Yearly Archives: 2018

Fuel Saving Tip: Slow Down in San Diego

There’s not much San Diego drivers can do about the price of gas in CA, but we can control - up to a point - how much we use. Our driving habits can dramatically affect our fuel economy.The first thing we can do is watch the go-pedal. Hard acceleration just sucks the gas. Gently leave stop lights and plan lane changes so you don’t need to floor it. That can save you hundreds of dollars a year in improved gas mileage.Go a little slower on CA expressways. San Diego drivers who go more than 65 miles an hour (105 kilometers per hour) will see their gas mileage drop dramatically. Leave early so you don’t need to rush to be on time. And cruise control is your friend – steady speeds use less gas.Plan errands ahead. Make fewer trips by combining errands around San Diego.Hey at current San Diego gas prices, a lead-foot might as well be a gold foot. Give us a call Pacific Highway Auto Repair4306 Pacific HighwaySan Diego, CA 9211061 ... read more

Recommended San Diego Service Intervals

Everyone in San Diego, CA, knows we are advised to go to our San Diego dentist twice a year.  Oral-conscious San Diego residents have a teeth-cleaning and examination. Once a year, we get x-rays to look for problems that can't be seen with the naked eye. When our dentist is done, he/she tells us what was found – "Everything's fine, see you in six months." Or "You've got a small cavity starting, let's schedule an appointment to take care of it." By the time you leave, you have a plan for addressing any necessary issues.This system works so much better than waiting for a painful problem before going into the dentist. Small problems are fixed before they turn into big problems. And you avoid those huge bills.If San Diego folks understand the wisdom of using this system for handling dental care, why do many resist when facing the same system for our vehicle maintenance? Following the vehicle manufacturer's recommended intervals can be confusing. First ... read more

Automotive Tips from Pacific Highway Auto Repair: Timing Belt Overview

In your engine, valves over each combustion chamber open to allow fresh air in, close during the combustion event, and then other valves open to let out the exhaust. All of this happens over and over thousands of times a minute when you are driving around San Diego. The timing belt’s important job is to make sure that all of this happens as it should – at precisely the right time. If the timing is off, your engine won’t run efficiently or maybe not at all – so a good timing belt is important. If it should break, you could end up at Pacific Highway Auto Repair with expensive engine damage.Ask your friendly and professional Pacific Highway Auto Repair service advisor when your timing belt is scheduled for replacement.Give us a call.Pacific Highway Auto Repair4306 Pacific HighwaySan Diego, CA 92110619-299-7700https://www.PacificHighwayAutoRepair.com

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Timing Belt

Engine Air Filter from Pacific Highway Auto Repair

Many San Diego drivers have found themselves in the following situation: They go to get their oil changed and their friendly service advisor at Pacific Highway Auto Repair recommends a new engine air filter. They say yes, but don't know what an air filter is or what it does.If this has happened to you, rest assured that you did the right thing by getting a new one. But you should never be too embarrassed to ask your Pacific Highway Auto Repair service advisor for more information. It's your vehicle and you have a right to understand what you're paying for.Let's review: "What does an air filter do?"Air is the focus of this discussion. What is the air like outside in San Diego right now? Can you see any smog? Is it full of pollen? How about dust? Anyone in CA with hay fever can tell you that there's plenty in the air that you can't see. Well, the engine air filter's job is to clean that air before it goes into your vehicle engine, to mix with the fuel a ... read more

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Fuel System

Using Proper Fluids in Your vehicle

Today, Pacific Highway Auto Repair is writing about the proper fluids for your vehicle. It's become more complicated with changes in automotive design and manufacturing. It's not that people in San Diego are confused as much as they don't realize how much things have changed in recent years. If you have questions about the fluids in your vehicle, please don't hesitate to stop by Pacific Highway Auto Repair. You can find us on 4306 Pacific Highway in San Diego, CA 92110.Just give us a call at 619-299-7700. Let's take engine oil. Twenty or 30 years ago, there were just a handful of different weights of oil. The weight of an oil is a scientific measure of its properties, particularly its viscosity or thickness.It was common in those days to use a lighter weight oil in the winter when it's cold outside. That way the oil would be able to splash around inside the engine and protect the parts before it was fully warmed up ... read more

