it is imperative to stay on top of your car's steering maintenance.

One of the best ways to do that is to always heed warnings that things may need replacement. Anytime your car begins falling out of alignment…

How do you make sure that the air that you are breathing inside your vehicle is air that is safe to breathe? How do you keep your lungs from getting irritated by the air that is entering your vehicle? You have a cabin air filter in place for a reason, and you need to keep that maintained.

You should have your air filter changed out every now and then so that it can keep the air in your vehicle clean and clear. You can refer to the owner's manual of your vehicle to figure out what a good schedule…

LED bulb technology has advanced by leaps and bounds over the last several years. While previously it was almost prohibitively expensive to manufacture LED bulbs bright enough to be used as headlights, today that is no longer the case with prices coming down significantly. LED headlights offer many advantages over traditional halogen bulbs, and here at Honda of Ames, we are eager to help you determine if LED headlights are right for you and your vehicle.

Probably the biggest advantage offered by LED's are their incredible lifespan. If they are damaged, they can be rated to last upwards...

It is inevitable that drivers will come across stopped emergency vehicles with their flashers on due to some type of accident on the road, but why is it important to move over a lane? Here are some reasons why it is important to obey move over laws:

• Police Officer Safety: Since 1999 over 200 law enforcement officers have been struck by vehicles and killed while responding to accidents. (http://www.moveoveramerica.com/)
• Worker Safety: In 2005 alone 390 workers were struck and killed by automobiles while working , accounting for 7% of occupational deaths. (http://www.moveoverlaws.com/)

Winter is pretty much on its way, and that means cold, snow and ice for many people when driving this season. There are many different methods for trying to keep the slick conditions to a minimum, and with a few things on hand, you can help ensure you don't get stuck and require the expense and services of a tow truck this winter.

Having to make a tough decision is quite a task especially if it involves your car end lease. Your lease is soon ending, and you have not yet thought of ways to handle the process. Our team at Honda of Ames has outlined on the options that you have for a swift decision-making process: