DELAWARE & PENNSYLVANIA AUTO REPAIR

No matter how careful you are, it’s inevitable that an emergency will occur . Just because you are an experienced driver doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know how to handle some of the most common emergencies, as knowing what to do can make the difference between having an accident or avoiding one. Here is some advice on that will help you be prepared for anything that happens. During a tire blowout, avoid the urge to brake suddenly, as this can cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Instead, press the gas pedal for a couple of seconds and continue driving straight. Let up off the gas and coast to slow down, allowing yourself to get off the highway safely. Tread separation begins with a slapping or thumping sound. If you notice this noise, stop immediately and inspect your tires for signs of damage. Continuing to drive after tires have separated can result in serious injury or even death ... read more

Hybrid cars are a money-saver for consumers. It has been advertised as such, and thus many users buy it for that reason. Do hybrid cars actually save you money? Before we do that, we must understand why hybrid cars are money savers. It uses less gas to go the same distance. Gas fluctuates from expensive to inexpensive, so that’s more money in your pocket. Regular cars use more gas to go the same distance and therefore labeled as “gas guzzlers.” These gas-guzzling vehicles contribute to pollution while hybrid cars preserve the air. Reverting to the question, the answer is yes. Hybrid cars save consumers money. The real question to ask is at what cost. Consider the following. The price of buying a hybrid. Hybrid cars cost more than regular cars, yet it drives farther using the same tank of gasoline. Hybrid cars also offer tax incentives and rebates to offset their higher cost. How often you ride. The phrase “save 10 gallons of gas” for many peo ... read more

Now that warmer weather is here, you may be planning a road trip. Enjoying your road trip will be much easier to do if you take some necessary precautions to prevent breakdowns. Preparing your car for a long road trip may take a little bit of time, but will be well worth the effort in the long run. Here is a checklist you can use to make sure nothing is overlooked. Check your Owner’s Manual Check your owner’s manual to see if your vehicle is due for any routine maintenance. If there’s a chance your vehicle could become due for service during your trip, go ahead and get it done before you leave. You should also check your owner’s manual to see if the manufacturer recommends any particular service be performed prior to an extended road trip. Visual Inspection You should perform a visual inspection underneath the hood. Some things to check include: Condition of battery terminals ... read more

This list of car service tips that will increase gas mileage will make your car more efficient. Take out heavy items in your automobile. Heavy items weigh your car down. The additional weight forces the car to use more gas to travel to the destination. Removing the weight improves gas mileage. Taking away 100 pounds of heavy items in your car improves it by 2%. Keep your tires properly inflated. Properly inflated tires last longer. Inflating tires to the proper pressure increases gas mileage by 3.3%. Replace your dirty air filter. Dirty air filters blow into the engine, The dirt and particles reduce the engine’s gas mileage. Changing it improves car performance and acceleration. Select the right kind of motor oil. No motor oil is the same, and the incorrect kind of oil affects gas mileage. Read the manufacturer’s handbook for their suggestion of grade motor ... read more

The initial aggravation of being pulled over and issued a ticket can be pretty intense. Whether you are frustrated with yourself, or frustrated with the police officer who gave you your ticket, emotions can rise pretty high. As a little time passes, you may find yourself staring at the traffic ticket that seemed so unjust initially, and wondering, should you fight a traffic ticket? This is a difficult question to answer, but lets begin with your motivation. If you are just fighting the ticket because you’re angry, it’s probably not worth fighting, eventually the emotions you feel about this particular traffic violation will abate. If you are fighting the ticket because it is expensive and you don’t want to pay the fine, take a moment to consider what your time is worth. What do you make hourly at your job? How many hours will you spend researching the ticket, preparing for court, and add to this time at least half of a work day that you will miss on the d ... read more

Anytime you have a car repair that needs to be done that doesn’t keep your car from running, you can find yourself putting it off. It’s easy to feel like the repair is non-essential as long as your car still works, but before you put it off indefinitely, you should calculate the cost of not getting the repair done. A perfect example is replacing your brake pads. Everyone knows that if you replace your brake pads early they are much cheaper to replace than if you put if off for too long. Another repair that will eat up money if you put it off for too long is a broken oxygen sensor. A broken oxygen sensor is one of the common problems that can trigger a check engine light. You might be tempted to put off replacing the sensor, but first you should consider the impact on gas cost with a broken oxygen sensor. Your oxygen sensor monitors the amount of oxygen in your exhaust. It uses these readings to send information to your fuel injectors, so they send the right ... read more

Do you have fond memories of your Dad’s (or maybe Grandpa’s) old car and some of its features? We do, and we sure miss some of those old cars’ great features, so we’ve compiled a list of some our favorites we’d like to share. Good visibility Yes, we know cars are safer now with airbags, reinforced frames and all of the other safety features which come standard on all new cars. But it seems that the more safety features are added, the less visibility we have to actually see where we’re driving! Blind spots have gone from a sliver to a gaping chasm on some newer models. We miss the old cars with their wide expanses of windows and good visibility! Wing windows We miss those little triangular windows set in the corner of the front doors next to the dash. They were great for letting in plenty of fresh air without having it blow directly on the people sitting in the front seat. They could easily be adjusted to the perf ... read more

When President Obama made his State of the Union speech in the year 2011 he stated his administration wanted to put one million electric vehicles on U.S. roads by the year 2015. However, according to Time, there are no more than a few hundred thousand of these vehicles in the U.S. at present. While that represents a tiny fraction of total vehicles used by U.S. drivers, there are some statements being made on the impact of electric cars on the automotive industry. The Impact of Electric Cars on the Automotive Industry In terms of raw sales electric vehicles are sluggish, but there is growth in popularity. 2014 saw 30,000 sales of the Nissan Leaf, which is an industry leader in terms of electric vehicles. That number might sound small, but it has increased every year as the technology becomes more common and more reliable. There’s still a long way to go between where we are a ... read more

Looking for a new (or used) car? Then be sure to keep your brain in gear with the friendly car salesman who greets you on the lot. Remember he’s professionally trained to alter your mind-set. Understand there are many things he doesn’t want you to know when buying your car. Here are five of the most important ones: He’s not there to help you. The salesman meets, greets and works to put you in a compliant mood. He won’t, however, help you buy the car you want at the price you want to pay. He carries all information and negotiation offers to another person, usually a sales manager, who works behind the scenes and makes the decisions. Rest assured those decisions help the business, not you. 2. Use your smart phone. Your smart phone or computer provides access to everything the salesman knows, and some things he doesn’t. Web sites furnish information such as the difference between the dealer’s cost and the mark-up, where the dealer bought th ... read more

Flat tires are something every automobile owner dreads. Changing a tire isn’t always possible, and flat tires also tend to happen in inconvenient locations. To make having a flat tire less cumbersome, many manufactures are now providing new car buyers with run-flat tires that will allow them to drive as far as 100 miles before changing them. While run-flat tires are convenient, they do have a few disadvantages. Are run flat tires worth it? Here are some things to consider. Advantages Aside from making it more convenient to fix a flat tire, there are several other advantages to run-flat tires such as: Providing better stability in the event of a blowout, since run-flat tires automatically have more support built into them Being standard equipment on up to 12% of new cars, so buying an upgrade is not needed. Allowing extra trunk room, since owners do not need to carry a spare or jack Lowering the weight of the v ... read more