Federal Automotive Service & Towing

Deciphering The Menu Board At Bethel Service Centers : Part 2

federalaut660 — Tue, 15 May 2012 21:34:02 +0000

Bethel auto service centers have a menu board that lists the services they provide. Some Bethel auto owners may not be familiar with all of the items on the board so here is a quick description of some of the typical services that might be listed.

Federal Automotive Service & Towing fuel system cleaning: Over time, the SUV fuel system gets gum and varnish built up. A fuel system cleaning gets rid of that and cleans out the fuel injectors. Saves gas, by the way.

Federal Automotive Service & Towing headlamp replacement: Halogen and standard headlamps gradually fade. It’s usually good to change them every year or so.

Inspections: Bethel drivers get inspections for many reasons. Maybe they’re leaving Bethel and going on a trip or just want to make sure their SUV’s ready for summer or winter. Maybe they just bought a used car in Bethel and want to give it the once over. An inspection may reveal some things that are broken or are getting close to having a problem.

Federal Automotive Service & Towing oil change – there are several options: Some Bethel centers offer just an oil change and new filter as an option. Most will also check and top off all of your other fluids and do a quick visual inspection with a full service oil change. In my way of thinking, the full service option is best because it makes sure you have adequate fluids in your SUV and may uncover an emerging problem. There may also be options for higher mileage fluids or an upgrade to synthetic oil.

Federal Automotive Service & Towing PCV valve service: PCV stands for Positive Crankcase Ventilation valve. It’s a little part that releases pressure from the engine. It can get gummed up and that can lead to engine damage. Just needs to be changed now and then.

Federal Automotive Service & Towing power steering service: Often overlooked. The Bethel auto technician will evacuate the old fluid, clean out the system and replace it with clean fluid. Keeps the system running well for a long time.

Serpentine belt: That’s the belt that powers the SUV’s engine’s accessories like the alternator, air conditioner, power steering and brakes. You’ll want to replace the serpentine belt before it breaks, because that’ll shut you down.

Shocks and struts: This starts with an inspection of the suspension components in your SUV. Shocks last a long time and wear out slowly, so many Bethel people don’t notice when it’s time to change them. If they’re worn or leaking, they need to be replaced.

Bethel transmission service: This involves removing the transmission fluid and replacing it with clean fluid. It’s like an oil change for your transmission.

Tire rotation and wheel balancing: The SUV tires are rotated from front to back using the recommended rotation pattern. This helps tires wear more evenly. Wheels need to be balanced from time to time to keep them turning without any wobble or bounce. Helps the ride and saves tire wear for Bethel car owners.

At Federal Automotive Service & Towing in Danbury CT (06810) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 203.794.9475. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Cooling System Service At Federal Automotive Service & Towing

federalaut660 — Fri, 11 May 2012 17:58:10 +0000

Your SUV cooling system’s job is to keep your engine cool. Coolant (also called antifreeze) mixed with water flows through your engine and absorbs heat. The mixture then flows out to the radiator where it’s cooled by air flowing over the radiator. From there the cooled mix circulates back through the SUV engine to absorb more heat.

Coolant, or antifreeze, is specially formulated to keep your engine safe in a wide range of environmental and operating temperatures in Danbury.

Without coolant, the SUV’s metal engine parts would expand so much that the engine would seize up and stop running. Expensive parts could be broken or warp so badly they would have to be replaced at Federal Automotive Service & Towing in Danbury. It could even be so bad that the whole engine is ruined and has to be replaced.

Also, if it’s freezing outside in Danbury, the water in your engine could freeze while your vehicle is sitting out in the CT cold. This is why you check coolant levels frequently and have your cooling system inspected for leaks. Also your manufacturer has a maintenance requirement for draining and replacing your coolant. These recommendations can vary widely, so check your Danbury owner’s manual or ask your service advisor at Federal Automotive Service & Towing in Danbury.

The reason you need to change the coolant is that it has additives in it to protect the cooling system. As you can imagine, with all the heat, the cooling system’s a pretty harsh environment. The additives keep the fluid from becoming corrosive and damaging the radiator and other Danbury cooling system components. Over time, the additives are depleted and the coolant just has to be replaced. A simple pH test can measure the coolant’s acidity.

You may have noticed that there are different colors of antifreeze at Federal Automotive Service & Towing: it is very important that you use the correct type. The different coolant types are different colors so you don’t mix them up. Manufacturers use different materials to make the cooling system, and they require different types of antifreeze to protect them.

