It’s a busy time of year. Kids are back in school; chores need to get done around the house before the holidays sneak up on us. And traffic always seems to get worse! Not to mention the road hazards of wind, falling leaves, early darkness, and new potholes.
There’s a substantial difference in body shops out there, and in many cases it’s right in the name itself. What can make them different is the word “restoration.”
The crisp temperatures of Halloween are a general reminder that the weather is changing, and wet and stormy weather is on its way. We usually get a rush of customers right after the first cold storm wanting to “winterize,” so beat the crowd and come in now.
Out of the blue, there’s suddenly green, red, or other color fluids under my car. WHAT’ S GOING ON!! No need to panic…yet.
Depending on the manufacturer, some coolants are red, some are green, and some are yellow. Never mix colors, and always use the color your vehicle already has in the radiator. Also, many transmission fluids are red. If any of these are under your car, you have a leak, and it needs to be addressed. If it’s monstrously large, don’t drive the car, have it towed to us to avoid more damage.
If you notice that your car, truck, or SUV is wandering, or pulling to one side of the road, that’s an indication of a safety issue with your steering. It may be caused by bad tires, a steering component failure, an alignment issue, or some other problem.
Once it starts, it’s likely to get worse, and could lead to a catastrophic failure and a collision. At the first sign of this, come in and we’ll do an inspection. We’ll find your steering goblins and get your vehicle back to handling like a dream!
Your vehicle’s battery has a lot to do! It provides electrical power to start the engine. It sends power to operate all of the cabin accessories, such as the stereo, lighting, and the blower motor for the A/C and defroster. It powers the instrument panel so we can see what our vehicle is doing. And as vehicles get more complex, even more systems are added, such as navigation, engine, and transmission management, Wi-Fi, lane departure, self-driving modes and much more.
The braking system on your vehicle is just as important as the drivetrain that moves it under power. While your engine and transmission provide the “GO”, it’s your brakes that slow you down when you’re ready to “WHOA”! On all vehicles, brakes take a beating every time they are applied. They take the rotational energy of the turning wheel, and by hydraulic pressure turn that energy into heat. This conversion of energy is what allows you to slow down a little, or a lot by pressing the brake pedal.
At this time of year, there is less daylight each day. There is more rain in the forecast, and our trips for after-school and evening meetings are now ending at dusk or in the dark.
Whenever your “Check Engine” or “Check” light comes on while you’re driving, you need to pay attention to it immediately. It doesn’t necessarily mean there’s something drastically wrong with your car, but that IS a possibility. One thing is for sure…nobody likes seeing this light on their dash.
Fifty years ago, vehicles needed a “tune-up” about every 25,000 to 40,000 miles. Electrical systems were very simple back then, but they had many parts that would wear out very quickly. It was not uncommon to have to replace the distributor cap and rotor, points and condenser, all spark plugs and in some cases all of the ignition wires. Additionally, this was also a good time to replace the air filter, possibly the fuel filter, and clean and adjust the carburetor.
