Tune-ups: Bring life back into your Car

A Tune-up should be performed as preventative maintenance, but cars brought into Birch Tire and Auto Repair are often far past maintenance and into gas waste, weak performance or even failure.

 

At Birch Tire and Auto Repair, we use grade A oem replacement components when identifying and replacing worn parts. They ensure that your vehicle will operate at optimal levels by maintaining the ideal conditions for normal car operation.

 

Neglecting these common parts could result in loss of gas mileage and in worst case situations, damage to critical engine components.

 

Most cars require regularly scheduled tune-ups around every 30,000 miles, and major maintenance at 60,000 miles. Some newer vehicles may not even require a tune-up until 100,000 miles!

 

Check with your manufacturer or a Birch Tire Car Care technician for what is correct for your vehicle.

 

A Birch Tire and Auto Repair tune-up will include:

 

Replacing the air filter.

Replacing the fuel filter(s).

Installing new spark plugs and replacing any worn spark plug wires.

Inspecting and installing a new distributor cap if one is needed.

Inspecting and installing a new rotor if the old one has cracks, burning and carbon.

Inspecting the valve-cover gasket and adjusting the valves (if your car has adjustable valves).

All fluids checked and topped off.

A battery check and terminal cleaning, if necessary.

A positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) valve replaced, if clogged.

 

Cars built prior to 1979 have additional requirements.

Cars without an electronic ignition require changing the points and condenser. Cars with electronic ignition should have the timing checked.

 

Fuel-injected cars need to have the throttle plate cleaned and we’ll adjust the air-fuel mixture. Cars with carburetors often need additional adjustments. 

 

Maintaining a regular tune-up schedule will ensure your car’s long life while averaging better gas mileage and performance.

2 & 4 WHEEL ALIGNMENT

 

 

Wheel Alignment: Save tires and gas!

 

To maintain proper control of your car, you must keep your wheels in proper alignment. Otherwise, steering will become difficult, your tires will wear unevenly and your fuel economy will decrease.

 

One way to see if you need a wheel alignment:

Make sure your tires are properly inflated. Then take your car for a test drive. Lightly rest your hands on the steering wheel, but don’t steer. If your car drifts to either side, make an appointment with Birch Tire and Auto Repair.

 

Inspect the tread on your tires to see if it is uneven. If the tread is worn down the middle, most likely your tires are over-inflated. If it’s worn on the inside and outside of the tire, then your tires are probably under-inflated. If the tires are worn to one side you could be due for a wheel alignment.

 

Today, service centers like Birch Tire and Auto Repair use computerized alignment equipment to diagnose your alignment angles. Some of the most common are:

Toe: the direction of the wheels towards or away from each (viewed from above the car).

Camber: tilt of the wheels toward or away from each other (viewed from in front of your car).

Caster: the angle of the steering axis in relation to the wheel. To visualize this angle, imagine a vertical line through the middle of your tire while standing on one side of the car.

 

An alignment check at a Birch Tire and Auto Repair location includes:

Inspection of all steering and suspension components.

Examination of the tires (size, inflation and wear).

Comparison of your current alignment readings to the guidelines provided by your manufacturer.

CAR BELTS & CAR HOSES

  

Belts and Hoses: Replace before Failure!
Breakdowns are most commonly caused by worn belts and hoses. Neglecting them can leave you stranded.

 

To prevent an emergency or inconvenience, have your belts and hoses checked every time you have your oil changed. Although a belt can look healthy, the rubber used to make it could be dry and cracked due to age, heat, cold and normal wear and tear.

 

 

Performance Relies on Strong Belts

Your car’s belts make more than 35 million revolutions each year, so don't ignore them. An important part of your car, the belts wrap around pulleys to power many of your car’s other components.

 

Worn, defective or improperly adjusted belts contribute to accidents and breakdowns, costly repairs, battery failure and overheated engines.

 

Check your belts every six months. If they are too tight, they will stretch and break. If they are too loose, they won’t work efficiently.

 

Birch Tire and Auto Repair location technicians will check your car’s belts for:

• Glazing and cracking
• Proper tensioning
• Proper alignment of drive pulleys

 

Hoses Keep Vital Fluids Circulating to Engine Parts

 

A visual inspection may not always help you locate a bad hose. A failed hose may not necessarily leak. To locate hoses that need replaced, you can pinch them to check for cracks, brittleness and mushiness.

 

Keep in mind that hoses wear on the inside, as well as the outside. Even though a hose may seem ok, internal deterioration could cause it to fail.