Avoid major repair with regular car maintenance

In Automotive Diagnostics, Brakes, Oil Change, Vehicle Maintenance by HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire

Chances are, that whenever possible, you’re trying to save money – particularly when it comes to big ticket items like car repair. While some car repair is unavoidable – like normal wear and tear on the vehicle, or getting into a road incident – there are actually ways that you can avoid major repair work. In order to do that, you need to make sure your car is getting regular maintenance.

axle of cv joint for volvo.

This is why it’s important to get your car inspected regularly.

“Most repairs come from lack of maintenance,” said HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire Manager Rich Campbell.

Just like with preventative medical care, preventative and regular car maintenance on your vehicle can fix problems when they’re still small, or help you to avoid them altogether.

Each time you bring your car in for an oil change – 3,000 to 7,000 miles depending on specifications for your vehicle and the type of oil you use – technicians need to do a full inspection of the vehicle’s fluids, steering, suspension, and brakes.

If the shop you’re going to now isn’t doing this full inspection with every oil change, you need to find a new shop.

This full inspection looks at all of the common places where wear and damage can start to show in your vehicle, and provides service advisors with the information they need, so they can make appropriate recommendations for your vehicle.

Oil change at HomeTowne Auto Repair.

Keeping your car maintained with regular oil changes and tire rotations will help your vehicle last longer.

At HomeTowne we provide recommendations ranked by level of urgency, so that even if you can’t handle all of the maintenance immediately, you can come up with a game plan.

Spending a few hundred dollars on importance maintenance here and there is far more reasonable than thousands on unexpected repairs, so make sure that you’re maintaining your vehicle and budgeting for maintenance work, so you can keep you and your car happy, and out on the road.

7 things to do, to get your car ready for spring

In Brake Fluid Flush, Cabin Air Filter, Oil Change, Tires & Wheels, Vehicle Fluids, Vehicle Maintenance by HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire

Now that the hard winter months are behind us and we’re moving into spring, it may be time for you to do some ‘spring cleaning’ and bring your car to the shop for some maintenance.

Here are some seven things we recommend to get your car ready for spring:

Dirty cabin air filter.Get your cabin air-filter swapped out.

While getting your cabin air-filters changed regularly is an important part of regular maintenance, it’s even more important when it’s springtime, in order to keep pollen and other things in the air out of your car.

“That cabin air filter filters your pollen, the dust, and getting ready for spring you want a good, fresh cabin air filter in there,” said Rich Campbell, manager at HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire.

Get your car’s fluids flushed, especially your coolant.

Radiator hose replacement at HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire.

Radiator hose replacement at HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire

Now that winter is pretty much over, it’s a good idea to get all of your car’s fluids checked, flushed, and refilled – especially your coolant, as the coolant keeps your car cool and working properly, as temperatures continue to climb.

“Given the fact that we’re going to start coming in to warmer weather, your car’s going to be running a little hotter because the ambient temperature’s going to be warmed up, so coolant’s a good fluid to get changed now,” said Campbell.

Get your tires inspected, to make sure they’re in good shape.

Brake fluid flush on Jeep.

Brake fluid flush on Jeep at HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire

During the winter, driving through snow and ice can really take a toll on your tires. Having your tires inspected, to make sure that they’re still safe to drive and have enough tread on them is huge as spring rains move through the area. If your tires are worn down, you won’t be able to have the traction you need, for stopping time on wet surfaces. A few seconds may not sound like much when it comes to traction on your tires, but can make a huge difference when your stopping time is impaired.

“You need to make sure you’ve got adequate traction,” said Campbell.

If you use winter tires, it’s time to swap them out.

While many people now opt for an all season tire, if you’ve invested in winter tires for the bad weather in Virginia, then now it’s time to preserve the life of those tires, and switch over to some all season or summer tires.

Get all of your bulbs and lights checked.

Replacing tail light bulb.

Replacing tail light bulb at HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire

This is another part of good vehicle maintenance that you should be doing year round, but as part of your vehicle ‘spring cleaning’ it’s a good idea to make sure that all of your lights and bulbs are working correctly, and replace the ones that have fizzled out.

