Tech 1 Auto’s answers to common preventative maintenance questions

Preventative maintenance help keep your vehicle from requiring extensive future repairs, preventing future costly repairs due to improper care. Your car has several components, and each has its own shelf life. Each auto part has to be maintained regularly.

What makes preventative upkeep so important?

Preventative care allows you to save money and keep you safe down the road. In all the structure of your vehicle, all it takes is one broken part to cause a big problem. Tech 1 Auto handles your automobile as if they were our own. We always think of your safety and the people with you. Whether you bring your children from home to school, bring your loved ones for a long trip, or do some errands.

What’s Included Tech 1 Auto’s Preventative Maintenance?

Tech 1 Auto’s preventative maintenance services include brake diagnosis, air and fuel filter replacement, fluid flushes, tire inspection, tire rotation and more! You can count on us to assist you to make the best decision for your vehicle based on the problem areas we see and how it may cause more significant trouble in the future. Our ASE Certified Technicians are not only skilled and knowledgeable but provide honest feedback to help you make quality choices so you can trust them. They will help you decide which service needs prioritizing and which one is less important.

Preventative Maintenance – how often performed?

There is no specific time for preventative care as a whole, but you can bring your vehicle to an auto repair shop at least once a year to have maintenance services. When it comes to the schedule of your maintenance service, your vehicle’s owner’s manual will always outline recommendations as to what particular services your vehicle need and how often they should be performed. At the least, a yearly tune-up can help keep your car running smoothly, allowing efficient fuel consumption, and save you minor or major repair needs in the future.

What about DIY Preventative Maintenance - can I do it at home?

There are a few preventative maintenances processes you can do safely at home without the help of a specialist. Checking your oil levels and cleaning the exterior of your engine with the right degreasers and brushes are some great examples of things you can do at home without risking damage to your vehicle. However, oil and air filter changes, for example, are best left to a certified mechanic.

DIY has become more popular for car owners nowadays to save money that is spent on labor. However, some disastrous results may happen if you are not a trained mechanic. Bring your vehicle to Tech 1 Auto and let our skilled technicians work for you!

Schedule an appointment online with one of our certified technicians today for quality preventative maintenance. At Tech 1 Auto, we are always happy to accommodate new and existing customers and look forward to building a meaningful relationship with you. Call us at (623) 300-2044 or visit us at Tech 1 Auto, 8768 W Thunderbird Rd, Peoria, AZ 85381.

MY CAR NEEDS A DIAGNOSTIC!

 

From time to time we will get a call into the shop from a customer asking for a Diagnostic for their car. We will always ask the caller what is going on with their car in order to understand the issue that they're concerned with. We get everything from a warning light being on to issues with how the car runs and even complaints about a strange noise their vehicle is making. Many times the caller has the impression that we have machine or tool that we can plug into the car that will tell us all of the car's problems. Unfortunately, there is no such tool.

While today's modern vehicle has many sensors, computers and miles of wire, it can be very complicated to get to the root cause of a problem. The good news is that while there is no magic box that we can plug into your car, our mechanic has the tools that can communicate with the modules on your car. The tool, known as a scan tool, can give us information as to where the problem occurs. Many times a trouble code will be stored. Many customers believe that the trouble code tells you exactly what is wrong with the vehicle, but this is not the case. Think of the trouble code as a ZIP code. If you give someone your ZIP code, they may know the area in which you live, but they don't know where your house is. Your auto mechanic will use the trouble code along with his knowledge of the system and test procedures as well as meters, gauges, and even a lab oscilloscope to determine what the root cause of the problem is.

The best thing to do when you have a problem with your car is to tell your auto service mechanic what the issue/symptom is with all the supporting information that you can. Resist the temptation in telling them what you think the cause of the problem is. Don't ask for a Diagnostic. Once the professional gets your information about the issue/symptom ,they will offer what test(s) will be needed.

Fred Hules II is the owner of Tech 1 Auto in Peoria. He is an ASE Certified Master Auto Mechanic and recipient of the 2015 & 2017 NAPA/ASE Arizona Mechanic of the year award. Listen to Fred host Automotive Know How radio show every Monday at 4 PM on 1100 KFNX.

Read More: My Car Needs a Diagnostic