When it comes to Kennesaw car maintenance, there are a few things that everyone tends to do on a yearly basis. If winter is on the way, everyone will remember to put antifreeze in their car, and in the summer they will check the oil and fluids. It becomes a yearly ritual that you do to make sure that your car is healthy, but there is one thing that keeps getting overlooked. How often do you check your air conditioner? For a lot of car owners the answer is never and it can really cause problems if left too long.

A malfunctioning air conditioner can cause:

• An increase in gas consumption. If your air conditioner really has to struggle to do its job then it will need more gas to keep it going.
• Health issues. If the fans and vents are not cleaned regularly it can allow a buildup of allergens, pollen and debris to build up and be blown directly into the drivers face.

To keep your air conditioning in tip top shape, it should be fully inspected and cleaned once a year. A professional mechanic will know what needs to be checked, since there are so many parts.  For instance, when Alan Cox Automotive inspects your air conditioning they will check:

• The hoses, tubes and evaporator to make sure that water can easily move through the system.
• The Compressor.  This is the most expensive part of an air conditioning unit, and a lot can go wrong with it. The belt can start to slip. The disc that moves the belt can also become damaged and need repaired.  In the worse situations, the entire compressor could have gone bad and need replaced.
• Freon, which is the reason that the air comes out cold. If you run low on Freon, then your fans will just be blowing warm air on you.
• Fans and vents. Both of these will become dirty over time and need to be cleaned periodically. If they get too dirty it will prevent air from circulating through the car.

Make sure you are able to beat the summer heat. Visit Alan Cox Automotive, they are the best in Kennesaw car maintenance, they will make sure you get through the season with no sweat!

Hydroplaning can happen to anyone. During the spring and summer months you may find yourself caught in a heavy downpour. As long as you are careful and keep your speed to a minimum, you shouldn’t have any problems but if you are not careful you could start to Hydroplane. Hydroplaning usually occurs when you are driving too fast or erratically in rainy conditions. Although, sometimes the rainfall can be so heavy that it cannot be avoided at any speed even when driving carefully. Driving at high speeds allows water to build up in front of the tire forming a barrier between it and the surface of the road. Once your tire loses traction it is essentially skipping across the top of the water without making contact with the pavement. When this happens you will have no control of the vehicle.

If you are hydroplaning, there is not much to do except let off on the gas and wait for the car to slow down. Do not swerve or apply the brake because that can make the situation worse.

There are a few things that you can do to help prevent hydroplaning and one of the most important is to replace any worn tires. Tire tread is crucial for decreasing the likely hood of hydroplaning and some tires even have tread that helps to force water through its channels to maintain traction. If a tire is worn smooth then it skims off the surface of the water much easier than one with a deep tire tread.

The next time that you inspect your car you should look for:

• A deep tire tread.
• Proper tire inflation. An underinflated tire will allow water to be trapped more easily and increase the chances for hydroplaning at lower speeds.

Make sure you talk to your local Marietta Auto service center and replace those worn tires before it’s too late!

Your brakes are a vital safety feature on your vehicle, unfortunately they are also not permanent and do need to be checked often.  Your local Kennesaw GA car service center has some tips that might help though, in preserving your brakes and extending their lifespan.

Here are 6 great ways to improve the life of your brakes:

1. Try only using your right foot on the pedals — Often times if a driver is using both feet to drive, one is resting on the brake pedal. Practice only using your right foot when driving to eliminate excess wear.

2. Don’t carry unnecessary cargo – Only take things with you that you will need. A heavier car is not only hard on brakes, but tires and gas mileage as well.

3. Flush your brake lines – You do need to change your brake fluid periodically. Flushing these lines will ensure that your lines don’t rot and keep your ABS working smoothly.

4. Don’t be a speed demon, be smart – Don’t drive 65 miles per hour, especially when you know that you’re about to stop. Stopping from high speed rates causes excess wear on your brakes.

5. Learn to coast – In addition to number 4, learning to cost to a stop will be something that you have to work at.  However, it will extend the life of your brakes because eventually you will learn how to use your car to stop without applying them so early.

6. Splurge once, and save down the road – You can’t really complain that the cheaply bought brake pads are wearing out on your vehicle.  This is definitely a “you get what you’ve paid for situation”.  Make sure you’re buying a great quality brake pad now, and you won’t have to worry.

Your local Kennesaw GA car service center has great deals on brakes, tires, and tune-up. Make sure you treat your car nicely, and it will return the favor.

Your local Marietta car service shop reminds us to get tune-ups and take great care of our high-mileage vehicles. No one has a lot of money to burn right now, so it is important to do everything you can to keep your high mileage car running. On the plus side, it is not really hard to do as long as you follow a few simple rules:

1. Change your oil frequently! This is both the simplest and most neglected part of car maintenance. Oil gets thick, dirty, and in many cases you may lose oil while driving. Without oil you can quickly burn up an engine if you are not paying attention.
2. Get regular tune ups. Just like regular trips to the doctor, a tune-up can help you to spot problems you missed and keep everything in good working order. They will also check your fluid levels and other details that are frequently overlooked.
3. Find a trustworthy mechanic. The operative word here is trustworthy. Try to find an ASE certified mechanic that explains things to you and answers questions. Most mechanics are good people but you have to watch out for a few that give the rest a bad name.
4. Keep your tires in good shape. It will prevent you from having a flat while you’re out on the road and it will increase your gas mileage as well. Make sure the pressure stays within its optimum range and occasionally have them balanced.
5. Prepare for changing seasons. You may be lucky enough to live in a place with a warm sunny climate year round but most of us have to deal with winter weather. Before it really gets cold you need to make sure that your engine is ready to run in low temperatures. For instance, you will need to add antifreeze to the coolant so that it doesn’t freeze solid.

