Rockville Auto Repair

When it comes to ease and precision of steering, today’s vehicles are engineering marvels.  One of the keys to just how good steering is lies in the refinement of power-assisted steering which we know simply as power steering.  At the heart of the system is an electrically or belt-driven power steering pump.  It can apply hundreds of pounds of hydraulic pressure to the steering gear so you can turn your heavy vehicle with little effort. The more time and distance your vehicle travels, the more wear your power steering pump experiences. One sign your pump may be aging is that you hear a whining or groaning sound coming from your wheels when you turn. You also may feel a vibration through the steering wheel, or the wheel is harder to turn or responding more slowly than normal.  Another sign of trouble with the power steering pump is power steering fluid (reddish-brown) leaks on the ground around your vehicle. If you encounter these symptoms, have us check your v ... read more

Your vehicle’s engine is an engineering work of wonder with many complex parts working in harmony to get you down the road. One of those simple but important components is called a serpentine belt. It is driven by a pulley on the engine and transfers that power to many of your engine’s most important components.  The serpentine belt may drive the alternator, water pump, power steering pump and air conditioning compressor.   When it’s working like it should, you won’t even notice the serpentine belt.  But when it starts to fail, you may hear a squealing noise coming from under the hood as the belt starts slipping.  Heat and time take their toll on the serpentine belt, causing it to crack or even to start shredding.  When this happens, it may not drive your alternator correctly, and your battery light may come on.  If the water pump isn’t turning, your engine may overheat, causing the heat gauge to show hotter than usual. When t ... read more

When you are comfortably headed down the road, you may not realize how many of the imperfections in the driving surface are being smoothed out, so you hardly feel most of them.  You can thank your shock absorbers for a lot of that comfort, and it’s important to make sure you keep your shocks in good shape. Newer vehicles have shock absorbers in the back wheels with another shock absorbing assembly in the front which may also have a spring component as well, called struts.   Shock absorbers not only keep your vehicle traveling smoothly and comfortably, but they also contribute to its stability.  Increased stability will help you be able to handle sharp turns and sudden stops more easily.  Shocks also prolong the life of your tires because they’ll grip the road more tightly.  And a nice side benefit of that is your tires should last longer.   After months hitting a lot of bumps on uneven road surfaces, eventually your shock absorbers will start t ... read more

When you see some liquid sitting underneath your vehicle, your mind starts churning.  Is that normal? Is that something serious, or did I just spill my drink? Here’s a quick list of what those fluids look, smell and feel like, as well as what they might be. No, we don’t recommend you taste them to verify.    •    Clear and underneath your air conditioner or under the end of your tailpipe. It’s likely something as simple as condensed water.  This probably doesn’t need immediate attention, but you should keep checking periodically.
   •    Oily, brown, golden or black.  That could be the sign of engine oil leaking.  Oil may also smell if it has been leaking on metal and burning.  This is one you should have checked out fairly quickly.
   •    Green, blue, red, yellow, purple or orange and watery under the engine.  Smells sweet.  May be coolant (antif

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We’ve all noticed them at one time or another on the street: a car or truck that drives by and the deep roar from their exhaust system sounds like a drag racer on the line.  But what happens when that rumble is coming from under YOUR vehicle? Well, it could be a sign your muffler needs attention. You may notice other signs if your muffler needs to be replaced.  Your fuel economy may have plummeted, the smell of exhaust is blowing into your cabin, or your engine isn’t running in its usually smooth manner.  Or you may notice your vehicle’s temperature gauge is showing it’s running hotter than usual. Mufflers sit under your vehicle, so they are exposed to all sorts of nasty things every day, and every season.  It may be dirt or salt from the road that gets kicked up on it, or you may rough it up with the potholes and speed bumps on the road.  Also, moisture from rain and snow combined with chemicals and brine can literally dissolve your muf ... read more

Before You Buy a Used Vehicle (Car Inspection before Buying a Used Vehicle) Perhaps this sounds familiar. Your vehicle seems like it’s been around forever, and you’ve decided it’s time to move on.  But when you check the price of new vehicles, the sky-high price tags have you considering a nice, pre-owned one.   So, you start looking through the ads and find a few prospects.  A couple look great, and the owners say they’re in like-new shape.  But most of us aren’t trained mechanics, nor do we have the equipment to run the tests to determine what’s right and what’s wrong with a used truck, car, SUV or van. 
 
The answer may be to consider having a trained professional perform an independent inspection on the vehicle you have your eye on. Some dealers may conduct their own inspection, but you are best served by having someone not associated with the seller thoroughly check that vehicle you have your eye on. A t

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You may have never thought about it, but when you turn a corner, the wheels on one side of your vehicle turn at a different speed than the other side.  What is this magic? The answer is something called the differential.   A differential is a gear box placed between the drive wheels and needs lubrication to work.  Over time, that fluid can become contaminated, reducing its effectiveness. You likely won’t be able to detect any signs that it’s happening, though it may get a little noisier over time.  If you continue to drive with contaminated and degraded differential fluid, the gears may wear prematurely. That can also contribute to excess wear on the drive-wheel tires.    Two-wheel drive vehicles have one differential while all-wheel and 4-wheel drive vehicles will have two or three.   Your vehicle’s manufacturer has guidelines on how often you should have the differential fluid changed, and we recommend you follow those.   Chan ... read more

Heat is one thing that can damage a vehicle, especially if a problem isn’t taken care of soon.  Be on the lookout for signs that it’s getting too hot in some parts of your vehicle, starting with the most obvious one: the heat gauge/warning light on your instrument panel. When you see that heat gauge heading into the H zone or the warning light comes on, it’s often because your engine’s coolant is contaminated or running low.  It’s important to let a pro look at it soon before serious damage is done, The radiator is another trouble spot that can cause overheating.  It has a fan that needs to run properly, and it needs to be free of debris and dirt. Another radiator trouble spot is the core.  When it gets clogged and coolant isn’t circulating as it should, an overheated engine can be the result. Have your cooling system checked regularly, including its thermostat. Your water pump is another part of the cooling system that can wear o ... read more

When your vehicle’s battery is dead, it leaves you with that horrible, helpless feeling.  A dead battery means it won’t hold a charge, and there are several reasons it won’t. One is age.  Batteries have chemical and electrical systems in them that create power, and as time goes by, they won’t work well anymore.  They may have been degraded by exposure to extreme temperatures, both hot and cold. Batteries have a code on them that can tell you when they were manufactured. Another reason your battery won’t hold a charge is corrosion on the terminals, the metal posts where your battery cables are connected.  A chemical reaction between the battery’s acid and air creates a salty moisture that can corrode those terminals.   If your vehicle’s alternator is not working properly, it won’t charge your battery as it is designed to, and the battery may lose its charge more quickly than it should. Another possibility is there ... read more

Regardless of whatever current gas prices may be, if you could use less gas, wouldn’t you? Well, here are 10 things that are robbing you of better fuel economy that you can change for the better:    •    Not enough air in your tires.  Underinflated tires have a smaller rolling diameter and more resistance to rolling.  Keep them inflated properly, plus ask us about more fuel-efficient tires.    •    Faulty oxygen sensor.  A faulty or dirty oxygen sensor can cause your engine to burn too rich a mixture of air and fuel.  That can also trigger a Check Engine light.  Have us check yours.    •    Oil age and type.  Contaminated or improper viscosities of engine oil can create more resistance in your engine.  Have regular oil changes and consider newer high-mileage oils.    •    Bad wheel alignment.  When your wheels aren’t lined up straight ... read more