So check with your courteous Federal Automotive Service & Towing service advisor or owner’s manual for the right kind because using the wrong coolant can void the warranty for your SUV cooling system.

Ask us about emissions repair, routine maintenance and air conditioning service.

Give us a call

Federal Automotive Service & Towing
203.794.9475
272 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810

Get Fresh Air Inside Your Car In Danbury

federalaut660 — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:20:35 +0000

Air quality affects us wherever we are in Danbury. Many decades ago, Danbury residents began to become aware of how air pollution negatively affects health. But what about the air inside your vehicle?

Cabin air filters are now coming on most new SUVs since the 2000 model year. These filters clean the air in the passenger compartment. They can filter particles down to three microns, so that’s good enough to clean out dust, pollen and most pollutants. If you suffer from allergies in Danbury, this is very good news.

You can look in your SUV owner’s manual to see if you have a cabin air filter. If you do, there’ll be a recommendation for replacing it when it gets dirty. If you live where there’s a lot of dust, pollen or pollution, you may need to change it more often. You can also ask your courteous service advisor at Federal Automotive Service & Towing in Danbury.

How hard it is to change a cabin air filter depends on your vehicle. Some are quite accessible; others take some doing to get to them. They’re usually in the SUV engine compartment or under the dashboard.

Because cabin air filters are so new on the scene, some Danbury motorists haven’t heard of them – even people who have cabin air filters. Federal Automotive Service & Towing service advisors report customers complaining of an unpleasant odor in their vehicle and it turned out to be a dirty cabin air filter.

An important note for Danbury hybrid owners: there is a special air filter that cleans the air that cools the hybrid battery pack. This filter should be inspected every time the cabin air filter is inspected and replaced if it is dirty so that the battery pack doesn’t overheat.

Give us a call

Federal Automotive Service & Towing
203.794.9475
272 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810

Wheel Alignment Service At Federal Automotive Service & Towing In Danbury

federalaut660 — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:40:04 +0000

When all of a vehicle’s wheels are lined up exactly with each other, your wheels are in alignment. Hitting a road hazard in Danbury or even just the normal bumps and bounces of everyday CT driving can cause your SUV wheels to be out of alignment. This can lead to expensive premature tire and suspension wear.

Here are some alignment basics from Federal Automotive Service & Towing:
The first angle is called toe: do the wheels point in towards each other or away from each other at the front of the tire.
The next angle is called camber: do the wheels tip in or out at the top.
And finally, there is castor. Castor measures the angle where the front axles attach to the vehicle.

The ideal alignment for your SUV was designed by its engineers. Federal Automotive Service & Towing alignment service starts with an inspection of the steering and suspension – so see if anything’s bent, broken or worn out. Then the Federal Automotive Service & Towing technician will look at tire condition. From there, the SUV is put on an alignment rack and an initial alignment reading is taken. The wheels are then aligned to manufacturer’s specifications.

Your owner’s manual probably has a recommendation for how often your SUV alignment should be checked – usually every couple of years. If you suspect an alignment problem with your SUV, get it checked at Federal Automotive Service & Towing before you suffer expensive tire or suspension damage.

Give us a call

Federal Automotive Service & Towing
203.794.9475
272 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810

Viva la Differential At Federal Automotive Service & Towing

federalaut660 — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:08:52 +0000

With front-wheel drive being so common in Danbury these days, the differential is just taken care of during a transmission service, so most Danbury folks don’t even have to think about it. And most rear-wheel drive SUV differentials don’t need to be serviced for many miles, so it’s understandable that it’s not something on the top of mind. So it’s not uncommon for CT people to not know they have a differential let alone know that it needs service.

To better understand what a differential does, think about a high school track. There are lanes marked off on the track. For the longer distance races, the starting lines are staggered. The starting lines for the outside lanes are ahead of the starting lines for the inside lanes. That’s to compensate for the longer length of the outside lanes. Staggering the starting lines means that each runner has the same distance to run.

The differential compensates for the difference in speeds on drive wheels between the inside wheel and the outside wheel in a turn, because they have to travel together through slightly different distances.

Many SUV differentials do a lot of work and require very heavy duty parts. And those parts need protection. The differential fluid lubricates the gears in the differential and keeps them cool. The fluid eventually gets dirty and worn down. Some kinds of differentials require special additives that break down over time. So manufacturers and Federal Automotive Service & Towing technicians recommend intervals for replacing your differential fluid.

