PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE GUIDE

There have been a wide variety of automotive additives available for decades.  In fact, today's lubricants, fuels and fluids actually contain additives to help them work better for the application they are intended.

With all kinds of additives available today, it might be somewhat confusing to decide what your vehicle might need, or even if an additive works as advertised.

With our many years of experience, we'd be glad to recommend certain additives based up on the needs of your vehicle.

Taking care of your tires is a simple way to get the most mileage out of them, as well as ensuring reliability and avoiding unnecessary problems down the road.  Get a quality tire gauge and get in the habit of checking your tire pressure each time you fill up your tank.  At a minimum, check your tire pressure at least once a week.  We'll be glad to show you how easy this really is!

Under-or over-inflation of your tires can:

• Cause uneven tire wear
• Reduce your gas mileage
• Actually weaken your tire due to excessive heat
• Reduce traction on the road
• Reduce the mileage life of your tire

Under-inflated tires means they are "soft" and cause the outside edges to wear prematurely, as well as increases resistance to move the vehicle, impacting gas mileage and handling.  Over-inflated tires means they are "hard" and cause the weight of the vehicle to be concentrated on the center of the tire, which aslo causes premature wear.  These conditions could eventually cause a flat or blowout.

Have you tires rotated and balanced on a regular basis since each tire can wear differently based upon their position on your vehicle and vehicle type.

Check the tread on your tires regularly.  Got a penny? Let Abe Lincoln help you check your tires!  Insert a penny head first in between the tread.  If you can see all of Abe's head, it's likely time to have them replaced!

One of the most important systems on your veihcle continues to be your braking system.  Your brakes are designed to slow and stop your vehicle.  While there are many components to your braking system, friction material (on your brake pads or brake shoes) is designed to wear for smooth operation, yet provide the braking force needed to operate properly.  Many of these PM services include a brake inspection of these components.

It's always better to perform a simple prrventative maintenance repair by having your brake pads or shoes replaced before metal components come in contact with one antoher, causing severe damage and increasing the cost of your repair.  Our professional technicians will evaulate your braking system and we'll be glad to review what is needed at the time of inspection, as well as recommend the proper friction material.

We'd like your new brake service to last a long, long time.  The best way of assuring that it does is by following these simple steps...

STEP #1: Return to our service center for any recommended recheck so we can complete our follow-up services.

STEP #2: You should avoid hard stops, especially during the first 1,000 miles.  We also suggest that whenever possible you avoid resting you foot on the brake pedal when driving.  This "riding the brake" will not only cause premature brake wear, but it is one of the leading causes of brake failure.

STEP #3: If you have not used your parking brake in a long time it is not adivsed to use EXCEPT IN EMERGENCY.

STEP #4: Return to Dale's Auto Service once a year for your annual brake inspection.

A lot of air is drawn through your filter.  Most of our PM services include checking the condition of your air filter.  It’s a simple way to ensure that your engine is operates at its optimum performance, as well as eliminating as restricted air flow condition as the result of a dirty air filter.

Your cooling system removes the heat from your engine and helps maintain it at an optimal running temperature.  Again, some vehicle manufacturers specify when the coolant should be replaced under normal driving conditions.  Coolant becomes contaminated over time and can actually cause damage to certain engine components.  Performing this service regularly will ensure proper operating conditions.  While some coolant may be “guaranteed” for over 100,000 miles, the guarantee doesn’t cover damage to components caused by contamination!  We’ll make sure that this service is recommended to you when it’s needed.

Differential gear oil or fluid lubricates the gears and components that transfer the power to your wheels (either from wheel drive, rear wheel drive or all wheel drive).  Our service includes replacing the correct amount and type of fluid oil, as well as any additives recommended by your vehicle manufacturer.

What are extreme driving conditions anyway?  Well, most vehicle manufacurers encourage their vehicle owners to have more frequent service performed when driving under extreme conditions.  In fact, this information is more than likely included within the owner's manual for your vehicle.  It might be surprising to learn that what many might consider normal driving conditions are actually considered extreme by many of today's vehicle manufacturers.

