Saturday, September 28, 2013

The What,Where & When of Auto Repair | Joe & Tony's Service Inc.

Many times auto repair resembles a cross between journalism and detective work. That's a stretch, you say? Well there is a need to tell (journalism) the symptoms of the problem to the service writer so the technician can solve (detective) the issue in the form of a repair. Here is some help with the process.

What -  Whether we are tracking down a leak, a noise, or a sensation (like a shake), it has to be conveyed to the repair shop in a clear, complete and concise manner so it can make its way through the facility's food chain to resolution. Think about how you are going to express your concerns prior to your arrival.

Where -  Location, location, location the repair shop needs to know where you are seeing the leak, hearing the groan and feeling the shake. If the steering wheel is shaking it means one thing and if you think the wheels are vibrating it means something else, so be specific. If you are tracking down a fluid leak, try to describe its location in relationship to other parts of the car. A clear liquid back by the rear wheel and an oily red fluid up by the car's radiator could lead the technician to a quick discovery of leaks of brake fluid or transmission fluid respectively.

When -  Think cold, hot, long trip, or a short stop at the store! Maybe you only smell the fuel odor the day after filling up or possibly the noise is only heard when you press on the gas pedal. How long had your car sat before you experienced difficulty starting? In the case of rattles, are they heard when hitting bumps in  the road or only when first starting up and then they mysteriously go away after accelerating? How about that screeching noise, did you notice that it's only the first start in the morning? Sometimes diagnosis is all about the timing on the symptoms.

TV's most bland detective Jack Friday of Dragnet used to say "just the facts ... just the facts" and even the newest reporter knows the first rule of writing news is to cram into the first paragraph as much as you can of the 3 W's, just like auto repair.



Top- Leaking Brake Line Jeep Grand Cherokee

Copyright 2013, Joe & Tony's Service Inc.
          

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

When Tires Are Beyond Repair | Joe & Tony's Service Inc.

There are a number of conditions that make it impossible, economically senseless or unsafe to repair a tire. This news is usually met with a combination of disappointment and frustration by the car owner. Here are a number of tire scenarios that usually necessitate replacement.

Tire Age or Wear - The saying is "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear". This applies to tires as well. When a tire is over five years old and shows signs of cracking or dry rotting, it should not be repaired.
The tread may well be "like new" but the integrity of the rubber has been compromised. The same thing can be said of a tire which is at the tread wear indicators, in which case, it does not merit the expense of the repair either.

Un-repairable Puncture - There are a host of conditions that exclude a tire from repair. Some of them are: an injury over 1/4 inch; a puncture so close to a previously repaired area that the patches would overlap; an injury beyond the repairable area which excludes the shoulder and sidewall, and a tire with a damaged inner liner usually the result of running the tire flat or with too little air pressure.

Run Flat or Sealant Treated Tires - Some run flat technology tires cannot be repaired and at the very least the manufacturer should be consulted prior to attempting a repair. Some tire sealants, commonly called fix-a-flat, make it extremely difficult to repair a tire that has been so treated. At the very minimum extra expense will be encountered to clean out the inside of the tire. In many cases these tires have been run with low tire pressure and have damage in addition to the initial puncture and cannot be repaired.

While these are certainly not all the circumstances that may exclude a tire from being repaired, they can give you an insight into the hurdles encountered by tire repairmen.
Tire Puncture

Copyright 2013, Joe & Tony's Service Inc.


                 

Friday, September 20, 2013

Murphy's Law in Auto Repair | Joe & Tony's Service Inc;.

Things happen in auto repair that impact price, completion time and ultimately customer satisfaction. Getting cars repaired correctly and on time usually makes for a pressure packed environment. So what happens that turns an otherwise well planned task into the repair from hell?


