Reducing Your Vehicle Maintenance Costs

Unexpected surprise maintenance costs can be avoided by sticking to a strict scheduled preventive maintenance plan. While it might sound counter intuitive to spend money to save money, a scheduled maintenance practice will keep your vehicle running in good health ensuring you get the most out of all those expensive to replace parts.

Keeping your car’s fluids clean and new is a top priority when it comes to minimizing future costs. By that it’s not just oil changes that need to be done, brake fluid flushes, transmission fluid flushes and power steering fluid flushes also need to be done. Fluid changes done as needed will prevent the buildup of harmful dirt and debris deposits that cause corrosion and eventual breakdown.

With all vehicles it is a good idea to have your oil checked on a regular basis. The same applies for your car’s brake fluid, transmission fluid and power steering fluid. Learning to check these fluids is a good idea, however a lot of people don’t want to so it’s a good idea to keep a regular maintenance schedule with ToyoTechs..

While it’s always a good idea to peruse through your owner's manual to learn more about your vehicle’s scheduled maintenance Truthfully most our customers have come to trust ToyoTechs Technicians to keep up with what services need to be done now and what can wait till later.

Whether or not you have us maintain your vehicle these services need to be done. They will keep your vehicle running better and add extra years to the life of your car at the same time saving you money.

Time to Keep Falling Leaf Debris Off Your Car

Why You Need to Change Your Cabin Air Filter

OK I know the headline sounds a little goofy however this is truly an important subject especially for people who park their cars around trees with falling leaves. When the the leaves, dead bugs and other debris falls it gathers around the bottom of your windshield covering the vents that carry the airflow into your car's cabin air filter. The air then flows into the interior of your car and into the air that you breath.

The leaves, dead bugs and road debris then slowly works through your vehicle's airflow system. Over time the debris will work it’s way to your A/C’s  evaporator core. Eventually as the debris starts building up in your evaporator core the trouble will begin with your A/C system.

You do not want to have to replace your A/C’s evaporator core. That repair is around a $2500 repair and requires the whole dashboard to be removed. Our Technicians make this repair on more than a few vehicles per month.

As part of the regular maintenance of your vehicle you do want to have your cabin air filter checked and changed typically at least twice a year. The cost of a new cabin air filter $45 is so much cheaper that a $2500 A/C evaporator core.

So as silly as it might sound keeping the leaves, dead bugs and debris off your car is an important part of your maintenance that can possibly save you a lot of money. So clean the leaves off your car !

Please see the picture below. This is the cabin air filter taken out of a customer's car yesterday. The complaint was not much air was coming out of the vents.  Yikes !! They were breathing air that came through that mess.

Is it Time to Have Your Battery Replaced

Just a few thoughts on batteries

It may be surprising to you that it’s the heat of summer that’s harder on your battery than the cold of winter. Yep that’s right, everyone thinks the winter cold kills your battery which it does (your battery works harder in winter to start your car) but only after the heat of summer has weaken it. High heat causes battery fluid to evaporate, thus damaging the internal structure of the battery and when it gets cold the battery often will not have enough juice to get your car started.

There can be several other reasons for a dead battery or a shortened battery life. The reason may be your battery is overcharging due to a dead cell in the battery, alternator issues or the voltage regulator. Also a battery that is being overcharged can cause damage to your alternator. All these possible issues need to be checked out when you bring your vehicle in for a weak battery or charging problems    

Batteries today are usually maintenance free batteries (other than keeping the connects clean) however most batteries have caps that can be removed with a screwdriver. If low on water they can be refilled with distilled water if necessary. We do recommend that if you believe your battery needs help, please have your Atlanta Hybrid Repair Technician check it out.

It is a good rule of thumb that if your vehicle's battery is 3 years or older you should consider purchasing a new battery before winter.