Extreme driving conditions may include:

• Driving in stop-and-go traffic
• Allowing the engine to idle for an extended period of time
• High-engine "revving"
• Driving at high engine speeds for an extended period of time (in a lower gear, for example)
• Not allowing the engine to warm up properly and then shutting the engine off
• Operating your vehicle in either very hot or cold temperatures
• Using your vehicle for primarily short trips, like 5 to 10 miles or less
• Using your vehicle to tow or haul heavy loads
• Driving in muddy or dusty conditions
• Using your vehicle in rough terrain

We can design a customized preventive maintenance program to meet your driving needs no matter how your owner's manual classifies the use of your vehicle!

What is preventive maintenance?

Preventive maintenance is just that- performing certain maintenance prior to component breakage or vehicle breakdown.

Why should I have it performed?

Top help prevent and reduce potential costly repairs and minimize breakdowns.  Preventive maintenance combines common sense and inspectionsas that you're informed of your vehicle's condition at the time of service.  Our professionals can provide a summary of your vehicle's current condition and help you make an informed decision as to what is needed at the time or in the near future.

How often should I have preventive manintenance services performed?

Your owner's manual outlines many services needed at various mileage intervals.  At minimum, you should follow these recommendations.  Please remember that this can vary based upon how you drive and in what conditions you operate your vehicle.  We'll be glad to customize a preventive maintenance program for each vehicle you own based upon your needs, driving habits and our professional experience.

My vehicle is new and still under warranty, do I still need to have preventive maintenance performed?

Yes. Your vehicle owner's manual lists a number of preventive maintenance services that need to be performed at certain mileage intervals in order to keep your new vehicle warranty in effect.

Do I have to visit a dealership to have this work performed to maintain my new vehicle warranty?

No. As the owner of the vehicle, you have the right to choose where you take your vehicle for maintenance and repairs.  We use appropriate parts and procedures and can help you maintain your new vehicle warranty.

When must I take my vehicle back to the vehicle dealership?

Your specific vehicle manufacturer will notify you when you must take your vehicle back to you local vehicle dealer.  This is usually due to a recall of a certain component on the vehicle.  Therefore, your authorized vehicle dealer is your only option to have the recalled component repaired at no charge with this notification.  Otherwise, we can perform all other maintenance and non-warranty repair needs on all of the vehicles you own at one location.

How will performing preventive maintenance save me money?

First of all, if you have a new vehicle, you'll save your factory warranty.  Should a warranty issue arise, we can provide you with a complete maintenance history.  This is important, as it will prove that you have maintained your vehicle during the warranty period so that your vehicle dealer cna process your warranty claim.

An example of how much you could save by having preventive maintenance performed can be well illlustrated when you replace worn brake pads or shoes prior to failure.  If you didn't change your brake pads or shoes when recommended, then the pads or shoes would continue to wear and would therefore wear to the point that no "wearable" material would remain.  This would mean that the metal on the brake pad or shoe would then touch the metal of your brake rotor or drum.  This would cause excessive noise, as well as extreme damage to these brake components, requiring them to be replaced.  While the cost of these components obviously will vary depending on each vehicle and how it's used, the reality is that many of these components cost more than replacing just the brake pads!

So, making sure that preventive maintenance is performed can save you quite a lot of money during the life of you vehicle ownership.

How will preventive maintenance save me time?

We know that your time is valuable and that being without your vehicle for any amount of time is certainly not convenient.

Our preventive maintenance services combine a number of single services into one process.  This actually reduces the number of visits to our facility.  Additionally, our preventive maintenance services include a thorough inspection process of components that are prone to wear.  Together we can help you maintain your vehicle so that it serves you reliably for many years.  A well-maintained vehicle is less likely to have an unexpected breakdown.

Can I bring all my vehicles to your location for service?

Absolutely.  The reason for this is that our preventive maintenance services are designed to work on all vehicles and not just one or two vehicle manufacturers.

Why? The answer is simple.  More than likely, your family owns more than one brand of vehicle.  It would just be too much of an inconvenience for you to take one brand of vehicle to one repair facility and your other vehicle to another for service.  Most of the preventive maintenance services are similar with the majority of vehicle manufacturers today.  So allowing us to perform preventive maintenance on all of your vehicles makes sense.  Of course, there are some additional services that some specific vehicle manufacturers require to be performed at certain mileage intervals.  We'll be glad to discuss each of your vehicle needs with you.

Regardless of the quality of fuel you use, how you drive or even if you use a bottle of the “in tank” fuel injector cleaner every now and then, you still turn off your engine.  This is actually when fuel injectors get dirty!  When you turn off your engine, the temperature under your hood and within the engine itself rises, causing a residue to form on the back of your intake valves and within your fuel injectors.  As the engine cools down, the residue hardens and, over time build upon itself.