  • Replacement Parts - They show up defective, boxed wrong or not at all. This is a major hurdle for all shops and a reality that they contend with on a daily basis. Sometimes they don't fit like the original which causes the estimated time of repair to become unrealistic.
  • Inaccurate Labor Guides - All shops use databases that provide estimates on how much time it should take to complete a certain repair operation. For example a timing belt on a 2003 Honda Odyssey should take 3 hours, well, sometimes these estimates are not accurate in a real time environment.
  • Unavailable Job Specific Tool - On occasion even a well equipped technician will encounter the need to acquire a tool to complete a repair. This may be the only time for months or even years that the need for this tool arises. Tracking down the tool takes time and inevitably delays the completion of the fix.
  • Unexpected Failure of Related Parts - Repair shops are not clairvoyant and can not foresee at the time of the estimate just what lies in wait for them. Let's say that your brake master cylinder has failed, many times there will be a need to bleed the hydraulic components of the brake system, in the course of bleeding it is not uncommon (especially on older vehicles) for a bleeder fitting on a caliper to break off or not be able to be opened. There goes the price estimate.
Fluid & Grease Soaked Rear Brake Assembly
So when you get the call that your car will not be done on time or for the price that was originally quoted, it may not be the result of anything sinister.

Copyright 2013 Joe & Tony's Service Inc.         
 

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Unusual Inter-Related Failures | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Recently, a Nissan Versa with a pesky TPMS or low tire light highlighted just how obscure some fixes can be. Some time ago we had one that we could not resolve, the inflation in the tires was fine but the customer would report that the light would come back on especially on trips. It would flash and then light up continuously.
When the second Versa came in we uncovered a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) which had been published since the first Versa graced our facility. The TSB listed some qualifying conditions and then outlined the driving scenario that would cause the TPMS light to come on. The driver would have to be travelling at about 65 MPH for 15 minutes or more with the blower motor on the high fan setting.
Now for the punch line! The fix is to replace the blower motor. This is why technicians have trouble sleeping at night. There is no way that anyone would look at the blower motor as the culprit not to mention how costly it would be to duplicate the driving conditions that would produce the failure.

Intermittent Problems – Two Views | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

There isn’t a more drastic letdown as when a technician is pumped up about checking out a problem on a vehicle and the complaint can’t be duplicated. Maybe it is a no start or the car will not stay running for the customer, but when the tech turns the key it works perfectly.
What is the next step? It could be to repeatedly try to make the vehicle act up or possibly hooking up what technology is available to the vehicle and monitoring its performance in real time. Sometimes these approaches don’t work either.
Back at home or work the car owner is thinking that finally that nagging car problem will be resolved and the concern over the performance of the vehicle will be in the past tense. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work that way.
So what is the answer? The customer may need to pay extra special attention to when the condition arises – engine and outside temperature, if it occurs after long or short trips and how long the vehicle is idle. The technician, on the other hand, may be saddled with the contents of his or her mental and virtual toolbox and of course their enthusiasm for the job.

Auto Repair Facilities Can Be Green Too | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Most readers would be surprised to know that the auto repair industry is actually very green. A walk through most repair shops would reveal a number of materials that don’t end up in the dumpster.
Used motor oil is used to heat the shop or is recycled for profit. Scrap metal generated by jobs like exhaust or engine mount replacements are picked up by scrappers motivated by the scrap metal market which has been attractive. Other auto parts like catalytic converters and radiators have value in their own right and are sought out by mobile recyclers.
Coolant/anti-freeze is recycled on-site for a fee charged to the shop. The processed fluid can then be installed into vehicles that come in for cooling system flushes or winterization specials. In the end a good mix of economic gain and eco-consciousness motivates repair shops to be good stewards of the environment.