Spring auto maintenance is just as important as spring cleaning your home.  Your local Kennesaw auto center has a few things that you can do to jump start a spring auto maintenance routine and shake off the winter cold.  During the long, cold, winter taking care of your car often gets forgotten unless you need auto repairs.  Here are a few things that you can do to make sure that your car is running great and ready for the sunshine.

4 Great Spring Auto Maintenance Tips:

1. First, your car or truck probably needs a good cleaning.  During the winter it’s just not logical to get outside with the water hose and bucket and clean your car, and most of the car washes are closed.  Now is the time to get out there and clean your vehicle from top to bottom.  Make sure you clean the interior as well, get under those seats.
2. Next, you’re going to want to check your fluids.  You will want to have a certified mechanic from a great Kennesaw auto center do a full check.  You want to make sure that all of your vital fluids are good to go to keep your car running smoothly.
3. Have your battery checked out.  This is especially important with the summer and warm weather coming, as this can drain your battery much faster.  Go have a mechanic run a check on your battery, often times you can have this done at no charge.
4. Last, but not least, check all of the components of your A/C.  This is something that you’re not going to want to be without during the dead of summer.  During the winter you’re not running your A/C.  It’s best to have a trained professional, from an excellent Kennesaw auto center, take a look at this for you.  They will know what to look for to make sure that you, and you vehicle, have a great spring season.

This local Marietta auto service shop talks about the importance of keeping a good eye on your brakes and brake system.  While our cars are the machines that make sure that we get to where we need to go, we often take them for granted. We’ve talked a bit about the importance of regular maintenance on your vehicle in previous articles. Now we wanted to talk about your brakes. They are a vital mechanism of safety in your vehicle.

If you start to notice things like:

This Kennesaw auto repair shop talks about the risks of not changing worn out tires on your car as soon as possible. Cars are very much a part of our daily lives. One of the simplest ways to ensure safe driving is to periodically check your tires for wear. According to the Rubber Manufacturers Association, 2 out of 3 drivers cannot tell if their tires are worn by sight. To simplify the matter, most tire manufacturers have placed a wear band across the tread of the tire. If the tread wears down below that line then it is time to replace them.

Worn tires can cause many problems including:

• Under Inflation – If a tire is severely worn it may have trouble keeping its standard pressure thus causing under inflation. This can result in a loss of control during steering and braking. Plus it drags down your fuel economy.
• Puncture – Worn tires are thinner than they should be so sharp debris on the road have a better chance of puncturing the rubber and causing a flat. Since the tire is more fragile, the blowout is often more violent than in a standard tire.
• Heat Buildup – With less tread between the road and the bulk of the tire, heat is not dissipated as quickly. As the heat builds up it increases the possibility of the tire failing. You may think that driving over a nail is the most likely scenario for a flat tire but it often turns out to be failure due to heat buildup.
• Hydroplaning – As your tire’s tread wears down it becomes smoother. When a smooth tire comes into contact with an icy or wet surface, the lack of traction causes it to skim across the top. This results in a total loss of control for the driver.

If you need your tires checked, or you think you may have worn out tires that need replaced, you should visit your local Kennesaw auto repair shop. Let these experts get you back on the road quickly and safely.

Your local Marietta Auto Service center wants to talk about these few maintenance mistakes that you should avoid to keep your car running smoothly. It is important to keep up with car maintenance regularly. However, it’s also important to realize that some of the car service tips you’re getting maybe doing more harm than good. Have a quality trained auto service mechanic do all of your regular vehicle maintenance to ensure that you’re not making any of these mistakes.

These are small tasks that could lead to huge problems if not corrected. Make sure you get your vehicle serviced often, and on time. Alan Cox Automotive, your local Marietta auto service center, has highly trained technicians that will make sure your car runs at its best.

Your local Atlanta Toyota service shop knows that driving in the snow can make even the most experienced driver edgy, even with a ton of great tips. While obviously it is important to drive cautiously and even more so in the snow, you also want to be confident. There are also plenty of myths out there about what to do and what not to do when it comes to winterizing your vehicle.

Winter Car Maintenance Myths:

1. Myth Number 1: Your windshield wiper fluid will freeze. Just because it’s not coming out, doesn’t mean its frozen. More often than not the nozzle has been blocked with sludge. If left on the windshield, windshield wipers can also freeze to the glass. To avoid this, simply lift them off the windshield after parking your car. Running the defroster can help if your wipers are already frozen.
2. Myth Number 2: Batteries drain faster in the winter than any other season: Actually summer has the claim to fame for that one.
3. Myth Number 3: You Must Warm the Engine: This myth seems to be more based on a misunderstanding. If your car has sat through a cold night, letting it warm up after starting it first thing in the morning is a good idea. However, this does not mean you need to warm up your engine every time you start the car thereafter. If you do then changing your spark plugs should be in the near future.
4. Myth Number 4: Sandbags increase traction. This is only true in particular situations when you have a front, heavy rear wheel drive with cheap tires. If this is the case, boost your traction with a 100 lbs of sandbags.

You’re bound to get a lot of input and suggestions from experienced drivers. Just be sure that the advice they are offering is sound and not carried on through superstition, myth or misunderstanding. Also, keep in mind that regular maintenance on your car helps. Get your tires check and tune-up regularly. Give Alan Cox Automotive a call to schedule a tune-up today!