Have you ever looked in your owner’s manual to see what the recommended services are for your vehicle? Many car owners just take their car into the dealership and trust that the correct services will be performed. Or if it is time for an oil change, they just visit the nearest Quick Lube.
My Check Engine light is on, but my car seems to be running okay. Is it ok to keep driving?
Be sure that you know what your check engine light looks like and where it is located. The check engine light is located on your dashboard where the instrument lights are. Different cars use different identifiers, so be sure to check out your vehicle manual so that you know exactly what your check engine light looks like.
Sometimes, being a good auto repair technician means channeling your inner Agatha Christie and solving a mystery. This is precisely what happen to us recently when one of our customers brought in his car, complaining of smelling a strange odor.
Unless you’re are a certified automotive technician, the era of servicing and making repairs to your car on your own are over. Today’s vehicles are just too complex for DIYing.
One of the hardest things for some of our auto repair customers to understand is why their specific repair or service cost so much. An explanation of the repair may sound simple and straightforward, but the actual work required to accomplish that simple repair can be very complicated. The dilemma is, if we explain something in a way that a layperson can understand, the simple explanation can make a customer think it’s a simple job. Where possible, we like to share with a customer what’s involved in a repair, but that’s not always feasible.
With the arrival of spring, we can look forward to our first hot days and lots of pollen!
It sounds like an easy question to answer doesn’t it? In fact, when people bring their vehicle in for a headlight bulb replacement, they expect to be in and out quickly, but that’s not always the case. With cars built in the last decade, a simple task like changing a headlight or brake light bulb can be much more complicated than before. Gone are the days when an auto mechanic could wander out to a vehicle in the parking lot, lift the hood, change the headlight bulb and be back in the office in five minutes!
Solving intermittent car problems can be challenging for both the customer and the auto mechanic.
So, you’ve made an appointment to have your car serviced. What information do you want to make sure you cover with your auto service advisor? And conversely, what do you want to make sure that your auto repair shop communicates to you?
Not long ago, I walked into the reception area at our auto shop and greeted two long-time customers. After chatting for a while, we eventually got around to the reason why they were there. The wife shared with me that she had noticed a constant scraping noise coming from their car that got worse while braking. Then the husband held out his hand and displayed a tiny jagged stone about ¼ inch long.
The other day, one of our auto mechanics, Hernando, was working on a Mercedes SUV. The driver had brought it in for preventive maintenance, and when Hernando checked it out, it turns out the brakes were in terrible condition. The brake material was worn so thin; it was as flat as paper. And then, it just came off!
