Pacific Highway Auto Repair

San Diego drivers may feel intimidated when they take their vehicles to a service center. They have questions but aren't sure how to ask. They don't want to feel embarrassed about their lack of knowledge. They don't want to make the service technician feel that they don't trust him.If your service advisor at Pacific Highway Auto Repair uses a term you don't understand, just ask him to explain. Remember, they are the auto service experts. If they came to your place of work, they probably wouldn't understand the jargon, either. When you take your vehicle in to be serviced, make sure you understand the financial issues up front. Ask about payment policies, warranties and, of course, the cost of the work being done.It helps to understand basic services your vehicle needs. Know the difference between a quick check-up and a thorough inspection, which you are getting and which you are asking for. Understand that diagnosing a problem takes time, and time isn't free. If you have concerns ... read more

People near San Diego, CA, often ask Pacific Highway Auto Repair how often they should have a particular service done. It's a great thing to ask. You can look at your owner's manual or have your San Diego, CA, service advisor at Pacific Highway Auto Repair look up your vehicle in a service database. What you find is often a surprise to people – there are actually two service schedules.One is the regular schedule and the other is the severe service schedule. Service intervals are shorter on the severe service schedule. When asked, most folks in San Diego will say that their driving is normal and that the 'regular' schedule probably applies to them. 'Severe service' sounds pretty extreme – 'I don't drive like that.'Well, here is what the manufacturers say constitutes severe driving conditions; you can draw your own conclusions. Most of your trips are less than four miles (six and a half kilometers). Most of your trips are less than ten miles (16 km) and outs ... read more

Pop quiz: What is a cabin air filter? A. A filter for your San Diego house?B. A fresh, piney scent?C. A filter for the passenger compartment of your car? Clever you, it's C.A cabin air filter cleans the outside air before it comes into the passenger compartment of your vehicle. It filters out common CA air particles like dust, pollen, spores, bacteria, pollutants, exhaust gas, odors and even sparrows.These high tech filters can block particles larger than 3 microns. By contrast, a grain of sand is about 200 microns.Not all San Diego vehicles have cabin air filters. They are fairly new on the scene in CA. Last check, about 40 percent of new vehicles sold in San Diego come with cabin air filters, but the number is growing every year. Cabin air filters make driving a lot more pleasant for people in San Diego. Your vehicle can be a haven during our CA allergy season with very little dust and pollen getting into the cabin. Of course, like all filters, the cabin air filter eventua ... read more

Why are wheel bearings for San Diego vehicles important? It's simple: your wheel bearings keep the wheels on your vehicle. In today's Pacific Highway Auto Repair post, we'll discuss more about wheel bearings and how you can make sure they can do their very job while you drive around San Diego, CA. Wheel bearings are pretty simple parts. They're made of high quality steel and are engineered to last 100,000 miles (160,000)  or more if properly cared for. The bearings do two jobs: First, they allow the wheel to freely rotate with as little friction as possible. Second, they support the weight of the vehicle. For example, if your car weighs 3,600 pounds (1600 kilogram), each wheel has to support approximately 900 pounds (400 kilograms). That's a lot of heavy lifting over those long distances.Even though wheel bearings are pretty straightforward, they need to be in near perfect condition to do their job for San Diego vehicles. The bearings are packed with heavy grease ... read more

Every car in San Diego, CA, is at risk for theft. So it's up to us to make our cars a less appealing target and more of a challenge – hopefully sending potential thieves to look elsewhere.The National Insurance Crime Bureau recommends a layered approach to protecting vehicles: Common sense Visible and audible devices Immobilizing devices Tracking devices Let's review each of these. One is common sense; you would be surprised how many vehicles are stolen in CA where the keys were left in the ignition with the doors unlocked. Always take your keys and lock the doors. In fact, in some places it's against the law to leave a vehicle unattended with the keys in the ignition.And don't leave spare keys in the car or hide them outside – because a thief will find them. San Diego drivers would be wise to park in well-lit areas that have a lot of foot traffic. If possible, park near the end of a row ... read more