Custom Automotive Care

If your mechanic is telling you don’t worry about a check engine light, it might be best advise to find a new mechanic. If your check engine light is on there is a problem, it may be hard to find and it may not be something that will make your car break down, but there is still a problem. If the lights on and you have another failure you will have no way of knowing. If the engine light is on it needs to be inspected

The temperature gauge in your vehicle is designed to measure the temperature of your engine’s coolant. This gauge will tell you if your engine’s coolant is cold, normal, or overheating. It is an important dial that is located on the dashboard of your vehicle. Reasons the Temperature Gauge Reads High If the temperature gauge is reading high, this can mean your vehicle is overheating. Another reason your reading might be high is you could be losing coolant. A small leak or evaporation may be the cause of losing coolant. A third reason your temperature gauge is reading high could be because the thermostat is broken. If this is the case, you may need a coolant temperature switch replacement. The last reason the temperature gauge is reading high can be because of a water pump, or water pump gasket failure. If the water pump is malfunctioning, it may need to be replaced so it is best to have the vehicle looked at by a professional. Reasons the Temperat ... read more

While the largest part of your engine is mechanical, hydraulics plays a significant role. You’ll find fluids at work in a number of different areas. Your car’s fluids include: Engine oil Transmission fluid Coolant Power steering fluid Brake fluid Washer fluid All of these fluids must be transported from one place to another in order to do their job. While some fluids run primarily within the engine or another component (oil, for instance, or transmission fluid), others don’t. Consider engine coolant – it’s stored in your radiator and overflow tank/reservoir, but must move from there to the engine and then back again. Power steering fluid is another prime example – it must be moved from the power steering fluid reservoir at the pump, into the rack and then recirculated once more. Moving fluid from one area to another requires hoses, and hoses are prone to wear and tear. They’ll eventually decay a ... read more

“My truck will start but will not stay running. It dies after just a few seconds. I replaced the fuel pump but it still does it.” In this case the fuel pump could be the problem or it could be something else entirely. The fuel pump was replaced without any formal testing or proof the pump was the cause. This was an expensive guess. As it turns out the fuel pump was not the issue. The computer lost the theft code because battery voltage was too low. All it needed was the battery charged (it had not been driven for a few weeks) and the theft system relearned. This was about a quarter of the cost of the new fuel pump that had been installed. Proper testing and diagnoses is usually more efficient than guessing and replacing unneeded parts. #fuelpump #theftlight #stalls #dies

Some people may be confused by charges for diagnostic services for a vehicle repair, even though many other services in life include diagnostic fees – things like computer service and appliance repair. Even when we go into the doctor for a medical problem, we’re paying her to diagnose our ailment and of course for the tests that go along with it. So receiving a diagnostic charge for a tricky automotive problem shouldn’t be a surprise. Automotive diagnostics can cover quite a range. If you hear a noise in your brakes, a quick visual check is usually enough to know what needs to be done. If you’re having an intermittent problem with your engine, diagnosis may be much more involved. Some think that when the check engine light comes on, the engine computer tells the technician exactly what the problem is. The reality is much different. The trouble code just tells your technician what engine parameter is out of range, not what’s causing it. Your tech ... read more