Your Federal Automotive Service & Towing service technician will drain the used fluid and check it out for metal bits, which could be a sign of excessive wear on the gears. He’ll then replace the fluid and install the additives if necessary.

Danbury four wheel drive SUVs need special attention to their differentials because they have a differential on both the front and rear axles that work at different times and sometimes under heavy loads – so they may need to be serviced at Federal Automotive Service & Towing at different intervals.

Your Danbury service advisor can look up the manufacturer’s recommended service interval or you can check your SUV owner’s manual.

Give us a call

Federal Automotive Service & Towing
203.794.9475
272 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810

Severe Driving In Danbury

federalaut660 — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:47:51 +0000

Most Danbury motorists know that their owner’s manuals have schedules for preventive maintenance. Things like oil changes, transmission service and so on. They say you should change your oil every so many miles or after so many months. Danbury people understand this very well. What they may not know is that there are actually two service schedules: the regular schedule and the severe service schedule. The mileage and time intervals are lower on the severe service schedule.

Now when you hear “severe service”, you may think it doesn’t apply to you because you don’t feel your driving conditions are severe or extreme – it’s just normal everyday driving around Danbury. At Federal Automotive Service & Towing, we discuss the conditions that manufacturers classify as severe so that you can make the judgment on your own driving.

Most trips are less than four miles

Most trips are less than ten miles and outside temperatures are below freezing in Danbury

You drive in very hot CT weather

Driving at low speed most of the time (under 55 mph)

Stop and go driving

Operating your vehicle in dusty, polluted or muddy conditions

You tow a trailer, regularly carry heavy loads or carry a car-top carrier on your SUV

Most Danbury drivers operate under severe driving conditions at least some of the time. How do you know which schedule to follow for your SUV?

Carefully think about your driving conditions and decide if you should do your preventive maintenance closer to the severe service recommendation or the regular recommendation. Of course, your Federal Automotive Service & Towing advisor can help you with your decision.

Schedule A Suspension Inspection At Federal Automotive Service & Towing

federalaut660 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:09:52 +0000

Today’s Brookfield car care article focuses on your suspension system. After many years and tens of thousands of miles, your SUV suspension system components do wear out, but how long that takes depends a lot on how you drive. As you can imagine, if most of your driving is on smooth Brookfield highways, your shock absorbers will last a lot longer than if you do most of your driving on bumpy roads or hauling heavy loads.

In addition to just wearing out, Federal Automotive Service & Towing customers need to know that suspension components can be damaged in an accident or by a hard impact – like a pothole, hitting a curb or a rock in the road.

Because the life span of shocks can vary so widely, your SUV manufacturer and Federal Automotive Service & Towing recommend periodic inspections. During an inspection, your Brookfield service technician will check for worn, broken or missing parts.

Signs that shocks or struts are wearing out: The tires may have a cupped wear pattern. This is from the shocks bouncing unevenly as you drive around Brookfield. You may notice a floaty or drifting sensation when cornering. If the front of your SUV dives excessively when stopping, or rocks back and forth after you stopped, your shocks may be worn out. And if they are leaking fluid, it’s definitely time to replace them.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, come into Federal Automotive Service & Towing for a suspension inspection. Same if you’ve been in an accident that involved one of your wheels. Worn or broken shocks can cause premature wear or failure on other SUV suspension parts such as ball joints and other steering components as well. If your suspension actually fails, it could lead to a serious accident, so let us take care of your suspension components at Federal Automotive Service & Towing.

When you replace your shocks, it’s usually a good idea to replace all four at the same time. That’ll give you more even handling. Talk with your service advisor at Federal Automotive Service & Towing because you don’t want a big difference between the performance of your shocks from wheel to wheel, and replacing all may be the safest bet.

PCV Valve Replacement At Federal Automotive Service & Towing

federalaut660 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:26:29 +0000

Today’s Newtown car care article focuses on PCV valve replacement. The PCV valve is a little, inexpensive part that does a big job for your SUV. PCV stands for Positive Crankcase Ventilation.

The crankcase is the bottom area of the engine that holds the oil. When the SUV engine’s running, fuel is burned to generate power. Most of the exhaust from combustion goes out through the exhaust system. But some exhaust blows by the pistons and goes into the lower engine, or crankcase.

These hot gases are about seventy percent unburned fuel. This can dilute and contaminate the oil, leading to damaging engine oil sludge. It can also cause engine corrosion in your SUV. At high speeds, the pressure can build up to the point that gaskets and seals start to leak.

