Repairing Auto

Slime Tire Sealant has been around for a while now, but longevity doesn’t always mean a product worth anything. Lots of products manage to stay on the market for years based on marketing alone. With a product like Slime, performance is key. What would make you feel dumber than trusting something like Slime in a pinch only to realize you fell for some gooey green marketing gimmick? To save you the humiliation, we did some real world testing on Slime. I think you’ll be interested to see the results.

For California Auto Repair and Smog, or CARS, taking care of customers is nothing new. They have more than 15 years of top notch customer service under their belts, and owner Barbara White seems determined to make each year more servicey than the last. Being voted one of Motor Age Magazine’s Top 10 Shops is no small accolade, but it also means White has a lot to live up to. She seems ready. CARS seems to be ahead of the curve in terms of the customer service experience. Within the CARS waiting area is a fully stocked boutique. Did I mention their high level of service has a feminine bent? The waiting room smells of lavendar, and the boutique is full of potions and lotions. But if success was as simple as a bowl of smelly potpourri in the shop we’d all be doing it. CARS also offers a full concierge service for their customers, picking up their vehicles for service and returning them while customers go about their work days. They even do this free of charge for veterans and police officers! All of this may seem like a gimmick to you, but if you put it together with quality wrenching you have a desired shop, and standing out in a crowd in these economic times can never be bad!

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It’s been a sad week for proponents of Right to Repair legislation. Never did it look so good for supporters of equal access to repair data as it did when S.2517 passed the Massachusetts state Senate on July 6. All that was needed was a House vote, which most expected to be a passing vote, and Massachusetts would become the first state to enact a Right to Repair law. Sadly, it wasn’t to be. Though more than 8,000 citizens of the state voiced their support to their elected officials, it was not enough to push the House into a vote. The bill died a quiet death when the House of Representatives closed their regular session July 31. Supporters say they had more than enough votes to get it passed, but other more controversial pieces of legislation tool up too much time in debate, leaving S.2517 on the table, until next year.

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Information on diagnosing no starts using logical reliable methods. Mechanic talks about testing spark and checking fuel pressure with inexpensive tools.

Around our shop we have lots of jacks. Some are old, sturdy guys we’ve had for years, others are new-fangled deals we bought for specific purposes like the aluminum racing jack that turned out to be junk. One specialized jack we have and love is our motorcycle jack — and we don’t work on motorcycles. Check it out to see if it could make your job easier. There’s a good chance it will!

Snap-On Tools reported last week that their profits for the 2nd quarter are up 21 percent. Big deal, right? Believe me, I’m not trying to hand out investment advice. I have no idea how their stock will perform, nor do I hold any. But I do find it interesting that they seem to be selling more tools. Do-it-yourselfers rarely buy Snap-On tools because of their higher cost. If you want professional grade, you have to pay to play, and most how mechanics don’t abuse their tools enough to worry too much about it. I will say this: My biggest Snap-On rolling box has seen more than 2o years of hard use and is still tough as nails and smooth as butter. But I digress. I only mention Snap-On’s profits because the recent report seems to bolster many people’s theory that drivers are holding onto their used cars longer and paying to have repairs done rather than diving in for a new car. If you fit into this category, you can save some serious cheddar by doing some of your repairs, or at least your maintenance, all by yourself. Get to it!

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Car ac system recharging how to. Learn about recharging a car air conditioning system and tools required for long lasting auto air conditioner repairs.

Old hardware can be frustrating. No, strike that, it can be infuriating. I’ve sat down countless times to do a half hour repair only to have it drag past the two-hour mark thanks to a single stripped, rusty, worn, miserable nut holding the old part on. It can be a nightmare. There are lots of fixes available, but so many of them are simply brutal. And some of the remedies can be very time consuming on their own. Trying to grind new angles into a rounded nut can take more than a minute or two. Among the solutions is a product by Craftsman that we tested recently. It’s called “Lug Out” and is designed to get those nuts off using a fierce steely bite. If you’re wondering whether it worked for us, check out the full review and maybe you’ll discover a real time saver!

Use ear protection or hearing loss will be the result. Veteran mechanic tells you about his loss of hearing and how diy car mechanics can prevent it.

If you park in a garage — not the big ones in the city but a cozy two-car garage attached to your house — you know how important the car’s position inside can be. Pull too far forward and you can’t walk past to get in. Too far back and you might nail your trunk with the garage door! Everybody has their own tricks for finding their garage sweet spot. If you’re frustrated, there’s a new product out that can make your parking job a total breeze every time! To be fair to history, this isn’t a new invention, but it’s a well refined version that you can buy and install the same day. Check it out!