Waldorf Auto Repair

A tune-up can be more than regular maintenance: taking your car to a repair shop before serious issues arise can greatly extend the life of your car and how long your vehicle can stay on the road. However, it's not always obvious what kind of issues warrant a closer look by a professional. Here are some signs your vehicle needs to be taken into a repair shop: 1. The Car Sounds Like It Struggles During Acceleration This may seem obvious at first, but if a car is making loud knocking sounds when accelerating or on steep hills, it can be a sign your engine isn't as efficient as it could be. Similarly, if the car idles or accelerates with difficulty, it could be a spark plug failing to ignite. Taking your car for a tune-up may address this issue or point to a needed fix.   2. Gas Mileage Isn't What It Should Be Are you finding that you're filling up your gas tank more than you thought you would? Getting fewer mile ... read more

Have you ever lost control of your vehicle on a snowy, icy, or wet road? Speeding through light rain, snow, or ice can easily cause your vehicle tires to lose traction with the road. That is called hydroplaning. Hydroplaning happens when your vehicle's tires lose contact with the road and skim or glide across a wet surface instead.   Loss of tire traction can result in unexpected accidents if your vehicle has an issue with steering, braking, or loss of vehicle control. According to specialists, the first several minutes of wet or rainy conditions are the most critical times to be careful. These conditions are more likely to cause hydroplaning than others, such as water, road debris, lubricants, and oils combined. If you are traveling at a speed of 35 miles per hour or more in wet road conditions, then you are more likely to hydroplane than others moving at a slower rate of speed.   How to Prevent Your Car From Hydroplaning While we can't account for all driving c ... read more

Your car fluids enable different vehicle systems to run smoothly and at maximum performance. Examples include the transmission, power steering, wiper, and brake fluids. As each fluid circulates in its respective system, its level and quality drop due to contamination, leading to various vehicle problems. However, these fluids require flushing at various intervals, and it's critical to know when to take the car to the technician for each flush. Flush the Following Fluids Regularly for Optimum Car Performance Engine Oil You can do an oil inspection using a dipstick. If the levels are below the specified margin or the color has turned to black, it's time to change the oil. Still, the interval for that is every 50,000-70,000 miles. Transmission Fluid The transmission fluid keeps the gears running smoothly, and you need to check it every time you have an oil change. The recommended interval for transmission flushes is 30,000 miles. Brake Fluid As the name suggests, this fluid ... read more

Every car consists of a number of parts and systems designed to keep the vehicle in great and reliable running conditioning. One of the most important safety and reliability systems is that of the braking system, designed to keep the vehicle driver, passengers, and everybody around the vehicle safe. This is done by ensuring that the vehicle has the ability to come to a full stop in a matter of seconds. One of the key parts of the braking system is the brake pads. The brake pads are the component that applies pressure and friction to the brake rotors in order to slow down and eventually fully stop the vehicle's wheels. Brake pads undergo stress every time you slow down or bring your vehicle to a halt, which causes wear and tear. For this reason, you want to stay on top of replacing the brake pads in order to keep your vehicle's braking system working in top condition. Brake pads should be replaced on average every 40 to 50 thousand miles, for best results. Ho ... read more

The transmission system is responsible for gear shifting in your car. This makes the transmission system to be a very important component of your car since you need to change gears as you drive. Any problem with your transmission system needs to get sorted as fast as possible; otherwise, you may not be able to move. If you don't sort the problem with the transmission system promptly, the engine may develop other problems that will make your repair costs shoot. Here are the three transmission system problems you can't afford to ignore: Warning Lights When the Check Engine light comes on, you need to take it seriously. The Check Engine light shows that your car's computer has detected a problem with the car. The lights do not necessarily mean the problem is with your transmission system, but it's good to have an expert check your car to determine where the problem is. If it's from the transmission system, the mechanic will fix it. Even if it's ... read more