Newtown car owners need to know that over time, the vented gases will gum up the PCV valve and it won’t work well. That can lead to all of the problems I’ve already described, oil leaks, excessive oil consumption and wasted gas.

Fortunately, it’s very easy to test the PCV valve and quick and inexpensive to replace it at Federal Automotive Service & Towing. Even so, it’s often overlooked because many Newtown drivers don’t know about it.

Check your SUV owner’s manual or ask your Federal Automotive Service & Towing advisor. If this is the first time you’ve heard of a PCV valve, you might be in line for a PCV valve replacement.

Please ask us about your PCV valve. For the price of a couple of burger combo meals, you can avoid some very expensive deep engine repairs.

Danbury Tire Tread Depth – Washington vs. Lincoln

federalaut660 — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:39:07 +0000

Today’s Federal Automotive Service & Towing article discusses the effect of tire tread depth on braking. When talking about stopping power, Danbury drivers tend to focus on brakes. But our tires are where the rubber meets the road. So having good brakes isn’t enough. Danbury motorists have to have tires with enough traction to translate braking power into stopping power.

Let’s focus on stopping in wet Danbury conditions. In order for a tire to have good contact with the road, it has to move the water out of the way. If it can’t move the water, the tire will actually ride on top of a thin film of water.

That’s called hydroplaning. At Federal Automotive Service & Towing we want our customers to know that if it’s really bad, you can actually spin out of control. At best, you won’t stop as fast.

So how does a tire move water? It has channels for water to flow through. Look at a tire and you’ll see channels: channels that run around the tire and channels that flow across the tire. They’re designed to direct water away from the tire so it can contact the road better.

And the deeper the channel, the more water it can move. A brand new tire has very deep channels and can easily move a lot of water. As the tire wears down, the channels become shallower and can move less water. When it wears down enough, it can seriously affect your ability to stop on wet Danbury roads.

So that’s why it’s so important for Danbury drivers to replace the tires on their SUVs when they get worn. Consumer Reports and other advocate groups call for a standard of 3/32 of an inch and they have the studies to prove it.

By comparison, you’ve probably seen the wear indicator that’s molded into tires. When tires are worn 3/32 of an inch, the tread wear bar is visible. So the recommended standard has twice the tread depth as a completely worn out tire.

And that little bit of additional tread makes a big difference. Stopping distances are cut dramatically on wet roads. A safe stop from CT freeway speeds with 4/32 of an inch of tread would result in a crash with worn out tires.

There’s an easy way to tell when a tire’s worn to 4/32 of an inch. Just insert a quarter into the tread. Put it in upside down. If the tread doesn’t cover George Washington’s hairline, it’s time to replace your tires. With a Canadian quarter, the tread should cover the numbers in the year stamp.

You’ve probably heard of this technique using a penny and Abe Lincoln’s head. That measure gives you 2/32 of an inch – half the suggested amount.

Of course, tires are a big ticket item for Danbury car owners. Most of us want to get as many miles out of them as we can. But there’s a real safety trade-off. It’s your choice.

Serpentine Belt Replacement At Federal Automotive Service & Towing

federalaut660 — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 17:42:44 +0000

Today’s Federal Automotive Service & Towing article focuses on your serpentine belt. Your serpentine belt is a long belt that’s driven by your engine. It winds around several accessories that power important automotive systems. Let’s go over them.

First, the serpentine belt drives your air conditioning system. Next, the belt powers the alternator.

The serpentine belt may also run the pumps for both the power steering and power brakes. In some SUVs, power steering may have an electric drive and power brakes can be vacuum driven.

And, on many vehicles, the serpentine belt powers the water pump (on some cars, the water pump is powered by the timing belt).

Your Federal Automotive Service & Towing service technician can perform a visual inspection of the belt to see if it has any cracks that signal the belt could fail soon and will measure the amount of belt material to make sure there is enough.

Danbury drivers should be aware that there’s a special, spring loaded pulley attached to the engine called the tensioner pulley and sometimes an extra pulley call the idler pulley. Their job is to make sure there’s a constant tension on the serpentine belt so that it doesn’t slip. The spring can become worn and no longer provide the necessary pressure to keep the belt tight. That’s why it’s often recommended that the tensioner, and the idler pulley if so equipped, be replaced at the same time as the serpentine belt.

All in all, the serpentine belt’s an important part for the function of your SUV. And it’s not that expensive to replace at Federal Automotive Service & Towing – so it’s good to do so before it fails.