Automotive Repairs Arizona, Automotive Service & Repair Blog
Summer Time A/C Tips in Phoenix
Summer is on its way into the Valley so it’s time to prepare for the heat! One of the main concerns for our customers as things heat up is their vehicles A/C. There’s nothing worse than working all day, then walking out to your car that’s been baking in the sun all day, you get in your extremely hot vehicle and you have to sit and wait for the A/C to cool down the inside of your car. Did you know that during the dead of summer in Arizona, when temperatures are 100-120 degrees outside, the inside temperatures of your vehicle can exceed 150 degrees! We have a few tips we can share with you to help cool off the inside of your vehicle quickly.
Let’s re-visit the hot car scenario mentioned above. After your vehicle has been baking in the hot summer sun all day while you’re at work, it’s important to remember that the temperature inside the vehicle can be at least 20 degrees hotter than the outside temperature. When you get into your car and start it TIP 1 turn on your A/C but do NOT turn it on re-circulate, leave your settings on Fresh-air. Please look below for images that correlate to Fresh air and Re-circulate. Some vehicles for instance Fords may have only Max A/C and A/C.
If you set your A/C on fresh air, the air from outside your vehicle will go through you’re A/C unit and cool things down quicker than re-circulating the hotter air inside the vehicle. This process will force the hot air out of the vehicle. PLEASE BE ADVISED Do NOT run your A/C on fresh air all day because you’re not re-circulating the heat inside your vehicle to get the remaining heat (hot air) out. So once you are in your vehicle and have your A/C settings on Fresh air and you begin to feel your car start to cool off inside, change your settings to re-circulate. You can compare this scenario to your house A/C. If you turn your A/C on at home you wouldn’t leave all the doors and windows open would you? If you don’t switch your settings to re-circulate it’s very similar to leaving all the doors and windows open at you home while the A/C is on.
Another quick tip we can give you is to be mindful of your fan speed. TIP 2 once the air starts to cool off inside your vehicle, and you begin to feel comfortable, turn the fan settings down at least 1 level. Below are a few examples of the fan speed knobs that you might encounter.
We advise our customers to turn down the fan speed because this slows the speed at which the air is going through the system. Slowing down the air speed allows more heat to be extracted from the air going through the Evaporative Core and the air going into the vehicle will be colder. It is important to note on days with excessive heat warnings it may be just too hot to adjust fan speeds lower and stay comfortable in your vehicle.
If you have a bigger vehicle for example Tahoe, Excursion, Suburban, Conversion Van or even a mid size SUV like an Explorer these can be harder to cool because most have rear A/C. Some of these bigger vehicles that have rear A/C have just had hoses and vents added to help cool the back of the vehicle. The problem is the rear A/C operates off the same condenser/compressor as the front A/C. If this is the case, the rear A/C can cause the front A/C to not be as cool. The ways around this problem are very limited but there are still some things you can do. TIP 3 If you DO NOT have anyone including, kids/pets in the back of your vehicle, try to keep the rear A/C fan speed on low-medium. TIP 4 if your vehicle has tinted windows or lighter colored interior your vehicle could stay cooler than other vehicles that do not have these things. A quick item to mention is Sun Shades, sun shades are used more to prevent UV rays from getting into your vehicle and damaging your dash and interior not necessarily to help keep your vehicle cooler inside.
Finally a quick Tip for our RV and Motor Home travelers, Tip 5 if you are able to run your generator while you’re driving you can turn on at least one of your A/C units in the coach while you’re on the road. Running this additional A/C unit while you drive will help cool down the inside of your RV or Motor Home. The A/C unit at the front of your rig is designed to help keep only the front part of your rig cool not the entire coach.
We hope these tips will help you and your family stay cool as the weather begins to warm up. Remember if you ever have any questions please feel free to reach out to one of our friendly staff members at either or Surprise or Goodyear locations. We are always happy to help!
Automotive Service & Repair Blog
Diesel Fuel Injection Service
There is a misconception by the general public that Diesel Vehicles do not need much maintenance compared to a Gas Vehicle. Diesel vehicles do require maintenance just not as often as a gas vehicle may. One service we educate our Diesel owners about is Diesel Fuel Injection Service. Over that last few decades the chemical composition of Diesel Fuel has been modified to adhere to EPA Regulations. The sulfur content has been drastically reduced and in turn the lubricity of Diesel fuel has decreased. This decrease in lubricity in Diesel Fuel is causing Injectors to fail prematurely by causing build up on your injectors.
