Why Tune Ups Are Important?

Why Tune Ups Are Important

By Ron Haugen

No matter how old - or even how new - your vehicle is, getting regular tune ups is very important. You might not think so, because if there isn't anything wrong, why fix it. But that couldn't be farther from the truth. A regular tune up might catch a problem before it becomes a problem and leaves you stranded on the side of the road. Taking your vehicle in for a scheduled tune up is also a lot more convenient than having to work around a breakdown, so why wait?

What Tune Ups Can Spot

How often do you actually open up your hood and check the components that are under it? Be honest, probably never. So you don't have the ability to spot when a belt has started to crack or looks aged. You don't know what pieces are running together more than they should be. You don't notice the fluid leaking from an engine component. Or do you?

Taking your car in to a specialist who is trained to look for any type of mishap will catch those little things you don't have time for. While they are under the hood changing the oil, they can also do a safety inspection. This inspection will look at all of the major elements under the hood and on the car. They may also check the life left on the brake pads, the tread left on the tires and how much fluid is where it is supposed to be. When all of these checks are made ahead of time, they can be corrected before they become a major problem.

A tune up might take an hour or so of your time and cost a few dollars. But just imagine how much more time and dollars could be involved if you have to wait on the side of the road, call a tow truck and then rent a car to get to work while yours gets fixed. Suddenly, a little tune up doesn't seem like it is such a put out, does it?
If you suspect something is wrong with the car, you can mention it to the mechanic when you take it in. That way they can pay extra attention to that detail when they are looking around. Spending your time wisely now will only help you to have more time in the future - NOT spent waiting around for your car to be repaired.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsideautopros.com

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Who Needs Engine Tuning?

Who Needs Engine Tuning

By Ron Haugen

You have heard of having a tune up done on your car, but what is tuning? Is that just a different term for a tune up on the car? Not really. Tuning is a form of tune up, but it is not part of the regular maintenance program needed for your car. Tune ups happen at any car dealership or auto repair place when there are small problems on the car. They can also be for checks and prevention maintenance on items of the car. Tuning involves the engine specifically.

When you are trying to grasp what tuning is, think of race car drivers. Engine tuning is when you tweek the engine you have by adjusting air intakes, fixing the idle speed and then working on the different components of the engine. What tuning sets out to do is make an engine run more efficiently, faster and to give a better overall performance.

Engine tuning does not really need to be done on regular cars. They have the engine worked on, the fluids checked and changed when needed and they run fine. Engine tuning is for people who know a little bit more about engines and want their own car to perform better. These cars might race in amateur races on the speedway nearby or they might be pulling heavy loads on a farm. All professional race car drivers spend hours a day on engine tuning, so you can see who it is most important to.

If you have an older car, you can consider engine tuning for it. There might be locations within the engine that could be updated with a different part or something new that makes it more efficient. Unless you know how to fix engines yourself, don't attempt to get under the hood and make the adjustments yourself. Hire a mechanic or an ASE technician who knows about engine modification and engine tuning specifically.

For people who take their car in for routine maintenance and the mechanic comes back and suggests engine tuning for it, you might want a second opinion before you proceed. What do you use this car or truck for? Obviously, if you haul a lot of things in your vehicle, then may want to get it checked out more often. If it is not for racing or a lot of highway driving, then you probably don't need it. Only have your engine tuned if you need to get a better performance out of it and know it is possible with a few new parts.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsideautopros.com

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Auto Repair Des Moines | DMARC Emergency Food Pantry

What Are Electrical Diagnostics for Your Car

What Are Electrical Diagnostics for Your Car

By Ron Haugen

Cars are very high tech today. There is no doubt that a computer runs a lot of sensors on the car, from the oil pressure to the tire pressure to how close an object is to a car. Even if you don't have a new car, there are electrical components to your car that need a diagnosis on occasion. What are some of those electronics?

The windshield wipers on an older car are electronic. They have intermittent control, in certain vehicles there is a rear wiper. All of the wipers have a switch that controls their speed. What happens if the speed goes haywire and doesn't respond to where you turn it? You have some type of short in the circuit.

Other problems that can be electrical stem from the battery. Sure, you need gas to run your car, but if the battery won't turn over the engine to start it, you won't ever need that gas. A technician can look at your car and figure out why the circuits on your battery aren't connected right or tight and get the problem fixed. Coming out from class or work in the dark and having a car that won't start is no fun.

No matter what type of problem you are having with the car because of an electrical problem, there are a few ways to diagnose it. When a light comes on your dashboard to check the engine and you don't hear anything wrong, you might be stumped. You can take the car in to an auto parts store or even to the dealership and they have a device you can connect the car up to.

The auto parts store will allow you to do it yourself, since they aren't authorized to make a diagnosis on your car. The dealership will perform this, since they can fix your car. But what the contraption is is a box with a few wires. The wires connect to wires underneath the steering column inside of your vehicle. Once the part is connected, it will read the car's computer and be able to tell exactly what code caused the light to come on in the car. The code will be a sensor that is off, a belt going bad or some other circuit that is mis-firing within the engine or other place on your car. Once you know the code, you can have the item repaired and be back on your way.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsidefordmercurydesmoines.com

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What You Need to Know About Brake Repair

What You Need to Know About Brake Repair

By Ron Haugen

Did you just roll up to a stop sign, apply the brakes and hear a funny metallic sound you don't remember hearing before? Or maybe you hear a grinding sound, but have ignored it for a few weeks now? Hopefully the latter is not the case, because it could be a serious problem with your brakes. The longer you go with a funny noise from the brakes region, the potential for a more expensive fix exists. The brakes might only new pads, but the longer the problem goes, they might need new rotors, calipers or something else.