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Fluids

Gear Up: Transmission Service at Pacific Highway Auto Repair in San Diego

The transmission system in your vehicle allows you to change gears. Lower gears are power gears. They get your vehicle moving and get it up hills. Higher gears get the vehicle up to speed and get it rolling faster. If you have a standard transmission, then you have to do the work of shifting gears yourself. But with an automatic transmission, the vehicle shifts gears on its own. It automatically starts out in low gear and automatically shifts to high gears as it gets rolling. Again, it will automatically shift to a lower gear to climb hills or when you need a burst of speed.How does it know when to change gears? Today's automatic transmissions are computer-controlled. The computer gathers information about what the vehicle is doing and changes the gears as needed.Automatic transmissions are becoming more sophisticated all the time. More gears, or “speeds,” are being added. Almost all vehicles have at least four speeds. Five or six is common. Some are even increasing to sev ... read more

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Transmission

Automotive Tips from Pacific Highway Auto Repair: Alignment Inspection

Uneven tire wear, the car pulling to one side or a steering wheel that is off-center are signs for San Diego drivers that their wheels may be out of alignment.When doing an alignment inspection, the service advisor at Pacific Highway Auto Repair will inspect your tires for uneven wear as well as suspension and steering parts for signs of wear or damage. He?ll also compare your current alignment with the vehicle manufacturer?s settings.Your vehicle owner?s manual will have a recommendation for when to check alignment. Of course, this recommendation is based on normal driving. If you have been in a crash, hit a curb/pothole, frequently drive off-road around San Diego, or notice any symptoms of misalignment, have your Pacific Highway Auto Repair service advisor perform an important alignment check.Pacific Highway Auto Repair4306 Pacific HighwaySan Diego, CA 92110619-299-7700https://www.PacificHighwayAutoRepair.co ... read more

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Alignment

Keeping Your 'Old Faithful' Auto Running

At Pacific Highway Auto Repair we've had a lot of San Diego customers asking how they can make their vehicles last longer. These questions are actually a reflection of a trend that's been building for several years in CA. The median age of personal vehicles is now over nine years. And 33 percent of all vehicles on the road have over 75,000 miles (120,000 km) on them. It looks like it's going to keep heading in that direction for a while. With high fuel prices, a lot of CA folks are putting off buying a new car. So let's say you're one of the average in the San Diego area; you've got a nine-year-old car with 80,000 miles (130,000 km) on the odometer. What can you do to make it last another year or two?Let's start with the premise that there's no reason that a modern car can't run for 200,000 miles (320,000 km) with proper care in San Diego. The engineering and manufacturing quality is there.Of course, some parts will wear out along the way, but there's no reas ... read more

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Maintenance

The Fallacy of Cheap Tires

Do you ever shop for shoes in one of our American Fork area shoe stores?When buying a running shoe, is quality important?Does durability matter as long as the shoes look fabulous?Would you rather have one pair of long lasting shoes or two pair of lower quality shoes at the same price?Is the warranty important when buying tires?When you choose new tires in San Diego, what's the most important factor for you? Give us a call at Pacific Highway Auto Repair at 619-299-7700 for tire recommendations. You know, buying tires in San Diego is a big deal. It's a big ticket item so you know you'll be spending a lot. You're not only concerned about the price, but you want to know that it'll be a long time before you need to buy new tires again.And of course there's the safety aspect as well. The tires do a lot of work – they carry the weight of the vehicle and you and your passengers. They need to be up to the task. Y ... read more

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Tires and Wheels

Are Modern Vehicles Maintenance Free?

In our auto video today we'll be talking with Alan Peterson about myths surrounding automotive maintenance. You can lump these myths into the statement that "modern vehicles are so reliable, they are virtually maintenance free."Any good myth has some elements of truth. No offense to San Diego Bigfoot fans, but this maintenance-free myth has more evidence than most. If we look at some isolated areas of auto maintenance, we could conclude that maintenance isn't so important. But other areas would just as easily lead you to believe that maintenance is more important than ever.Here are some examples for our friends in San Diego. Some vehicles in San Diego no longer require chassis lubrication. They're made with self-lubricating materials and have sealed joints. There's literally no way to grease those joints. -Chalk one up for the myth.On the other side, some vehicles come with sophisticated variable valve timing. A lot of complicated parts are up in ... read more

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Maintenance