Diesel Fuel Injection Service helps clean and polish your Injectors and cylinders. This service segregates your Fuel system by running the system off a canister. The canister acts as a filter. Not only does the cleaning agent used clean your injectors but polishes your injectors as well. This will help your injectors run smoothly. Once your Injectors have been cleaned with the Diesel Fuel Injection Service there are ways to help keep the soot from building back up on your injectors. We advise our clients to use Diesel Fuel Additive to help maintain the life of your Injectors.
Diesel Fuel Additive
Diesel Fuel Additive helps put the lubricity in your Fuel and helps prevent build up on your Injectors. Most Diesel owners do not only fill up when their vehicle is on empty, they let their tank get down to maybe a quarter of a tank then fuel up. For this reason we advise our customers to use the Diesel Fuel Additive every other time they fuel up. Depending on the brand of Fuel Additive you use can also affect how often you should use the additive. For more precise information on when Diesel Fuel Additive should be used please contact one of our shops Surprise 623-376-6791 or Goodyear 623-882-8200.
The Diesel Fuel Injection Service we believe should be done every 20,000 miles in conjunction with the Fuel Additive which should be used every other time you fuel up. The Fuel additive will help keep your Injectors Lubricated, and can help keep your cylinders firing properly. Using Fuel Additive should be used consistently and not only when you tow or just on random occasion. The best way for you to be able to get a quarter million miles out of your injectors is if you use Fuel Additive consistently and have the Diesel Fuel Injection service done at regularly scheduled intervals.
Contact Champs Family Automotive
If you’d like to learn more about the Diesel Fuel Injection Service or Diesel Fuel Additives give either of our shops a call and we’d be happy to further educate you about your Diesel Vehicle. Remember Champs Family Automotive is you Neighborhood Automotive and Diesel repair Specialist here to keep you in the know about your vehicles health! Contact us online or call our shops, Surprise 623-376-6791 or Goodyear 623-882-8200.
Automotive Repairs Arizona, Automotive Service & Repair Blog
Automotive Differential Service
While continuing our review of preventative maintenance it seems as though there are numerous flushes and services that should be done on your vehicle, it’s important not to get overwhelmed with these procedures. It is our goal in reviewing the preventative maintenance procedures to help make the public more aware of these items and to help save you money on costly automotive repairs. Furthering our journey into preventative maintenance another vital procedure is a Differential Service.Some people believe that just because their vehicle is front wheel drive or all wheel drive that they don’t have differentials. This is actually not true, front and rear differentials can be on an all wheel, front wheel and rear wheel drive vehicle. For most procedures your vehicle needs done in regards to preventative maintenance you can usually find out when your vehicle is due for maintenance in your vehicles owner’s manual. As a general rule of thumb most vehicles should have their Differential Service done within the first 100k miles. A Differential Service is where your ASE Certified Technician drains and replaces the oil in the Differential. In some vehicle the Differential can only hold 1qt – 1 ½qts of oil.
Selecting the Right Oil
Considering this is a very small amount of oil keep in mind if you have a leak it could be detrimental to your vehicle! We advise to steer clear of cheap oil products as well because cheaper is not always better. Your ASE Certified Technician should be able to recommend the right oil for your vehicle which is another reason why it’s vital to choose the right shop for your automotive repairs. This oil is used to lubricate bearings, spider gears axel bearings and it’s also used to cool these components down and prevent pre-mature wear. If you can keep up on this particular preventative maintenance procedure all the bearings and spider gears will most likely last the entire life of your vehicle without having to be replaced as long as your vehicle is not subject to abuse. Abuse in this case simply means you are not overloading your vehicle, neglecting your vehicles oil levels or allowing it to leak consistently without repair etc… As always when you have any repairs done to your vehicle we always advise to keep your invoices for your records.
Contact Our Surprise or Goodyear Auto Shops
We hope all of you have enjoyed our articles and have found them helpful. Should you have questions or would like to set up a time to bring your vehicle in for maintenance or repair work, please contact our shops. We have shops in
Surprise and
Goodyear. Or call 623.376.6791 (Surprise Shop) or 623.882.8200 (Goodyear Shop). We look forward to servicing your vehicle.
