Sacramento Auto Repair

For the majority of Sacramento drivers, there are few words in the English language scarier than “Engine Repair”. Thanks to a slew of misconceptions, most people assume all engine repair is expensive and takes an extensive amount of time. However, there are a number of smaller issues that can occur within the engine that aren’t as expensive as you’d imagine. And there are a number of steps you can take to reduce the chance of needing engine repair at all. Here’s a short guide to what your auto technician wishes you knew about engine repair. There’s a Difference Between Engine Repair and Engine Maintenance While both are necessary to keep your vehicle running smoothly, there’s a big difference between engine repair and engine maintenance. Engine repair occurs when a necessary part of your engine isn’t working properly while engine maintenance involves routine checks, inspections and part replacement to keep your vehicle running sm ... read more

If you’re like most Sacramento drivers, the last thing you want on your hands is a costly vehicle repair. When you’re without a car, it puts a hold on family, work and other responsibilities, not to mention the extra hassle of making replacement travel arrangements. Unfortunately, you can reduce the chances of needing auto repair by simply staying on top of your auto maintenance. While auto maintenance seems like a simple routine on paper, the majority of drivers tend to forget about it until serious damage happens to their vehicles. Here are 5 simple, but important tips to stay on top of your auto maintenance routine.   Tip #1 Consult Your Owner’s Manual While it may seem dull to get into that thick owner’s manual that came with your car, it’s a vital part of staying on top of the required auto maintenance. Your owner’s manual will let you know exactly how often your vehicle needs to be serviced and the specific type of oil, coolant ... read more

Sacramento BMW owners face the challenge of finding a reasonably priced auto repair shop that they can trust with the many facets of BMW repair. BMWs are complex driving machines, and an auto repair shop must be equipped with the proper computers and tools to effectively repair any issues the vehicle may have. Fortunately, Standard Auto Care in Sacramento is fully equipped with the tools needed to handle any BMW repair, and that’s not the only reason to trust your luxury vehicle with us. Here we will be discussing why you should choose Standard Auto Care for your next BMW Repair. Standard Auto Care Offers a Warranty You Can Rely On Repairing luxury vehicles, like a BMW, can often be a pricey experience, which is why the last thing you want is to pay for the same repair over and over again. At Standard Auto Care we offer a 3-year, 36,000 mile nationwide warranty on all of our repairs. This means if you paid to have it fixed once, there’s no need to pay to ... read more

Some Subarus will have to have the head gasket replaced due to leaking either coolant or oil. If you observe the are where the head bolts onto the block you may see some residue. This is what to look for. See the oil accumulation? Make sure your repair facility is aware of this and keeps thier eyes open when your car comes in. If you happen to notice either oil or coolant leaking be sure to get your car in ASAP to be inspected by a qualified mechanic. Allowing this problem to go unchecked could result in the engine overheating and may cost extra for the repairs. The valve guides are succeptible to heat damage and the head casting itself can warp or crack A Subaru gasket where the leak occured Typically a head gasket repair can take up to a week or more. You MUST send the head to the machine shop for inspection and testing to check for cracks or valve leakage. This can involve a few days depending on how busy the machine shop is. It is imperitive that the repair be done correctly. We ... read more

Mistake #1 Don’t choose a shop that does not have your best interests in view! The most important part of the repair process is what the shops core philosophy is on servicing the customer. This is the foundation and most important issue to consider when choosing a shop. . Here are a few things to consider when choosing a shop” Are the customer service representatives asking you lots of questions about how long you’ve had the car, prior services performed, and future intentions for the cars use? Using your intuition: what is your initial gut feeling about your first contact? Don’t discount this, especially if you’re a woman.  Are they giving you lots of information on what the repair process consists of? Are they offering a free vehicle inspection and prioritizing and explaining any services needed. Do you feel that they are genuinely interested in what you desire to happen based on what you’ve told them? Call the shop and ... read more

I have worked as a drivability technician in a dealer ship and the private shops for close to 30 years. One thing that I have faced in my career which can be a difficult variable to quantify in engine operation is bad gas. No one that I have ever seen examines their gas before or during filling their vehicle except people putting gas in cans. Yet it causes untold problems that manifest themselves in pretty bizarre ways. A random hard start, stumble, hiccup, stall or sputtering are all symptoms of contaminated fuel as well as poor mileage and often a foul smell to boot. It can cause misfires and even check engine lights. There can be 2 kinds of bad gas. Gas that is old and has lost most of its volatile components through evaporation and has thickened to varnish or contaminated gas which has had water, dirt or some kind of other thing put in it that shouldn’t be there. Old bad gas is rare from a filling station but contaminated fuel happens all of the time. Just because gas compan ... read more

” This article is about the inside of a Toyota Sienna power sliding door. They were a nifty concept, but in application they are a nightmare. They break constantly, and are horrifically expensive to repair when they do so. They have multiple motors, and replacing the regulator cables often requires the Air Conditioning Evaporator Core, which is mounted in the rear body panel, be removed. Replacing the motor cable which broke on some vehicle takes more than 4 hours, and the part is nearly $600. Well, the good news is Toyota just announced a warranty extension on the Power Sliding Doors -9 years, 120k miles. Ask us to help you with this problem. We’re a dedicated Toyota auto repair shop Sacramento and we’re here for you