Timely Timing Belt Replacement | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

While car makers may be moving away from the use of timing belts, choosing  timing chains instead, we still have a huge number of vehicles that drive the timing function with a rubber component rather than steel. So the importance of staying on top of your timing belt replacement interval and how your engine is set up is still crucial.
The first step is to determine whether your vehicle has a free wheeling or interference engine. You can look up the timing belt needed for your car and usually that information will be supplied or just ask the service location that you’re planning to use for the work. This information will determine the how damaging the failure of the belt would be to your engine. Cars with interference engines are at risk of extreme engine damage if the belt fails. This is not the case with free wheeling motors- a lot of inconvenience but usually no damage.
Next determine the recommended replacement interval for your vehicle in both miles and time. The information is in the owner’s manual. It might say 105,000 miles or 84 months. Whenever you need to replace the water pump it usually makes sense to replace the timing belt and whenever it is suspected that the belt has been exposed to any leaking automotive fluid it’s replacement should be considered as well.
Protect your investment – stay informed about your timing belt.

Frozen Engine Blocks Cause Overheating | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Unfortunately, it happens that car owners dilute their cooling systems by adding water to the coolant reservoir or directly to the radiator over the warmer months. This can happen when a hose is replaced or by mistakenly topping off the system with water instead of coolant.
When this occurs the cooling system becomes vulnerable to freezing up during a sudden dip in the outside temperature. Most systems should be protected to minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid this from happening. The strength of the anti-freeze/coolant can be checked with a hydrometer made for this purpose or a repair shop can check it.
Surprisingly, the symptom of a poorly protected cooling system that has become frozen is for the car to overheat. The reason for this is that the ice in the engine block or radiator is blocking coolant flow and as a result the engine temperature rises rapidly to a dangerous level.
The only real solution to this condition is to remove the frozen vehicle to a warmer location and very slowly warm it up. Then the vehicle can be started and very closely monitored as it approaches operating temperature and the thermostat opens.

No Heat, A Cold Weather Complaint

The causes of a no heat condition inside the passenger’s cabin are numerous and varied. There are probably three broad reasons for lack of heat – reduced air flow, reduced coolant flow and low coolant temperature.
Air Flow
Air is forced to the cabin by a fan adjacent to the heater box. It blows against a miniature radiator called a heater core and in the process picks up the heat from the core through which hot coolant flows. The amount of air is adjusted by doors that open or close in the duct work as directed from the dashboard.
Coolant flow
The cooling system gets contaminated with all kinds of sludge and precipitants that accumulate in the coolant. This then restricts coolant flow through the heater core which reduces the core’s ability to radiate heat.
Coolant temp
It is easy to see how a thermostat that is stuck open and doesn’t allow the coolant to reach operating temperature can reduce the quality of the heat supplied to the cabin. So monitoring engine temp can often be the first clue to what is ailing your car’s heating system.

Some Info About Brake Rotor Replacement | Joe & Tony’s Service

We operate in an open environment with the idea that in auto repair knowledge is power. So here is our position on the replacement of disc brake rotors when performing brake jobs.
The reason we’re stating this upfront is that  some commentators judge  a shop’s veracity based on their use of new brake rotors. We consider the real test of a successful repair to be your satisfaction, so in the interest of efficiency and quality we will “in most cases” suggest the replacement of the front rotors when we replace pads even though they might be candidates for resurfacing. Since the price of new rotors approximates the cost of having an experienced staff member resurface the rotors we elect to advise replacement rather than machining.
What this does for us and you is to result is a brake job that we can stand behind regardless of the issue including noise or feel. We do not insist on this approach for the rear brakes as their performance with regards to these considerations is not as rotor crucial.

Free Info Isn’t Always Good Info | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

There are many auto service businesses that will scan your car’s computer for free to determine the reason the check engine light is illuminated. These include AutoZone and AAMCO transmission. The reason for this offer is of course the ability to sell you some service or part that may correct the underlying problem.
A recent customer encounter illustrates the pitfalls of using this approach to diagnosis. A car owner came in after having a family member who works at AutoZone scan her Ford Taurus for Diagnostic Trouble Codes. What came up were codes relating to the O2 sensor and an engine miss. The customer asked for a labor price for the sensor as well as spark plugs and ignition wires. She had purchased the parts.
To make a long story short the underlying problem was a fractured piece of PCV hose costing $35 – no sensor, no wires, no plugs needed.
Even free is not always a bargain.