Get your hoses checked for dirt and grime buildup.

During the winter time, things like salt and grime can work their way into your car, specifically your houses, and cause a problem later if it goes unchecked. You don’t want to wait until you’re having a problem with your hoses, to find it was something that could have been prevented with a little maintenance.

“Dirt and grime accumulates from the winter salts we’ve endured. That salt’s pretty tough on the underside of a car,” said Campbell.

Wheel Alignment at HomeTowne Auto Repair.

Wheel Alignment at HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire

Get your alignment checked.

In the winter you’re bound to deal with all of the potholes that have accumulated from snow and plowing, and maybe you even ran into a few curbs during a storm. No matter what the reason is, getting your alignment checked and corrected, and having a technician check for tire wear are important parts of getting your car ready for spring.

The multi-point courtesy check that HomeTowne does will pick up a lot of these issues and more, and comes free with all of our standard oil changes. Be smart this spring, and make sure your car is ready to go for spring and summer road trips, not stuck in the shop for costly problems.

HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire is an authorized Michelin and BFGoodrich tire dealer located in Woodbridge, Virginia. Automotive repair services are performed on all makes and models, including oil changes, brakes, alignments, inspections, and computer engine diagnostics.

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Why you should choose HomeTowne Auto Repair and Tire for your oil changes

In Oil Change, Vehicle Maintenance by HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire

  • Toyota Sienna rear brake check.

    Toyota Sienna Rear Brake Check during an oil change

  • Qualified technicians to perform oil changes and maintenance.

    Qualified technicians to perform oil changes and maintenance

  • oil change on a honda vtec.

    oil change honda vtec

  • Using the correct type and weight of oil during oil change.

    oil change correct type and weight of oil

  • Honda Civic Belt check during an oil change.

    Honda Civic Belt check during an oil change

  • Honda Civic Battery Corrosion.

    Honda Civic Battery Corrision

  • Tire inspection during Ford Mustang oil change.

    Ford Mustang oil change tire inspection

  • Dodge Charger tire rotation.

    Dodge Charger tire rotation during an oil change

  • Quality oil filter and synthetic oil for BMW.

    BMW oil change quality oil filter and synthetic oil

Getting your vehicle’s oil changed is a regular part of good maintenance, and there are many quick service locations and auto shops that offer oil changes. So why make the decision to go to HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire for your oil change? There are many reasons.

When you come to HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire versus a quick service location, you’re going to get a much more comprehensive oil change and service.

“We inspect the car top to bottom. We look at the recommendations for each car, recommended by the manufacturer for that mileage,” said Jason Dean, one of our Master Technicians.

During an oil change we offer a full inspection of the car including brakes, suspension, tires, lights, wiper blades, window glass and leaks. Essentially we offer a mini state inspection, with a check sheet of important things to look for to keep your car operating smoothly and safely.

We also offer a great value. Our standard oil changes cost $39, but we go the extra mile for our customers, offering a tire rotation with the oil change as part of your service – which is a $20 to $30 value alone. This is much different than what you’ll get at a quick service location.

Part of the reason we offer this tire rotation service, is so that our certified technicians can see your brakes clearly, to look for signs of wear or damage. This can end up saving you hundreds or being in an accident, by finding problems early and preventing them.

In addition to our standard oil change service, we offer premium packages for $59 and $79 that can include installing an engine oil supplement, fluid analysis, fuel supplements and new filters, all with that same superior level of service.

One thing that is important to us at HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire is listening to our customers. We want to know all of your concerns about the car before your oil change, so that during our inspection we can look for those issues.

“We look at the car to address, first and foremost, the customer’s concerns. That’s the first thing that we look at – if they have a concern such as noise, or anything that the car’s doing, and then we go from there,” Dean said.

So if you want a technician to put time and care into your car during an oil change, then we’re the right shop for you.

“You’re going to get an honest evaluation of the car, we honestly care about what we do, we care about the customer and you’ll get a fair price,” Dean said.

HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire is an authorized Michelin and BFGoodrich tire dealer located in Woodbridge, Virginia. Automotive repair services are performed on all makes and models, including oil changes, brakes, alignments, inspections, and computer engine diagnostics.

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