9 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 18 2026
The first real cold night arrives sometime in October, the thermostat calls for heat, and the furnace that sat quiet since April either fires or it doesn't. Every oil-heat homeowner knows that small moment of listening for the burner to catch.
Read More
8 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 11 2026
The mower starts on the first pull in April, then sits through a busy month, and the next time you need it the engine coughs, sputters, or refuses to...
7 min read
A truck in your fleet clatters at idle, produces white smoke during cold starts, and cranks longer than it should on cold mornings—yet the injectors...
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 28 2026
You fill the mower from the same can you use for the car, the gas has been sitting in the garage since last fall, and now the engine sputters,...
6 min read
When you're filling up at the pump, you might wonder whether you should choose regular gasoline or ethanol-free fuel. Is ethanol hurting your engine?...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 13 2026
Maybe you left your gas cap off during heavy rain. Maybe the station you fueled up at had water in one of its underground storage tanks, and some of...
9 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 23 2026
Walk into any truck stop or scroll any diesel forum and you'll hit a wall of bottles promising more power, cleaner injectors, and better mileage....
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 18 2026
You bought a bottle of fuel treatment, poured it in, drove a tank through, and… you’re not sure anything happened. Maybe your mileage even dropped a...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 11 2026
All petroleum fuels have a limited storage life. Over time, they gradually degrade because of chemical reactions taking place within the fuel itself....
8 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 9 2026
Your boat ran fine when you put it away last fall. Now it’s spring, the engine cranks but struggles to start — or it starts, runs rough, and dies.
13 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 2 2026
The power goes out at 3 a.m. The air conditioner shuts off, the house starts warming up, and you’re counting on the generator you bought for exactly...
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 18 2026
You push off from the dock on a clear Saturday morning, the cooler is loaded, the kids have their snacks, and the engine fires on the first try. Then...
9 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 11 2026
A car that lives on short commutes and stop-and-go traffic, with oil changes pushed past the recommended interval, will eventually start developing...
8 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 7 2026
An overheated engine fails fast. Coolant boils, gaskets blow, blocks crack — the damage is loud, immediate, and obvious. But the slower kinds of...
6 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 4 2026
National Car Care Month is a great reminder that a few smart maintenance habits, including protecting your fuel system, can help your vehicle run...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 30 2026
Most drivers don’t think much about their fuel system—at least not until something starts to feel off.
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 27 2026
If you’ve been paying attention to the auto industry over the past few years, it can feel like the conversation around electric vehicles has been all...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 21 2026
If you've driven cars from different eras, you've probably noticed something that doesn't get talked about all that often. Newer vehicles tend to get...
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 16 2026
It’s been at least a couple of years since we last took a close look at gas mileage and what actually affects it for the average driver. Under normal...
6 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 13 2026
If you’ve ever wondered why modern vehicles are so much more fuel efficient than they used to be, the answer isn’t just better engineering. We say...
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 9 2026
You've been putting the same grade of gas in your car for years, doing everything the manual says, and something still feels off. The engine doesn't...
3 min read
A new motorcycle’s break-in period typically covers the first 500 to 1,000 miles. During this time, the engine and drivetrain components are going...
7 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 31 2026
If you’ve noticed gas prices climbing again, you’re not alone. Over the past couple of weeks, prices at the pump have moved up quickly—and at just...
4 min read
The Wright Brothers weren’t supposed to win the race to build the first airplane.
4 min read
Through the Contact Us forms on the Bell website, we get all kinds of inquiries about fuel problems and engines from the general public. Some of them...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 27 2026
If you snoop around on the internet, sometimes you’ll see a question of a forum like this:
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 23 2026
Here are a couple of scenarios we've come across. Someone calls us at the Bell office and starts to describe a situation where they had a diesel...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 17 2025
We’re past Memorial Day, the weather's warming up, and the open water is calling. But before you fire up your boat for its first summer cruise,...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 18 2025
As we approach the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially begins June 1st, now is the critical time for businesses and organizations to...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 4 2024
Unless you live somewhere like Florida (not that there’s anything wrong with that), you’ve probably had your small engines - lawnmowers, gas-powered...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 9 2024
Memorial Day is at the end of the month and, with it comes the start of the unofficial Summer Driving Season. Of this, two things are true every...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 1 2024
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this, but in April, news broke that the EPA is planning to temporarily expand the sales of greater-than-10%...
2 min read
Are you gellin'? No, this isn't a Dr. Scholl's ad, but rather a question all diesel fuel users should be asking themselves during the cold winter...