This is one of the major causes of engine hesitation and a major contributor to poor performance and decreasing your gas mileage.  The “in the tank” cleansers will help remove some of this build-up, but remember that the solution is diluted by gasoline and therefore is not as effective as the method used by professionals.

This service is included within our 30,000- mile PM service but can be performed as a single service at any time.  If you’ve noticed a hesitation in your engine, especially when it’s cold, we’d be happy to show you how our service may be able to correct the majority of the problems you may be experiencing.

Have you ever wondered why there are different grades of gasoline?  All grades of gasoline have what's called an octane rating.  So what is it and, more importantly, what should you use in your vehicles?

First of all, the engine in your vehicle burns fuel by compression- in other words, your engine is an internal combustion engine or burns fuel internally.  The engine allows a mixture of air and fuel into the combustion area and a piston then compresses this mixture.  Your spark plug then ignites this mixture causing an internal explosion that produces the power to run your engine.  Therefore, the octane rating tells you how much the gasoline can be compressed before it ignites spontaneously.  Should gasoline ever ignite by compression rather than by the spark plug, then it would cause the engine to knock, possibly damaging your engine (think of it as a hammer striking the top part of your piston)- obviously this is not something that's desirable.

Take regular gasoline with an 87 octane rating for example.  This grade of gasoline would require less compression than gasoline with a 93 octane rating.  Another way to look at it is that the higher the octane, the slower the fuel burns, whereas a lower octane rated gasoline burns faster.

If you use a lower grade of gasoline than what your vehicle manufacturer recommends, then you run the risk of engine damage caused by pinging or pre-detonation.  And if you're using a higher grade of gasoline in an engine that wasn't orginally designated to handle a higher grade, you can actually reduce engine performance and gas mileage.

How so?  Since the higher grade of gasoline burns slower and you're using it in an engine that was designed to burn a faster-burning fuel, you therefore don't burn all the fuel.  If you don't burn all the fuel, then all the air that is in the mixture isn't burned either.  Your vehicle computer sees more air in your exhaust system and then compensates by adding more fuel to this perceived lean running condition (more air in the exhaust).  In short, you have more raw fuel being pushed through your exhaust system, causing your catalytic converter(s) to overwork and possibly lead to premature failure, not to mention the pollutants released into the air.  Unless you've had modifications performed to your engine (and computer reprogrammed) to run properly on a higher grade of gasoline, you won't improve the performance of your vehicle just by buying a better grade of gasoline.

So which grade of gas should you buy?  Use the grade that your vehicle manufacturer recommends unless you've had your engine modified and your computer reprogrammed to burn a higher grade of gasoline.

There are many ways to restore your gas mileage and get even better gas mileage.  Some of these include having certain preventive maintenance services, while others incorporate driving habits that promote conservation of fuel.

Here are some highlights:

• Regularly have your vehicle serviced- at minimum what your vehicle manufacturer recommends.
• Allow us to design a preventive maintenance program for each of your vehicles- we'll let you know what you need when it's needed.
• Make sure your tires are inflated to the proper air pressure.
• Use the proper fuel for your vehicle.
• Have us check your oxygen sensors to make sure they are in working order.
• Avoid hard acceleration and fast stops- try to gradually accelerate and decelerate.
• Use your cruise control when traveling for long periods of time and not in heavy traffic.
• Try to combine some short trips wherever possible and plan your routes to save time.
• If you think you're going to be idling for a while, consider turning of the engine.

Many of today's vehicle manufacturer owner's manuals often highlight that oil changes should occur from 6,000 to 7,500 miles or more frequently depending on how owners use their vehicle (extreme driving conditons).  Extreme driving could be considered around town, stop-and-go traffic.  So the question is, "Should you ave your oil changed every 3,000 miles like in the past?"  The reality is that it does depend on how you use your vehicle.

Oil, as well as other fluids lose their lubircation qualities in a number of ways.  One way is not allowing the engine to get warm enough (hot) in order to "boil out" the moisture that builds up within the crankcase.  Other contaminants (gases) are produced and passed through to the oil by blowing past the piston rings.  While much of these gases are removed through the PVC system, a certain amount still ends up within the oil.  The only way to remove the majority of these contaminants is to have oil changes frequently, thereby promoting the reduction of engine wear, even with today's engines running tighter tolerances than in the past.