Have the Brakes Checked Routinely

The brakes are something that can be checked often, when you have a routine maintenance check done or if you are having the tires rotated. Having the brake pads checked when the tires are off the vehicle is more accurate than when they are on the tires. The brake pads are measured to see how much is left and then you are given a percentage of how much brake pad is left.

Once the brake pads are getting down towards the 25% range, you should consider having them replaced. Once the pads get worn down below 50%, they can wear even faster. What might be 25% one week can be down to 15% in just a few short weeks. It is better to have the brakes replaced sooner rather than later, since you can then be assured you aren't damaging other parts of the brakes.

To repair the brakes, the car is simply put up on a lift, the tires pulled off and then the brakes looked at. Depending on how many of the parts need to be replaced will determine how long the process will take. When just the brake pads need repair, then it will only take an hour or so. When you need the brake pads, new rotors and even calipers installed, it might take a half of a day to complete the job.

Brake repair can be costly, but it is not something you can go without on the car. When the brakes don't work properly, the car won't stop properly. A car that cannot stop when predicted will get in accidents or be scary to take out on the road. As soon as you suspect a brake problem, have it checked out by an ASE technician so you can get the problem fixed if it exists.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsidefordmercurydesmoines.com

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What Is Undercoating?

What Is Undercoating?

By Ron Haugen

How many times have you washed your car in the driveway, taking extra car with cleaning the wheels and making sure every piece of dirt was cleaned off the sides? After you have washed your car each time, have you then also spent as much time cleaning and caring for the bottom of your car, where all of the really important pieces lay? Nope? Why not?

Under your car is where it is important to clean. There are tie rods, brake parts, cables, line and all types of bolts and screws that get dirty, covered in oil, tar or whatever else is on the road. Shouldn't those items be kept clean over other, surface parts of your car? Yes. And that is why undercoating was created.

Undercoating is available in a few different ways for your vehicle. When you buy the car, you can elect to have a special application put on the car. This is especially useful in northern regions, or if you drive in places that have snow, salt on the roads, dirt or heavy traffic that throws up oil and dirt. The undercoating is a layer that is spread over the bottom of your vehicle and will keep it cleaner than if you opted to not have it sprayed on. The undercoating will protect the undercarriage of the car from soaking up all of the bad materials from the outdoors that could make it deteriorate faster.

Another way to get undercoating is when you go to an automatic car wash. As an option with your wash, you can get the car washed and then have an undercoating spray put on at the very end. This spray job won't be as thick as if it were applied at the dealership, but something is always better than nothing.

One other benefit of having undercoating on your car is that is can create a seal over tiny holes in the car. These holes sealed up will make your ride quieter as you go down the road. Everybody likes to have a quieter ride, right?

Undercoating can be an expense you really didn't plan on, but it is also one that can prolong the life of your car, which might save you money in the long run. Undercoating doesn't take very long at all, if you opt to wait while it is done. The short wait and the small expense now is worth having a car last longer in the future.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsidetoyotadesmoines.com

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Why Are Diesel Repairs Different Than Other Engine Repairs

Why Are Diesel Repairs Different Than Other Engine Repairs

By Ron Haugen

There was a time a few years ago when everyone wanted to jump on the bandwagon for diesel engine cars. Diesel was cheap, the cars ran just as good and people liked them. Until the manufacturers of diesel realized they could make some extra money by changing the price of the fuel needed in order to run these types of engines. Down went the popularity of diesel engines in cars.

But diesel engines still exist. They often power the bigger vehicles, like school buses, semi-trucks and delivery trucks that are on the road today. Why are these vehicles still powered by diesel when it costs more to power the car? Because they are built differently and works better with heavier vehicles.

There are a lot of differences between the diesel motors and the regular engine of a car that is powered by gasoline. The biggest difference is how the car starts. A diesel engine compresses air first and then heats up, and then the fuel (diesel) ignites and powers the engine. The other engines has the fuel mixed with the air and then get compressed by the piston chambers, causing it to fire and power the car.

Technicians have argued that the they work more efficiently with big loads, therefore trucks and buses have largely remained diesel. What happens when you need to fix that type of engine? In reality, it really isn't that big of a difference. Engines are engines are engines, so they have a lot of components that are the same. However, the pistons, the fuel chambers and the air intake are what vary.

A mechanic can go to school to simply work on diesel engines alone. They can specialize in them to make themselves desirable to hire at a dealership that sells semis or they can market themselves to a dealership that sells and services both kinds of engines. A diesel mechanic might be able to fix a regular engine, but they would also be able to focus on and diagnose a problem with a diesel engine more easily than someone who is not specially trained on it is.

Having a diesel engine might not save you money on fuel expenses any more. The engine might be able to better pull a heavy load more efficiently. But no matter what, if your diesel engine needs repairs, seek out a mechanic who is specifically trained in them.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsidetoyotadesmoines.com

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