You’re driving down the highway, air conditioning blasting in your face, and listening to your favorite radio station when suddenly you notice traffic has slowed down completely. You step on the brake pedal, and you feel a vibration coming from the brake pedal or worse, through the steering wheel. You hold on tight to the steering wheel as you come to a stop. You’ve just experienced brake shudder, also known as brake judder. Brake shudder occurs due to difficulties within the disc brake system and if not addressed soon, could be dangerous. How Brake Shudder Occurs Brake shudder is a vibration ..read more

Out of all of the dashboard lights that your car could potentially flash, the windshield washer fluid warning light is one of the least threatening lights that a driver could have to deal with.  The windshield washer fluid light is typically a yellow symbol representing the windshield and dotted lines which represent the actual car washer fluid. What Is Windshield Washer Fluid? Anyone who has ever been in a car knows what windshield washer fluid is, but most drivers & passengers alike do not truly understand what it is and the technical specifics of how it functions.  Like many c ..read more

How emergency brakes work The emergency brake, or parking brake as it’s sometimes called, works independently from the brakes that you tap to stop your car. It’s that way on purpose so you have access to an alternative braking system should your primary brakes fail. Your primary brakes work through a high-tech hydraulic system and are meant to slow your car to a stop. The emergency brake, on the other hand, is designed to hold your car in place. However, if your primary brakes fail, you can use the emergency brake to slow down and stop your car. When to use emergency brakes You should use your ..read more

While it can be easy to simply bring your car into the mechanic’s shop when there’s a problem, it’s much more convenient and cost-effective to do some simple repairs yourself. If you’ve noticed that your vehicle has a stripped oil drain plug that needs to be removed, you can do it yourself. Locating an Oil Drain Plug  It’s usually not too hard to locate a car’s oil drain plug. This is because it’s usually located at the lowest possible point on the oil pan, which is itself attached to the bottom of the vehicle’s engine. (Side note: you should be checking your car’s oil levels regularly ..read more

Car batteries eventually stop working and it’s important to diagnose the problem correctly. Learn how to test your car battery simply and safely. Car batteries are essential for vehicle operation, but like everything else, eventually they fail. You’ll know this has happened when your vehicle won’t start or the motor turns over weakly. When your battery runs down and can’t start your vehicle, it’s important to determine if it’s drained and needs to be recharged, or it’s too weak to hold a charge. Sometimes low or dead batteries simply need charging or boosting. When they lose their ability to h ..read more

Any airplane pilot will tell you; the most crucial part of flying is landing safely. Likewise, the most important skill you can have as a driver is the ability to stop when you need to. It hardly matters how cautious or capable you are behind the wheel when your brakes give out.  That’s why brake repair is so important. Engine maintenance will keep your car moving; brakes maintenance can prevent an accident, and not just in the most obvious ways.   The dangers of bad brakes We’ve all seen it in the movies — somebody’s brake lines are cut, and the car careens uncontrollably down a ste ..read more

Do you ever feel like you have ended the day completely drained? However, it is safe to assume your car battery probably is not going out to gatherings in its off-hours, there are still plenty of other things that may leave it feeling just as drained. What Drains a Car Battery? A dead car battery can be annoying, but it can also be avoided. To help prevent a dead battery, you first have to know what causes one. We’ve created a list o, put those jumper cables aside, and check out these seven things that could explain why your car battery keeps dying. 1. You left your headlights on. If your car ..read more

Short of your vehicle suddenly exploding in a spectacular Hollywood-type ball of fire, there are a few common issues that cause the most stress for vehicle owners:  strange noises from the engine compartment, flat tires, cars that won’t start and then the most worrisome of all – finding oil spots where you park your vehicle. What Causes Oil Leaks Oil leaks can be frustrating because they don’t come from one place on a car.  If you have an oil leak, you’re almost guaranteed a trip to a mechanic. All cars develop them, from minor leaks to slow drips that develop into a major threat to ..read more

If your vehicle’s owner’s manual has instructions for draining the liquid from the cooling system, follow them to perform your own coolant flush. If you don’t have a manual, or if it lacks such instructions for performing a coolant flush, follow these steps to flush and change the coolant without endangering the environment. 10 Steps to a Coolant Flush& Drain Park the vehicle in a safe place, away from children and small animals. Make sure that the engine is cold, the ignition is off, and the parking brake is on. Place a bucket under the drain valve at the bottom of the radiator. The bucke ..read more

If you drive a manual car, you should be familiar with your car’s clutch. Clutches are useful devices that have two rotating shafts. In a clutch, one of the shafts is typically driven by a motor or pulley, and the other shaft drives another device. The clutch connects the two shafts so that they can either be locked together and spin at the same speed or be decoupled and spin at different speeds. How often should you change your car’s clutch? Unfortunately, there is no established time frame or mileage point in which you will need to change the clutch of your car as this is all going to depend ..read more