8 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 4 2023
Our automobile landscape is about to undergo a fundamental shift that will forever transform it. We’ve seen tipping points before - points where...
2 min read
In cases where diesel engines are going to be inactive for stretches during the winter, special steps need to be taken to prepare them. Most...
6 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 2 2023
Back in January 2022, the view for most people was that after having gone through 2019, 2020, and 2021, the year 2022 had to be better. In some ways...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 31 2023
With fall and winter upon us, diesel fuel users are getting into the winter fuel mindset. The biggest issue with diesel fuel in the wintertime is the...
2 min read
As the country's climate changes, we're seeing more and more severe winter weather events. As of this month, August, across much of the nation, the...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 16 2022
The car & truck landscape looks very little like it was when we were growing up (or our parents). It used to be true that 100,000 miles were a...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 10 2022
Most motorcycles made since 1980 are pretty reliable if they’re maintained properly. To some extent, the high reliability of today’s motorcycles has...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 2 2022
As the pandemic gets further and further back in our rearview mirror (hopefully), summer road trips are making their way back into our plans. By the...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 26 2022
On any road trip, nobody expects bad things to happen. Eventually, though, there’s a good chance one will happen to you. It’s always a good idea to...
9 min read
Through the Contact Us forms on the Bell website, we get all kinds of inquiries about fuel problems and engines from the general public. Some of them...
4 min read
Through the Contact Us forms on the Bell website, we get all kinds of inquiries about fuel problems and engines from the general public. Some of them...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 2 2022
So we’re coming into the summer of 2022 and, let’s face it, lots of people are hurting right now. We’ve come out of a multi-year pandemic that caused...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 26 2022
Are you ready for a summer road trip? That sound you hear is the sound of a zillion hands being raised all across the nation. With Dr. Fauci’s...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 24 2022
Almost ten years ago, back in 2013, we wrote The Bell Performance Guide To Maintaining Your Older Vehicle. Time marches on, as they say, and we’re...
6 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 1 2021
The electrics are coming... When people hear about having millions of electric vehicles (EVs) in the future, they have questions. How much will it...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 11 2021
Back in 1992, and then again in 2006-2007, diesel fuel lubricity was the buzzword with truck owners. In diesel engines, diesel fuel has always served...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 14 2021
Bad for your engine, you ask? Probably not - but are they actually all that good? Many of them aren’t, while many of them mischaracterize the...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 22 2021
It’s a simple question, really. Does motor oil have a shelf life?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 7 2021
Self-driving cars have been the inevitable end point that the industry has been looking to ever since the technology developed to the level where the...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 7 2020
This is a question that under-girds a lot of the discussions about fuel additives. Do they really work? It's a fair question that's important to have...
4 min read
Here are 5 things you may not know about diesel fuel and the diesel fuel additives used to treat it. We like to call them "the things you never knew...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 24 2020
We're all hopeful that the coronavirus pandemic won't rear its ugly head again later this year. So we talk about the summer driving season with a...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 17 2020
Bell Performance is happy to announce a redesign of our online web store this week! We are offering all of the same solutions that help fix your fuel...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 9 2020
While we've all been sheltering at home and worrying about toilet paper, the 2020 hurricane season has been slowly creeping up on us. The season...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 13 2020
As the coronavirus pandemic spread in 2020 and the consequences hit oil markets, lost in the shuffle was the fact that oil prices dropped to lows not...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 11 2020
As the coronavirus outbreak spread in 2020 and the consequences hit oil markets, lost in the shuffle was the fact that oil prices dropped to lows not...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 17 2020
What notable things in history happened on April 26th? The Mutiny on the Bounty happened in 1789, and the album Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 13 2020
Both time and technology march on inevitably. Many of the things that we used to think were science fiction – the “stuff of the future” – well, the...