So while some vehicle manufacturers try to position their vehicles as they "cost less to operate" over time by "recommending" longer oil change intervals, the fact of the matter is that severe or extreme driving conditions are still recognized as stop-an-go therefore, the 3000-mile oil change frequency continues to be a valid service.

Some oils, such as snythetic oils, may help lengthen your oil change intervals.  Please ask us about what improved oils may be available for your vehicle.

Brake fluid is generally clear and oily to the touch.  When you depress the brake pedal, brake lines allow the brake fluid to be pushed through to each of the four wheels containing a stopping device- either a brake caliper or a wheel cylinder.  So any number of leaks could appear almost anywhere a weakness may exsist in the system.  While leakage of the brake system is rare, you'll likely feel a soft or spongy brake pedal feel when peressing the brakes, which can lead to brake failure if not corrected immediately.

If you notice any fluid stains or puddles undernearth your vehicle, then it might be a good idea to have it checked in the near future.

There are a number of fluids that can leak from your vehicle, with many of them leading to a possible breakdown and expensive repair if neglected.  Remember, your vehicle is a machine.  Becoming familiar with the type of fluids your machine requires to operate properly will help you know what kind of fluid leak that you might be experiencing and what system may be affected by the leak.

Some leaks are obvious, while others may play "hide and seek" with you.  Knowing what to look for and where to look can help you avoid a costly repair, as long as you find it in time.  On the following pages are some helpful hints about the type of fluids used in today's vehicle, as well as various colors and other characteristcs to help you identify them.

TIP: If you can't find the location of the leak on your vehicle, place fresh newspapers under the vehicles overnight and check them in the morning.  Bring your vehicle and the newspapers with the fluid back to us so that we can identify and locate the leak.

It's always a good idea to have your vehicle checked out prior to traveling over an extended period.  As a NAPA AutoCare Center, we'd be glad to assist you to help ensure your vehicle is as reliable as possible.

If you can't stop by, consider checking the following items on your vehicle prior to your travel:

• Check all fluid levels and top off if necessary.
• Check your air filter to ensure it's clean.  If it's dirty, consider having it replaced.
• Check all belts and hoses for cracks or leaks.
• Check your wiper blades, especially if you haven't used them for a while.
• Check tires for wear and ensure tire pressure is accurate for all of them, including your spare.
• Check that all lights are working, including:
  • Headlights
  • Taillights
  • Turn Signals
  • Parking Lights
  • Fog Lights
  • Backup and License Plate Lights
  • Dome Lights inside your Vehicle

Accidents can happen to even the best of drivers.  Should you experience an accident, it's best to be prepared to do the right things immediately after the accident.

You should always have the following with you:

• Your driver's license
• Your current insurance information card
• Your vehicle registration card
• Emergency items such as flares or reflectors
• A basic medical kit
• A working flashlight
• Emergency contact information

Points to keep in mind after an accident occurs:

• If your vehicle is still moving, try to stop safely- pull over to the side of the road if possible
• Remain calm
• Check for injuries
• Call 911 for medical assistance or police
• Do not leave the scene of the accident
• Protect the scene, warn approaching vehicles and use flares or reflectors if available- if not, use your flashlight
• Identify the other driver and exchange names, addresses, and driver's license and insurance information
• Obtain names, addresses and phone numbers of any witnesses
• Keep comments regarding the accident to yourself until the authorities arrive
• Cooperate with the authorities when they arrive- accurately recount the events leading up to the accident and make sure your comments are noted by the officer(s)
• Obtain the name of the responding officer(s) and the case number information
• See you doctor- some injuries develop later
• Inform your insurance company

NOISES: During the break-in period you may notice a slight squealing sound when you apply the brakes.  This noise, typically caused by brake dust, is perfectly normal.

ODOR & STEAM: As new brakes are breaking-in, they will often cause a slight burning odor.  In addition to this normal occurence, many parts that have been handled get extremely hot during normal operation, so during the first day or two you may notice a slight burning odor as well as a slight amount of steam coming from the undercarriage.

BRAKE PEDAL HEIGHT: You may find your brake pedal to be at a different height. You will also find that as your brakes go through their normal wearing, the pedal will gradually begin to drop in height.  If you notice any immediate dropping, or if you have any questions about the safety of your brake system, please call immediately.