Automotive Service & Repair Blog
Vehicle Maintenance
When we think about vehicle maintenance what comes to mind? Oil changes, tire rotations, alignments, tune –up? While yes these are all necessary to keeping costly repairs to a minimum there are several other that people are not aware of or don’t find out about till a costly repair comes up. Preventative maintenance is the key to keeping repairs to a minimum and extending the life of your vehicle. One particular maintenance procedure people don’t do often is Air induction Cleaning or AIC.
Why Vehicle Air Induction Cleaning is Overlooked
Unfortunately, several people overlook AIC because they may feel it’s not warranted or perhaps don’t understand the benefits behind the procedure. This procedure is especially important to consider if you have a newer vehicle. Most new vehicles do not have throttle cables like older vehicles do. Since there is no throttle cable when you step on the accelerator the computer in your vehicle recognizes this action and in turn opens the throttle plate. Over time this continual action causes fumes, oils, exhaust to get sucked up into the intake and coats the back of the throttle plate, intake valves and bottom of your injectors. The buildup causes air obstructions in the throttle plate and eventually drivability issues i.e. check engine light, hard start, rolling idles etc… In order to keep a buildup from happening on your throttle plate an AIC should be performed.
Vehicles Have Their Own Requirements
Each make of vehicle typically has its own requirements for when an AIC should be done. An AIC has 3 parts to the process to ensure all debris is cleared from the throttle plate. First we will clean the internal workings of fuel injectors and fuel system, second put an additive into the intake which will spray a mist over the intake, third we will manually brush and clean down the throttle plate and the beginning of the intake. Upon completion of the process your ASE Certified Technician should go in and clear your vehicles adaptive features. This particular process is designed as a maintenance procedure and will not fix the problem if you are already having drivability issues. Please review your owner’s manual for when the appropriate time is to have an AIC done and as always be sure to retain your vehicle maintenance and repair records.
If you have any further questions please feel free to contact our shops. For our Goodyear AZ shop please call 623-882-8200 and for our Surprise AZ shop call 623-376-6791. You can also visit our contact page.
Automotive Service & Repair Blog
Auto Maintenance Tips
Things You “Auto” Know,
In the automotive repair world we are asked many questions about general maintenance. When should my tires be rotated and why? We agree that it is always good to be in the know about your vehicle and what you can do to keep your vehicle in good running condition.
For most of us when we think of general maintenance we think Oil Changes. In most cases these should be done every 3-5k miles depending on your vehicle. There are also different types of Oil that can be used. You can either get a Conventional Oil change which is “Non Synthetic”. The other options would be: “Semi Synthetic”, “Full Synthetic”, or Diesel Oil Change. If you get a “Full-Synthetic” Oil Change it is typically more expensive but the oil offers more protection against ware and tare. When it comes to what type of oil you should use, this information is usually readily available in your owner’s manual. Along with regularly scheduled Oil Changes there are also other general maintenance procedures that can help prevent costly vehicle repairs.
Tire Rotation and Tire Wear and Tear
For instance, did you know that every other Oil Change you should rotate your tires? If you have your tires rotated every other Oil Change it will help you get the full life out of your tires and not have to buy new ones prematurely. Rotating your tires will allow the tread on your tires to wear evenly. There is on occasion a nominal fee associated with this procedure but it is an inexpensive measure to take, considering the cost of new tires. Next time you get your Oil Changed ask your shop to inspect the tires and check for unusual tire wear. Once the Technician has inspected the tire and if the Technician recommends rotating your tires ask to see the wear. The Technician should be able to talk to you and show you why they recommend the rotation. If you have rotations you should also have your Alignment checked as well. Alignments and other general maintenance procedures will be covered in our “Things You Auto Know” article next month! Don’t forget to keep all your automotive repair records so you and your Automotive Shop can keep track of repairs done.
Watch for our article next month as we journey through your automotive questions and concerns together. And if your vehicle is in need of repair work or maintenance please contact either of our shops – Surprise Shop or Goodyear Shop. We’re always happy to help!
Sincerely,
The Mechanic
