Category Archives: Maintenance

Following Recommended Intervals for Your vehicle

If you're reading this article in San Diego, CA, then you probably care about your vehicle and how it runs. Even though you care, there is still that moment of dread when your professional service advisor at Pacific Highway Auto Repair tells you the manufacturer recommends some additional service. Your heart beats a little faster, your blood pressure rises. You worry about spending more money than you had planned. And you worry that if you say "no," you might be harming your vehicle or risking your family's safety. At the risk of sounding like your dad, you really should have done your homework. Service recommendations are in your owner's manual. But it is not like you want to keep your vehicle auto maintenance schedule on your nightstand for bedtime reading.Vehicles are complicated machines and it takes some effort for San Diego residents to keep them running well. That is why they have maintenance schedules that explain how to keep your vehicle performing ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

The Engine Gets a Boost (Turbocharged Engine Maintenance)

If someone told you that your vehicle could have the same power but with a smaller engine, wouldn't that sound like great idea? Just think, a smaller engine would save you money at the gas station and you'd still get the same horsepower. The technology to do just that has been around for a long time. It's called a turbocharger. Race cars and other performance vehicles have been using turbochargers for years. It gives them a power boost without the need of a bigger engine, saving them fuel and pit stops. Automakers have offered turbo gasoline and diesel engines for years, but there were problems with durability. Plus drivers had to make some driving adjustments with the way turbos delivered power. Newer turbos, though, have been vastly improved, and manufacturers are including them in more models. For example, Jeep offers its 2019 Cherokee with a choice of two engines that each make about 270 horsepower. One is a 4-cylinder turbocharged engine and the other is a 6-cylinder conventional ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Keep Your San Diego Car Breathing Free: Engine Air Filter

Hey San Diego - this is something really amazing: Your vehicle uses 12,000 times as much air as fuel when you drive it. All of that air has to be filtered to keep your engine clean.That's like 100 gallons (380 liters) of air every block! The engine air filter is just another example of a very important but inexpensive part that has to do a tremendous amount of work. And when it works, everything goes well. But, when it doesn't, well, it can lead to problems. Of course, your vehicle manufacturer recommends how often to change your air filter. But like most service intervals, where and how you drive your vehicle in CA affects when your filter needs to be changed.Dusty conditions around San Diego or polluted city driving means you'll need to change your filter more often. Our trained professionals at Pacific Highway Auto Repair can check your filter for you. In fact, it's often a routine part of an oil change.When you think about it, a clogged ai ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

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

Categories:

Maintenance

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

Categories:

Maintenance

Your Vehicle Is NOT Maintenance Free, San Diego Car Owners

A generation ago, San Diego drivers seemed to be more inclined to keep their vehicle's preventive maintenance on schedule. One reason for this may be that vehicles back then were a lot less reliable than they are today. Taking your vehicle in to your San Diego shop every year or two for repairs seemed to be a good reminder to keep the oil changed.For example, almost everyone in San Diego used to take their vehicles in for regular tune-ups. Vehicles had mechanical ignition systems, which meant ignition points, spark plugs and coils had to be replaced and the timing adjusted every few years. As long as the vehicle was in for a tune-up at Pacific Highway Auto Repair, the vehicle was inspected and you took care of any needed repairs at the same time.Today's engines have electronic ignition systems and engine control computers. Spark plugs can last for up to 100,000 miles/160,000 km. Vehicle reliability has vastly improved in the last few decades, and surveys rep ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Pacific Highway Auto Repair: Why Replace Your Engine Air Filter?

Pacific Highway Auto Repair: Why Replace Your Engine Air Filter?

Just as our bodies need clean air to function properly, your vehicle engine needs clean air to operate efficiently. Let's go egghead for a minute. For every gallon of gas we burn driving on San Diego streets, 20 pounds of carbon dioxide comes out the tailpipe. Question: how can a gallon of gas that weighs a little over six pounds produce 20 pounds of carbon dioxide?The answer is that the carbon comes from the gasoline, but the oxygen comes from the air. You see, it takes about 12,000 gallons of air to burn a gallon of gas in your engine. Clearly, your vehicle needs a lot of air to keep going in San Diego. A lot of clean air is best. You've seen the pictures of people in Japan wearing face masks. They want some kind of filter to keep unwanted pollution and germs out of their lungs. Well, your vehicle also works better when its internals are clean. When your vehicle air filter is ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Does Your Car Have A Recall Item?

Recalls are pretty serious for San Diego residents and don't happen all that often. But sometimes cars have less serious problems that San Diego residents still might want to know about. For these less serious cases, the vehicle manufacturer issues what is known as a Technical Service Bulletin – or TSB. These bulletins tell San Diego service centers (including Pacific Highway Auto Repair) how to repair a problem that occurs frequently or is especially difficult.Your San Diego service center receives updated information through subscription plans, which are sometimes available in consumer versions too.Whatever your source, pay attention to San Diego vehicle recalls to keep you and your passengers safe. No matter how well they're made, vehicles are bound to have problems with their design or manufacturing. Think of all the moving parts. When the government thinks a problem is really serious, they require the vehicle manufacturer to issue recall notic ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

I Can See Clearly Now: Wiper Blade Replacement in San Diego

In San Diego it's easy to forget about your wiper blades until you actually need them! Wiper blades dry out from the heat and sunshine. Stop in anytime and we'll be happy to change them for you! About 90% of our driving decisions in the San Diego area are based solely on what we see. So having a good pair of windshield wipers is extremely important.Most San Diego drivers have experienced the frustration and fear of not being able to see clearly during a storm, or when our vehicle windshield is just dirty. In fact, it's estimated that 46,000,000 drivers across the nation are driving with wipers that can't adequately clear their windshield in a storm.It seems like our wiper blades are always at their worst when we need them the most. If that sounds like you, you've got plenty of company in the San Diego area. 78% of drivers only change their wiper blades after the blades function so poorly that they become a safety hazard.San Diego drivers need to ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance

Which Item Is Most Stolen from Vehicles in San Diego?

  Which item is most often stolen from vehicles in San Diego?Is it: Stereo Wheels Air Bag DVD System Well, if you said stereo – you used to be right. But airbags have now surpassed stereos as the biggest target for theft in CA – approximately 50,000 a year are stolen across the country. New airbags cost about $1,000, but go for $50 to $200 on the black market in CA.Stolen airbags are making their way back into cars that have been in an accident. Of course, the danger to the consumer of having a stolen airbag installed is that you can never be sure what may have previously affected them and if they will work right when you need them. Contact us at Pacific Highway Auto Repair for more information about where to get your airbags checked or replaced.Find us at 4306 Pacific Highway, San Diego, CA 92110You can reach us by phone at: 619-299-7700 There are reports that 1 in 25 airbag replacements are s ... read more

Categories:

Maintenance