Scheduled Vehicle Maintenance or Preventive Maintenance
The technicians at Clark Automotive Repair Shop in Blaine, MN would like to go over some of the more common misleading procedures other repair shops may easily suggest, in order to get the most (money) out of your stop to their shop. We would like to inform you so that you can make a conscious and slightly informed decision when bringing your car into a vehicle repair shop that makes these requests. We offer these practical tips, so that you can easily and affordability maintain your vehicle.
Honest Vehicle Repair Services
Many of our customers have come to us and kept coming to our Blaine, MN auto shop because they are sick of the dreaded phone call…you know. You drop your car, pickup truck or van off for a quick oil change and while you’re waiting for your vehicle’s scheduled maintenance to be completed they give you a hefty list of other ‘very important discoveries’ they have made while performing the oil change. They start to go on and on, all the while you’re getting even more confused (Tactic? Maybe.) and you end up just saying OK, for the safety (and sanity) of you and anyone else in your vehicle or on the road.
Inside Tips from the Auto Professionals
When you get a different (new) car it has a list of recommended maintenance repairs at certain miles and or months of operation. If you don’t have that list in the owner’s manual then you can usually get those online or at most repair shops. The best defense against untrustworthy of fraudulent auto services is knowing when specific maintenance items, such as the tune-up, are due i.e. 30,000 miles, 80,000 miles etc. The reason is that as you start to maintain your new vehicle, like Oil Changes or Tire Rotations many repair facilities will recommend maintenance procedure early, which is unneeded. The tune-up of your engine is one. The factory recommended maintenance schedule can be considered as preventive maintenance, preventive maintenance is designed to replace various parts at a time before they fail and cause problems.
Just because the check engine light is on at 65,000 for any of a couple of hundred reasons, does not mean you need a tune-up. A very high percentage of tune-ups are not due till 100,000 miles. Instead of a tune-up, if you’re not in that mileage category, a diagnostic test would be the best, most affordable and effective route. Most small shops will scan your computer and identify a list of the fault codes at a minimal charge or free. Clark Automotive provides a code scan free of charge and provides some impute to you as to what type of trouble shooting may be required or what type of repair you may be looking at.
The Importance of Trusting a Knowledgeable Mechanic
Just knowing the code in most instances will not direct the specific repair. It will only tell you which system or parts are not operating within factory specifications. Many shops recommend a tune-up early even when the required repair is something else. If you’ve been suggested a Tune-Up due to vehicle issues or before your vehicles recommended mileage it may save you a great deal of money to contact Clark Automotive Repair in Blaine, MN for a second opinion on your auto repair needs.
Stop by our Auto Repair Shop with your car, pickup truck or van:
9985 Davenport St. NE
Blaine, MN 55449
Shop Hours
MON – FRI 8:00 – A.M. – 5:00 P.M.
SAT (BY APPOINTMENT ONLY)
Or give Clark Automotive a call today at 763-784-7944!
