Author Archive | Michelle Long

When should I get my vehicles alignment done?  Good Question!  There are multiple reason to get you vehicle aligned.  If you are buying new tires, and your old ones had significant wear on the inside or outside, if you hit a curb good and hard, if you notice that your steering wheel is off center, or your vehicle is pulling to one side or the other, these are all great reason to have your vehicle alignment checked and redone.  If you are in any of these situations, give us a call, and we will get you in and back out running straight again in no time.

Well that 4th of July was a loud one.  If you notice your vehicle making any LOUD noises, it would be a good thing to get it checked out sooner rather than later.  Loud noises are not normal, and if not pinpointed right away can lead to costly repair.  So don’t ignore any Loud noises that your vehicle makes, let us check it out, and repair what is causing the noise.  Then you can go quietly on your way!!

Did you fail the State Emissions Test?  We are a Certified State Emissions Repair Facility.  We can diagnose the issue, do the repair or help you to get a waiver.  Give us a call today for an appointment!

I think that one of the things people take for granted on their vehicles is their suspension.  Do you remember when you first got you vehicle and it drove so smoothly?  Now a few years later, it’s a bit more bouncy, it doesn’t handle quite as well, or stop quite as quickly?  If you have more than 70,000 miles you probably need to have your suspension parts inspected.  Just think how many miles you have driven..they say that your suspension has about 20 “events” for every mile it is driven, sometimes even more depending on the roads in your area.  We love replacing struts and shocks, because it is without a doubt the one repair we do that they “feel” the minute they drive away in their vehicle.  If you have a bouncy ride, or one that just isn’t as smooth as you would like, give us a call, we will get your vehicle in and get it back to the smooth ride that it used to be.

So today’s Monday Motivation is, if it has been recommended that you replace your timing belt, and for whatever reason you haven’t done it yet, please reconsider and get it done.  If you have an interference engine, the belt breaking could possibly take out the whole engine.  That repair would be way more costly than just replacing the belt.  If you don’t know when yours is due, give us a quick call and will let you know.

Remember your vehicle’s maintenance is important and needs to be kept up on!
This includes all your flushes, oil change and tire rotation.
Putting off your oil changes can cause your engine to become hot and not run as efficiently.
Your routine tire rotation prevents uneven tire wear and will give you the most life out of your tires.
Give us a call for all your maintenance items!

If you are headed out on a road trip now that school is out and the 4th of July is just around the corner, give us a call so that we can get you in and give you vehicle a “road trip inspection”.  Nothing is worse that being out in the middle of nowhere and having a belt break, or a hose split.  We want you to have fun and enjoy your vacation, not sit on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck.  Our Technicians will thoroughly inspect your vehicle to make sure everything is road trip ready!!

We cannot stress enough how important Pre-Buyers Inspections are!!!!  Here is our story of the week.  Young lady buys a vehicle for $7,000.00.  She didn’t know us then, and she had never heard of getting an inspection done before buying a car.  Well, she has learned a painful. expensive lesson.  Her car started running rough..then died.  She had it jumped and then drove it into us.  She told us that it had never overheated, but she had noticed that there was no coolant.  We got into the shop..Blown Head gaskets, amongst other things..Bill $5856.34…for all the repair that is needed.  We feel so bad for her.  So please, please ALWAYS, ALWAYS, get an inspection done BEFORE you purchase any vehicle.

Why is my check engine light on?  This is a great question that we hear daily. There are literally thousands of different items that can cause the “check engine” or “service engine” light to come on. From a fault as simple as a loose gas cap to an issue as complex as an internal computer fault. The first step to identifying the issue is to bring the car in for a preliminary evaluation. This way we can see what the codes are and then decide what the next course of action should be.  Sometimes it’s important to have diagnostics done right away to be sure no further damage is done, other times, it will be safe to continue to drive.  It’s always a good idea to get it checked out as soon as possible, especially if your vehicle is not performing in its normal way.