Car Repair’s First Step Is Complete Information | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Don’t be stingy with information about your car’s problems. There is a lot of detective work that goes into the correct and efficient diagnosis of an under performing car or truck. The technician and auto repair facility staff need to know all that you know about what is happening to your vehicle. When you consider that you are paying the bill for the diagnosis time, it is certainly in your best interests to share all you know about the symptoms you are experiencing.
What this means is that you need to take special note of when the problem occurs in terms of each driving episode. Is the problem  in the first start of the morning and then after the vehicle sits all day in the parking lot at work or does it happen only after restarting the car after a short trip? Do you hear that noise only once the engine is hot or only when the AC is turned on? Where do you see the leaking fluid in relationship to the vehicle – by the left front wheel or under the center of the engine compartment back by the firewall? And what color is the fluid that is leaking  and did you notice a smell or texture to it? The answers to these types of questions are what you should be telling the shop.
Oh yes! You also have a responsibility to come clean about any effort you have tried to fix the problem yourself, this could be crucial in detecting the root cause of your problem. This happened recently, when a SUV was in for an intermittent driveability issue. After extensive investigation and research it was found that the owner was repeatedly disconnecting the battery in an effort to reset the check engine light, a practice that causes the vehicle’s computer to reset to the default settings it was born with and necessitating that the ECM (computer) be relearned.
As they say, stuff happens!

Wiper Blade Removal Instructions (Early Style) | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

If you need to change your wiper blades and you have the old style blade that uses a pin that inserts into a hole in the wiper blade frame, go to our Facebook page for instructions. The entry was posted on 08-14-2012.

Keeping Track of Auto Repair Records Can Save Money

by John DeCostanza
You can save a lot more of your auto repair dollars by knowing what you have already spent compared to how you plan to spend future dollars. Good record keeping is the key to not wasting money on repairs that have either been performed previously or have failed during their warranty period.
Nearly three years ago when I wrote, The Car Repair Log a Money Saver and a Defense Against Rip-Offs, mobile apps and vehicle history storing sites were barely getting off the ground. Now there is no reason not to have everything that has been done to your car recorded in one place on the internet.
Car companies, auto parts merchandisers and oil companies offer consumers space to record what has been done to their cars. Each provider will emphasize what facilitates the sale of their products. For example, AutoZone has fields in their history entry form which allows part numbers to be added. Some car companies integrate the recommended service procedures with the consumer’s recording process. The good news is that these companies offer this service for free as an extension of customer service and as a promotion of e-commerce.
However if you don’t mind spending money you can get a lot more than the free sites offer. For $14.95 per year you can list one vehicle with Ownersite.com and track just about everything pertaining to your car including fuel and maintenance charges as well as lease, loan and tax payments. The system will notify you of recalls and technical service bulletins and send you an email when it is time to change your oil.
When you sell your car Ownersite makes available a link you can place in your ad so that prospects can check out the maintenance and repairs that you have performed on your vehicle. For $39.95 you can track four vehicles for two years.
A good choice for the average car owner may be Yourgarageonline.com. It doesn’t have a lot of features that the detailed sites might offer but that can be a good thing. Who wants to spend a lot of time entering information when all that really is important is what was done and the price of the repair? This service is offered for free by a North Carolina web development company and you may opt out of the dissemination of any of your information.
The alternative to not having vehicle repair history at your fingertips is to pay for the job a second time. It’s just too easy to keep good records and have them easily accessible. So the next time you get that two o’clock call to approve the replacement of an axle shaft on the right front of your car you might want to know if it was the same one you had done eight months ago.
Copyright John DeCostanza 2010

When Do You Need An Auto Specialist ? | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Regardless of what vehicle you drive, you probably can get through the car’s lifetime without visiting a specialist for oil changes, brake work, or the replacement of incidental items like wiper blades and light bulbs. This approach assumes that you have done your homework and have chosen a committed and informed shop for even these minor items. After all, a lot of damage can be done if an error is made with something as basic as  the wrong oil being installed in your car.
On the other hand there are some times when what ails your car needs the attention of a systems expert. Transmission and infomatics can be examples of this and then there are times when it makes a lot sense to seek out repair facilities which are most familiar with your specific vehicle. A very difficult intermittent driveability problem that has defied your trusted regular technician’s disclosure may be an instance when the dealership of your car’s maker may be the answer.

