Auto Repair Tempe

Brakes are essential to the proper function of your vehicle. They’re responsible for bringing your thousand(s)-pound vehicle to a halt, making safe turns and slowing down. If your brakes are not maintained properly, you run the risk of damaging the vehicle or getting involved in an accident, which can cause serious injury to yourself and others on the road. For this reason, brake inspections and repairs are essential to the proper functioning of your vehicle and shouldn’t be neglected.   Signs It Might Be Time ++ Noises Squealing...we’re all familiar with that high pitched squeal emitted whenever we apply the brakes. The squeal comes from a sensor that lets you know your brakes are in need of servicing. In addition to any squeals you’ll want to listen for any harsh grinding noises indicating your brake pads are completely worn and the metal of your brake calipers are grinding against your rotors. If you hear grinding noises there’s no time to delay, bring y ... read more

This is great find brought to us today by the Auto Tech devision over at NBC.com Have you ever wondered how you might locate charging centers if you were/are driving an electrical vehicle? As it so happens, one of the biggest concerns of switching to an all-electric vehicle is worrying about what would happen if you ran out of juice. Our roads and major highways are dotted with gas stations of course, but what's an electric vehicle owner to do with a green car running on empty? A new app called PlugShare wants to address exactly that, calming the worries of would-be green drivers with a map chock full of charging locations. PlugShare goes beyond aggregating public electric vehicle charging stations by encouraging users to submit their own personal plugs to the database, effectively weaving together a community of electric vehicle owners. Of course, having a stranger pull up at your home to plug in isn't everyone's idea of a good time, but wh ... read more

Let's talk windshield wiper blades. Now, that may seem like a pretty mundane topic, but think about how important your vision is. We work hard to protect our eyes. If we need contacts or glasses, we take care of them too. Well, wiper blades are critical to our vision when we drive. We all really ought to think about wipers as part of an important safety system. We should think about maintaining safety, not just responding when our wiper blades fail. How many times have you been caught off guard by the first storm of the season, with a streaky windshield you can barely see out of? Or no washer fluid? Remember, your wiper blades live outside the vehicle, exposed to sun and heat in the summer and cold and ice in the winter. It's no wonder that they get dry, brittle and torn. We recommend changing wiper blades twice a year, before they're so damaged that they don't work. If you replace them with one of your spring and fall oil changes, you should always have wiper blades that ca ... read more

Hypermiling isn't a term many people are familiar with, but the action itself is actually fairly common. Basically, hypermiling describes using a set of driving principles to maximize your car's fuel economy and get the most miles out of every gallon of gas. A hypermiler, or one who follows these principles, may save a good deal of money. The downside is that, while some of these principles are actually very sound ideas, some of them can be on the dangerous side. Who can make use of hypermiling? Anyone. Any make and model of a car, from a large truck to a small Volkswagen Beetle or even a Smart car, can make use of hypermiling. If you're a safe, responsible driver, you can make use of the less dangerous methods to help save money on gas. All it takes is a few changes to your driving habits. However, make absolutely certain you understand which methods are safe and avoid the more dangerous techniques. Common Hypermiling Techniques Some basic techniques o ... read more

Todays's excellent car maintenance suggestions are brought to be the good folks over at CarFax. Today they offer some great tips on how to keep your car running well. Vehicle maintenance is an ongoing endeavor and may cause you a fair amount of headaches. With all of the things going on in our lives, thinking about our car's next oil change is the last thing we want to worry about. But to keep our cars on the road in reliable and safe driving condition…we have to take care of our cars. There are three primary factors driving a cars maintenance needs: The car’s age – the older the car is the more frequently it will need care. The type of mileage you drive – short local trips can impact wear and tear as much as high volume mileage. And the driving conditions – highway, city and off-road driving all have different effects on the frequency and type of maintenance that may be required. Your car’s maintenance manual contains all of the information you nee ... read more

There was a time when the V8 Cadillac and Lincoln were considered an everyday car of the average driver. That time is long gone, and manufacturers are turning to designers and engineers to come up with vehicles with lower body weight and more fuel efficient engines. A car's mileage rating is one of the top considerations for most people buying a new vehicle. Today some of the bestselling vehicles are the fuel-efficient Toyotas, Hondas, and Nissans that allow owners to enjoy the privacy and comfort of their cars and save money on gas. For those who have bought the larger cars in the past, it's important to get better mileage and save money. Here are some tips that will allow you to do so. Do not race; avoid sudden acceleration and braking when driving. The best way to maximize your driving is by driving in a calm, even manner that does not go above 60 mph. Every time you go above the 60 mph mark, your fuel efficiency decreases. Use the appropriate o ... read more

I want to address a very important maintenance item...timing belt replacement. It's important because letting this one slide can lead to very expensive engine damage. Your timing belt choreographs the timing of your combustion process. Your pistons travel up and down in the cylinder. Intake valves open at the right time to let in air and fuel. They close at the right time to allow the fuel to burn, and then the exhaust valves open at the right time to let out the exhaust. All of this happens thousands of times a minute, and it's your timing belt that makes sure the valves are opening and closing at precisely the right time. If the timing is off, your engine won't run, and that's the best case. The worst case is that a valve is opening at the wrong time and collides with the piston. The result is bent valves and maybe even more damage to the cylinder head. Those kind of repairs can run several thousand dollars! Now, timing belts just wear out nat ... read more

When the U.S. economy saw large declines in housing prices and a large increase in unemployment rates and gas prices, unsurprisingly the number of cars sales took a drastic hit, as well. The downturn was the worst seen in the auto industry since the times of the Great Depression. Car sales didn't recover for over six years. Not a single month during that time rose above the amount sold in December 2007. As of March of this year, however, that streak has finally been broken. March saw sales that annualized to 15.6 million, well above the predictions for the year. So, what drove the increase in sales? Experts believe that several factors, simultaneously contributing, have managed this long awaited feat. One factor may be the availability of new and well-reviewed products. Another is the pent-up demand that has come about as a result of the financial strain of the last few years. The tough economy has forced many lenders to lower interest ra ... read more

Preventative maintenance in a car can increase both your safety and the car's lifespan. If a car is neglected, odds are that repairs will be required more frequently and will cost much more than the maintenance otherwise would have. Listed below are several things you should check on at each interval. This is by no means all-inclusive, but merely a starting point. The best course of action is to take a look at the manufacturer's recommendations and follow them to a tee. They know the car and what it needs. Listening to them may save its life. Every Month Verify the check engine light is off. If the light is on, get it into the shop to catch whatever problem it is as early as possible. Check tire pressure and make sure it's within the models' guidelines. Visually check that all exterior lights are working and replace burned out bulbs. Every Three Months Change the oil. It's recommended to change the oil filter at the same time, and ... read more

Our news comes to us today courtesy or AutoNews.com. Mercedes-Benz is planning to better meet the needs of C-class customers by building the new generation of its top-selling model on four different continents. It's part of their strategy to win more customers worldwide. With C-class production sites in Germany, the United States, South Africa and China, "we can offer tailor-made models for the different markets," Ola Kaellenius, Mercedes's sales chief, said in an interview during a test drive event near Marseille, France. "The trend for further variety continues." The C class goes on sale in Europe this month and the United States in September. The broader production network will help Mercedes be more flexible to consumer demand as it seeks to gain ground on premium rivals BMW and Audi. Mercedes, which lost the top spot in global premium-car sales to ... read more