Pleasanton Auto Repair

Sometimes we hear people say, "What's up with all this maintenance stuff? Modern cars just don't break down." While it is true that today's cars and trucks are extremely reliable, they are also becoming increasingly complicated and use more exotic materials than ever before. All that complexity demands higher tolerances for everything. For example, most folks don't realize how high tech automotive fluids have become. Fluids like, engine oil, transmission fluid, coolant and brake fluid. Did you know that a modern engine would not run for more than a few months using motor oil formulas from 30 years ago? Today's automotive fluids contain a much higher percentage of additives to protect your vehicle's components from premature wear and corrosion. Time and miles march on for all of our cars. Please don't think we're using scare tactics to get you to take care of your maintenance - but here are some personal stories from ... read more

Today we’re going to be talking about serpentine belts for our Pleasanton California customers. Let’s start by talking about the accessories that are driven by the serpentine belt. First is the alternator. That’s the device that makes electricity to power the vehicle and recharge the battery. Then there’s the air conditioning compressor that makes cool air for you while you're driving around Pleasanton California in the summer. The power steering and power brake pumps are driven by the serpentine belt in most vehicles. Those pumps make the pressure that assists your steering and braking. In many vehicles, the water pump is driven by the serpentine belt. The water pump is what circulates the coolant that protects your engine. In some cars around Pleasanton California, the water pump is driven by the timing belt. The radiator cooling fans on some vehicles are also driven by the serpentine belt. Some have separate electric motors. That ... read more

The government mandates a lot of equipment on cars in Pleasanton California: emission devices and control computers, safety equipment like airbags and crash worthiness requirements. All of this is great for the Pleasanton California motoring public, but it does add quite a bit to the price of a new car. Because new cars are more expensive, people in the Pleasanton area are driving their old cars longer. The average car is now over nine years old. Two thirds of vehicles on the road in Pleasanton have more than 75,000 miles. As cars age, their performance drops, they have difficulty idling for long periods and are more sensitive to weather extremes. Fortunately today's cars are up to the challenge – but they need a little help to keep on goin'. Give Precision Auto Repair a call to schedule your next maintenance. 164 A Wyoming Street Pleasanton, California 94566 (925) 462-7440 Some ow ... read more

Which item is most often stolen from vehicles in Pleasanton? 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 Pleasanton – 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 Pleasanton. 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. There are reports that 1 in 25 airbag replacements are stolen or salvaged airbags – or no airbag is installed at all. That is definitely one car part you don't want to take a chance with, so Precision Auto Repair recommends following these guidelines:Use a reputabl ... read more

If you're reading this article in Pleasanton California, then you probably care about your car and how it runs. Even though you care, there is still that moment of dread when your service technician 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 expected. And you worry that if you say "no", you might be harming your car or compromising safety. At the risk of sounding like your dad, you really should have done your homework. All of this stuff is in your owner's manual. But it is not like you want to keep your maintenance schedule on your nightstand for bedtime reading. Cars are complicated machines and it takes care to keep them running well. That is why manufacturers have maintenance schedules that explain how to keep your vehicle performing efficiently and prevent c ... read more

Myths passed around our Pleasanton California community start with a grain of evidence and are then built up with a lot of imagination and very elastic logic. And the internet is a breeding ground for automotive myths. Some bloggers recall the Honda, Acura, Toyota or Lexuss of yesteryear and declare their modern decedents to be virtually maintenance free and that anyone who says otherwise is out to rip you off. Let's examine a couple of the more popular rants and look at the truth behind them. The first one is that the chassis no longer needs lubrication for suspension, steering and the driveline. They declare that anyone who has charged you for lubrication is a charlatan. The truth on which this myth is based is that many new cars come from the factory with sealed joints and cannot be greased. However, there are still some grease points on many cars around Pleasanton. A grease fitting may have been installed in conjunction with a repair. And most ... read more

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 cars are so reliable, they are virtually maintenance free". Any good myth has some elements of truth. No offense to Pleasanton 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 Pleasanton. -Chalk one up for the myth. On the other side, some vehicles come with sophisticated variable valve timing. A lot of complicated parts up in the valve train that didn't even exist not that many years ago. These parts are very vulnerable to oil sludge. -A point to maintenance. -Myth gets a point. -Point for m ... read more

Today's Precision Auto Repair auto maintenance article focuses on your serpentine belt. Your serpentine belt is a long belt that’s driven by your engine. It winds around several accessories that power important automotive systems. Let’s go over them. First, the serpentine belt drives your Honda, Acura, Toyota or Lexus air conditioning system. It spins the compressor that makes the cool air that takes the edge off the summer heat in Pleasanton. Next, the belt powers the alternator. The alternator creates electricity that’s used by your Honda, Acura, Toyota or Lexus’s electrical systems and also charges your car battery. All Pleasanton drivers know that without the alternator, the battery will go dead in a few miles. The serpentine belt may also run the pumps for both the power steering and power brakes. And, on many Honda, Acura, Toyot ... read more

If you aren’t currently using synthetic motor oil in your Pleasanton vehicle, maybe now’s the time to consider it. Need more information? Well, synthetic motor oil is a substitute for petroleum based oil. Synthetic oil doesn’t gel or gum-up like petroleum based oil and it doesn’t vaporize as easily. It protects better in severe driving conditions like stop and go driving around Pleasanton, as well as in very hot or very cold conditions. More and more new vehicles are being delivered with full synthetic motor oil; with the recommendation to use synthetic for the life of the vehicle. Why is this? Synthetic motor oil maximizes engine power and fuel economy. To see why; we’d need a microscope, so we’ll have to settle for using our imaginations. The molecules of conventional motor oil are long hydrocarbon chains. Synthetic motor oil, on the other hand, has uniform, round molecules. Which is more slippery ... read more

At Precision Auto Repair we’ve had a lot of people 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. 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 on them. It looks like it’s going to keep heading in that direction for a while. With high fuel prices a lot of folks are putting off buying a new car. Thanks to AutoNetTV, we can provide you with a video answer to this question. So let’s say you’re one of the average people in the Pleasanton area; you’ve got a nine year old car with 80,000 miles on the odometer. What can you to do 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 with proper care. The engineering and manufacturing quality is there. Of ... read more