6 min read
Automotive Air Conditioning Maintenance: Things You Can Do and Things That Are Best Left to a Trained Professional As we approach the summer months...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 18 2020
Changes and breakthroughs in the gas-powered car side of things tend to get the most play in the news. But diesel engines aren’t ready to go to the...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 14 2020
Hollywood does love a good underdog story. Make it a racing story and Hollywood loves it even more. Those of us old enough to remember, first-hand,...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 19 2019
How many different kinds of engine oil additives are there? Do they really work? To answer that question, we first have to separate "finished oil"...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 10 2019
There’s an ongoing debate among gearheads regarding whether engine flush products are good or bad. And the answer to that depends on the situation...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 2 2019
Is there an oil additive that can correct a low oil pressure problem? That’s a question that’s been asked for years by various drivers. They notice...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 11 2019
Would you be surprised if you were told that the average American knows less about lawn care than their parents did? A 2016 survey by the National...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 27 2019
As Labor Day approaches, we got to thinking 'we haven’t done a summer driving blog yet this year'. So we enlisted the help of our friend Keith Jacobs...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 15 2019
When you’re asking the question ‘how do I fix bad gas in my car’, you’re talking about a different kind of situation than fixing bad stored fuel...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 17 2019
At their cores, fuel stability and fuel stabilizers are much more about science than anything else. If we want to know more about what they are and...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 10 2019
Many kinds of motorcycles, scooters, ATVs, and go-karts have something in common with lawn mowers, generators and many other smaller machines –...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 11 2019
We’re pushing now twelve years since the revolutionary widespread influx of ethanol in our nation’s gasoline supply. Or is it thirteen? In reality,...
5 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 28 2018
The great thing about the internet is that there's so much useful information out there, on almost any topic you want. And there are blogs like this...
6 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 5 2018
Before the start of each hurricane season, weather scientists from places like the National Weather Service and Colorado State University issue their...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 2 2018
Today, we’re going back to the basics in talking about the fuels we use, the gasoline and diesel that we buy at the gas station. Even the most...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 22 2018
It’s that time again - summer driving season is here. Every year we do a blog post about this time where we talk about what the experts are...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 26 2018
Ask an American to name a giant of automotive history and they will probably name Henry Ford first. And rightly so – Henry Ford wasn’t just a giant...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 15 2018
One of the more significant regulatory requirements enacted by the Federal Government in recent decades are the fuel efficiency standards required...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 8 2018
Ten years into the ethanol era for fuel in the United States, we’re finding that more and more marinas are selling ethanol gas for marine use. This...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 27 2018
True or false – Henry Ford invented the automobile around the turn of the 20th century, making it one of the many history-changing contributions the...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 20 2018
It’s a trend that has been circling the globe for the last few years. Cities placing restrictions on the use of cars. And it’s something that may...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 15 2018
The classic car market is almost the very definition of niche. It’s populated with people who have a deep and abiding interest in the vehicles of...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 1 2018
This seems like a rather strange question. Is ethanol-free gas bad for your car? Isn’t that the same gas we all used before they started putting...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 22 2018
As Bell Performance has been based in Florida since the late-1930s, we don’t see much home heating oil usage down here. But we do a substantial...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 16 2018
Throughout Bell Performance’s long history, there are a handful of individuals who have shaped the company’s future to such an extent that their...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 14 2017
"Sludge" is a phenomenon that you see with any kind of petroleum that’s left in storage for extended periods of time. As time passes and petroleum is...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 12 2017
Winter driving season is upon us, which means we know we have to drive differently. Over the years, there are certain assumptions we all have come to...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 5 2017
This blog is for the portion of the country that still uses heating oil for their homes. That's about 6 million households across the country burning...
2 min read
Bell Performance's master mechanic James Dunst gets more than a few questions from the automotive public on aspects of lubricating oil. What's the...
3 min read
The cold temperatures are here and bring with them certain hassles like frozen fuel lines. A frozen fuel line will stop an engine dead in its tracks,...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 21 2017
Last month James Dunst, Bell’s resident master mechanic, was the featured guest on The Classic Car Show podcast.
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 16 2017
As winter approaches, we typically publish various blog articles with helpful advice on getting important appliances and equipment ready for winter –...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 7 2017
Generator gas tends to be out-of-sight-out-of-mind. We don’t care about it until there’s a real possibility that we’ll have to fire the generator up,...
3 min read
Over the past decade, owners of classic cars have watched as ethanol has infiltrared the nation’s gasoline supply. Ethanol is an alcohol added to...
2 min read
Classic car owners love their vintage cars. Most owners know their engines inside and out - fuel tank, fuel line, carburetor, spark plugs, ignition....