Is This Car Worth Repairing? | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

The best indicator of whether a service facility has your best interest in mind may be its willingness to advise you to get rid of a car. When is the last time you had a stock broker advise you to buy a piece of real estate or a painter to encourage you to install vinyl siding?
Sometimes though you are on your own when it comes to the decision to put a vehicle out to pasture, for help in this decision see Knowing When to Get rid of a Car. This article doesn’t list each and every indicator that a car has reached its tipping point but it is a good start.

Regular Service and Vehicle Longevity | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Oil life monitoring has been a game changer when it comes to prompting car owners to seek professional service for their vehicles. If you haven’t owned a car with this feature which uses an algorithm to monitor your driving characteristics and then predict when your oil should be changed, you are probably still operating under the old maxim of “every 3,000 miles or 3 months”.
What we are finding is that these systems suggest, on average, an oil change every 6,000 miles depending on a number of factors which we won’t get into here. This is fine,  but it means that the typical car barely gets looked at twice a year. The lack of a knowing eye scanning under your hood on a regular basis can lead to more involved repairs.
So if you are only responding to the prompts that appear on your dashboard for oil changes, it may be a good idea to keep abreast of the other recommendations that appear in owner’s manual. We always encourage customers to take charge of their vehicle maintenance with the help of that book. This ensures that they will not fall victim of the ubiquitous upsell.

Auto Maintenance On The Fly | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Some car owners have a distorted outlook on car maintenance. An owner of an Audi A4 came in looking for MobilOne synthetic motor oil, the car was in the driveway and was very low on oil. We quizzed the owner with our litany of questions in an effort to disclose her root problem: any signs of leakage, how long since the oil has been changed, is it making noise? Nothing conclusive was revealed from that exchange and the conversation drifted to the cost of the oil – $11.00/quart. Whether it was safe to drive the car to a service facility  with just two quarts of oil in the crankcase and have the oil and filter changed seem to be one concern and also an alternative. But in the end the owner decided to buy five quarts and skip the oil change???

Auto Repair Shop Red Flags | Joe & Tony’s Service Inc.

Maybe a friend recommended a shop or you just moved to the area and you decided to try a repair facility for a minor repair, so how can you use the experience to know whether you should continue to patronize the business?
Believe it or not there are some signals that are evident at the repair shop that, if you heed them, can reduce the chance that you might have a bad experience. First, if the shop asks for a deposit on work to be performed you are definitely in the wrong place. As long as your car is worth more than the projected cost of the repair, there is no reason you should have to advance funds to the repairer. It could be a sign that the operation is underfunded.
Judge the condition of the shop in a similar way that you might with any other business that wants your dollars. Is it clean and orderly? Is the staff genuinely interested in solving your problems? Do they adhere to deadlines, promises and estimates.
For a more detailed consideration of this topic see   How to Know You have Chosen the Wrong Auto Repair Shop.

Auto Leaks,Drips & Smells | Joe & Tony’s Service

Have you seen or smelled some fluid around your car and wondered if you should be concerned? Your vehicle is designed so that no fluids, with the exception of condensation from the HVAC system, should be visible either under the hood or underneath the car. So if you wonder how urgent this condition is here is some more information on automotive leaks and the inherent danger involved —-Leaking Auto Fluids Can be Dangerous Too.

When A Car Is More Than A Vehicle | Joe & Tony’s Service

Sometimes that big mass of sheet metal and plastic in the driveway means more to us than a mode of transportation. Have you ever named a vehicle or maybe attributed human traits to it? Here is a story about one memorable family – Can a Plain Jane 1969 Chevy Nova Really Be Memorable.