A free “physical” to assess your car’s starting-performance fitness for the coming winter is being offered through the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Automotive Academy.
The “Starting and Charging System Clinic” is being offered Nov. 18-21 with appointments for the free screenings available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The 17 students enrolled in the college’s second automotive academy will check a battery’s health, the vehicle’s starting and charging capacity, belts, cables, and the alternator’s output.
“Today’s cars start so easily,” says David “Charlie” Fuller, the college’s director of career academies in advanced technology, “that it may mask the fact a battery is weak and needs replacement.”
Fuller called it a “win-win” situation for the community and the students.
“It will be great practice for them in customer relations, in performing inspections of a vehicle’s starting and battery-charging functions to form a diagnosis, and in presenting their findings to the owners and making recommendations about what should be done," Fuller said.
Fuller said the free clinic will not be performing any repairs. But it will arm vehicle owners with the information they need in seeking repairs at automotive shops or buying a new battery.
To schedule appointments, which will be limited to 100 vehicle owners on a first-come, first-served basis, either call (269) 353-1253 or visit www.kvcc.edu/training, click on “Automotive Technician Academy” and follow the posted directions.
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