8 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 10 2017
Oil leaks can be frustrating because they don’t come from one place on your car, and that can make them difficult to pinpoint and resolve. Engine oil...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 5 2017
This is part two of a blog post post series dedicated to classic car electrical problems and classic car batteries. Click here to view the first...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 3 2017
ote: This is Part I of a 2-part blog series covering classic car batteries and electrical problems. The use of lead acid batteries goes back over 100...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 21 2017
Owners of classic and antique cars are well aware that today’s gasoline fuels are significantly different from the fuels they used to use. The...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 14 2017
What was gas like back in the day when antique cars were in their prime?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 12 2017
Generators are one of those things where you hope you never have to use them. But when it comes time, you’re glad you have one. If you have a...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 8 2017
As of today, Friday September 8th, Hurricane Irma is bearing down on Bell Performance’s home state of Florida. Irma’s unusual size and strength have...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 1 2017
The marine fuel additive galaxy could aptly be described as a group of planets, all named “ethanol gas treatment” revolving around a boat-shaped sun....
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 18 2017
Nobody likes a noisy engine, and if you have one, you’re probably on the lookout for an easy fix for it. In truth, there are lots of potential causes...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 31 2017
Any time you have heat, pressure, and oxygen around petroleum, you’re going to get the formation of carbon deposits. That means the internal...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 18 2017
They don’t make motorcycles like they used to. And that’s a good thing. There are more cycles on the road today than ever before and the number isn’t...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 27 2017
To select the best grease for your most important lubricating jobs, you have to know what you need the grease to do. Not in a generalized sense of...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 16 2017
Expensive equipment with moving parts that have the potential to generate heat and damaging wear cannot survive with a good quality grease. Not all...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 7 2017
Just as hurricane season starts June 1st and boating season starts on Memorial Day, summer driving season kicks off around the end of May. It’s the...
.jpg?width=5589&height=3726&name=running-your-car-on-vegetable-oil%20(1).jpg){kind=icon}
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 2 2017
Whenever trends raise their heads in modern society, there’s always a group of outliers who want to take that new practice to the limit. The rise of...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 23 2017
Most people would consider a successful boating season to be one where they stayed safe and they got a lot of use out of their boat without having...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 19 2017
People who have classic cars go out of their way to baby them, to take care of them. It’s not just because they have a bunch of money invested in...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 18 2017
Some of us may remember the conventional wisdom passed down for years, that you’re not supposed to clean a diesel engine. Turns out, this isn’t...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 12 2017
At first glance, that sounds like a loaded question. Kind of like “should I eat a balanced diet” or “should I get enough exercise”? I mean, what’s...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 5 2017
Professional stored fuel users often have fuel stabilizers in their fuel PM (preventive maintenance) arsenal to make sure the fuels they aren’t going...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 27 2017
Gasoline doesn’t have as large a market for storage additives as diesel fuel because it’s not stored for as long periods of time. In the business...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 20 2017
Whether you’ve got a diesel or gas vehicle, keeping the fuel system clean is a critical step to retaining the peak performance your vehicle had when...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 5 2017
To some extent, car maintenance is like cooking. If you want to cook, one approach you can take is to grab a recipe and follow the directions as...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 31 2017
Change is coming and it could be rather revolutionary. We’re talking about gas-powered engines and the reports of a new technology that could...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 29 2017
There’s lot of power in a name, in what you call something or in how you classify something. If you associate a given name with something good or...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 7 2017
Let’s say you’re in a local auto parts store or even your local Walmart. Chances are that store has a shelf lined with bottles of gas treatment....
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 2 2017
With ethanol being an accepted part of our nation’s gasoline supply, consumer questions have largely migrated from ones centered on “how do I get...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 14 2016
The first question is, can an exhaust leak cause a rough idle? When you have a rough idle situation and it's being attributed to an exhaust leak, it...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 17 2016
People think that gasoline is gasoline. They think all gasolines are the same because they don’t know any better. Part of that comes from not knowing...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 15 2016
Automotive research has consistently shown that not having enough detergency in your gasoline leads to engine deposits that result in all kinds of...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 8 2016
It’s always best to think about important things before you need them. Before they become urgent. Fall is upon us with winter not far behind. If you...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 27 2016
Some comments today about biodiesel fuels and biodiesel problems. It’s now been ten years since production and use of biodiesel exploded in the...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 25 2016
It wasn’t until 1996 that detergents started being required in gasoline. Before that time, you had a lot more engine deposits because the gasoline...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 21 2016
We get some complicated questions in the fuel treatment industry – how do PAO detergents work? Why does diesel fuel gel in the winter? Are...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 13 2016
Have you ever considered the reasons why you choose the gas station you do?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 4 2016
We’re about ten years into the Ethanol Era in the United States. 2006-2007 saw perhaps the most substantial changes to our nation’s fuel supply in...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 29 2016
Many people still have this idea that premium gas is better all-around for their car. They swear that they get significantly better mileage and that...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 20 2016
Bell Performance has been based in Florida ever since company founder Robert Bell moved down from Norfolk, Virginia in the 1930s. There’s not a lot...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 13 2016
No petroleum fuels have an unlimited shelf life. And the shelf life of today’s gas and diesel that you buy at the gas station isn’t anywhere near...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 6 2016
An engine flush can be a useful thing for removing sludge and oil deposits that build up in an oil sump. They work within some relatively-simple...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 30 2016
If you buy a leaf blower or other small equipment from a retailer like Home Depot, you may have seen signs for the Look Before You Pump campaign....
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 19 2016
“Are diesel fuel additives worth it?” That’s a difficult question to answer unless we know some things. The answer to the question of Are They Worth...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 11 2016
Repacking and greasing wheel bearings are essential periodic maintenance for trailers, boats, and other rolling wheeled equipment. If not done...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 4 2016
A while ago, Bell’s master mechanic James Dunst wrote a blog post on diagnosing common engine noises. The focus of his advice was geared towards cars...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 2 2016
“Stale gas” is the term commonly used to describe gasoline that has degraded and lost a significant portion of its combustibility. The causes for...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 28 2016
The nature of owning a generator is that you never know when you’ll need it most. It’s a hedge against the unpredictability of life. 99% of the time,...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 21 2016
Changing your oil within the manufacturer recommendations is the single best thing you can do to maximize the working life of your car’s engine....
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 5 2016
A big difference between the fuels of today and the fuels of yesteryear is the need to protect the fuel quality of today's fuels in storage through...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 30 2016
Back in 2004-2005, we had four (or was it five) major hurricane barrel their way through the Southeast United States. It was a scene that we may...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 28 2016
The good news this year is that gas prices are likely to be lower for the fourth consecutive year. So that will save boat owners some money. Boats...
1 min read
Whether you own a Performance model or just a runabout, you want to get the most out of it, every time you take it out. You don’t need a major...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 16 2016
Google a combination of terms concerning gasoline treatment and outboard motors, and you’ll find a variety of parties chiming in. Some of them (West...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 14 2016
All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) aren’t cheap – maybe they don’t cost as much as a boat does, but they’re certainly worth taking care of. For the typical...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 16 2016
Boat engines aren’t designed to handle large volumes of water despite all the time they spend out in the marine environment. Boaters that use fuel...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 11 2016
This past winter wasn’t nearly as bad as the winter of 2014-15. But that’s all behind us now. Boating season is around the corner and summer fun on...
2 min read
The amount of non-ethanol gasoline available across the country continues to go down. This is bad news for boat owners who treat their boats with...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 4 2016
People get skittish around things they’re not familiar with. And they get especially nervous in situations where they sense there’s a chance they...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 28 2016
Memorial Day (end of May) is traditionally considered the start of boating season. Here in Florida, it starts earlier than that. It’s never too early...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 26 2016
April is Lawn & Garden Month, or National Garden Month as the National Gardening Association calls it. People are starting to break out their lawn...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 18 2016
With the summer months approaching, your car or truck AC system becomes a priority. It has to work well in the hot weather. This is especially true...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 16 2016
Washing, wax, vacuum the interior. Make the tires shine. Clean the windows. Refill the washer fluid. What kind of things do you include in your car...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 8 2016
“You may be wrong or you may be right.”
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 26 2016
It’s been a while since we’ve done an automotive list and we got to thinking – what are the worst lemons of all time?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 19 2016
Outside of driving behavior, fuel injectors are the single biggest influence of vehicle mileage and performance. Clean injectors are essential to...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 26 2016
Fuel stabilizers are big business for diesel fuel, but may not appear to be so important in gasoline. But gasoline is still petroleum and still...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 21 2016
What do a 1980s fashion icon and a Smart car have to do with each other? Turns out, more than you think.
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 16 2015
One morning, a Google Alerts notification bugged across our screen – it’s what we use to make sure we don’t miss news and happening within the...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 4 2015
Who would have thought that the biggest problem with drivers in the early 21st century would be distracted driving? There are laws against it, but...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 1 2015
It’s great to know how to fix your own car. You can save big bucks vs. going to the mechanic’s shop and you know the quality of the work being done....
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 17 2015
A not-uncommon question that mechanics are asked concerns “why does my front end shake while braking”?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 12 2015
Bell Performance is based down in Central Florida, which doesn’t get very cold in the winter. But we know it’s a different story up north, and a lot...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 13 2015
Public trust in the automotive industry has been taking some giant hits recently, although the fact that gas prices are at their lowest marks in...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 6 2015
Winter gas mileage tends to be lower than what you typically get in the summer, leaving many drivers scratching their heads. Some may theorize it’s...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 17 2015
Depending on what you mean, sure it can. But do we really know what we mean when we ask the question?
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 10 2015
Consumer Reports releases its annual new car ratings report in October. But on August 27th, Consumer Reports issued a press release to talk about how...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Aug 20 2015
Fleets and businesses aren’t the only people who need to store fuel. Many consumers regularly keep smaller volumes of fuel at home, for use in lawn...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 28 2015
Apart from farming, the primary use for red dyed diesel fuel is in home heating oil.
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jul 21 2015
Imagine if you could have a tire that never got flat. Or a tire where you could run over nails and the tire stays inflated long enough for you to...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jun 12 2015
Time for some bits of fun trivia. Ever since the introduction of the Benz Patent Motorwagon in 1886 (widely regarded as the first automobile –...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: May 27 2015
Owners of jet skis and personal watercraft (PWC) have waited patiently for this time of year. No need to wait any more. Summer is upon us and the...
4 min read
Through the Contact Us forms on the Bell web site, we get all kinds of inquiries about fuel problems and engines from the general public. Some of...
5 min read
The Common Problem: Low Engine Power & Poor Performance Checking the computer for diagnostic codes If you suspect that there’s an internal problem...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 28 2015
For decades, those of us who took Driver’s Ed were taught that the proper position for best and safe driving was to have your hands at “10 and 2” –...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 23 2015
Many of us have suffered through the worst winter in memory, with record snow storms and all-around cold and misery equally shared by all. Except...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Apr 7 2015
With all the frigid winter weather we've been having (Boston? Serious? 108 inches of snow?), it's easy to forget the spring is not that far away. The...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Mar 11 2015
Cars and trucks operating properly and running on good in-spec fuel should give you great performance with a minimum of problems (most of the time)....
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 24 2015
An article recently appeared in The Chronicle in Lovell, WY. Jim Minchow, owner of Minchow's Service talks about gas prices but his comments about...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 19 2015
Back in the day, if you bought a new car, you figured you had to "break it in" - follow certain driving patterns for the first x number of miles of...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Feb 17 2015
The iPhone may have become the phone that’s synonymous with the public’s image of a smart phone, but Google actually has a larger slice of the phone...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 27 2015
These days, drivers are used to having vehicles that seem almost like a home away from home. Powerful systems like indash navigation, wifi internet...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Jan 13 2015
As you drive by your nearest gas station, it probably brings a smile to your face to see gas prices dropping below $2.50 for the first time in five...
1 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 18 2014
One of the sadder events of the past year in the automotive world was the report that Tom Magliozzi, who formed with his brother Ray, one half of the...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 16 2014
In our previous blogs on motorcycle oil additives, we talked about a couple of the "cool" ones on the market, Teflon and ZDDP additives, and how...
4 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Dec 5 2014
Cold temperatures are here and much of the country has been buried under winter's frigid spell. Unless you live in Florida, this means you're not...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 25 2014
The market for oil additives targeted at motorcycle owners is littered with magic formulations all claiming to be the latest and greatest thing....
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Nov 18 2014
Unless you live in Florida, chances are you’re not going to be doing a lot of boating during the winter. And that goes double for personal watercraft...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 28 2014
It doesn't take much time spent in the auto parts store to come to the conclusion that, well, there's just so much junk out there. Who has time to...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 23 2014
Cars sure aren't the same as they used to be. In 2014, consumers have a wide choice of vehicles that go faster, get better gas mileage, and are safer...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 21 2014
Today, we mix it up a little bit and talk about a subject that's a little bit of a cultural icon in the US - the car salesman. On TV, they get...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 16 2014
If you google "oil additives for motorcycles", you'll find tons of links to various products by a hundred different manufacturers. They make similar...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 14 2014
The holy grail for ethanol has always been "can we make ethanol for gasoline out of stuff we can't eat?" More specifically, the big issue has been...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 9 2014
It's that time again. Homeowners up in the soon-to-be-frosty North know what's coming. Old Man Winter is showing signs of crashing fall's party - and...
2 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Oct 7 2014
A follow-up to our previous blog entry on things to look for when shopping for a used car. Buying a used car is always a better financial decision...
3 min read
Erik Bjornstad: Sep 25 2014
The band Queen asked the rhetorical question ‘who wants to live forever’? Your wallet would probably say that your car does. As noted in a previous...
