San Diego Auto Repair

As cars age, they are more likely to experience hiccups in their reliability and performance, despite your best maintenance and foresight. Here are a few emergency items to keep in your car or trunk for a quick fix on the side of the road or in your driveway, and some bonus items every driver should have with them. Image: Flickr If you have an older car, you may already know the value of having a few supplies with you in case something happens. As cars age, they are more likely to experienc ... read more

Sometimes our older cars give us little puzzles to figure out. Take this 2007 Chevy van, for example. Its owner had brought it in because it had been leaking water, even though there was no sign of a leakage when we got it up on our lift. In fact, the engine looked quite dry. Car engines have weep holes built in, which are designed to leak water slowly so you can tell when it's time to replace the water pump. But in this case, as soon as a little bit of pressure is applied to the engine, the water started gushing like a faucet. The video is actually pretty crazy to see – the water comes out so quickly and full, not to mention all of a sudden. Check out the video to see what we had to do to find the source of the issue for this customer, and how obvious it is that this van's water pump is totally broken. Transcript: Today we're looking at a 2007 Chevy van that came in with a water leak, and as we ... read more

The Golden Years: Keeping The Car Running As we here at Convoy are an automotive service and repair facility, it should come as no surprise that we believe routine maintenance is key to keeping your cherished ride running and looking its best. It also helps that this belief is corroborated by car experts everywhere, so there should be no surprise in this statement to anyone. But what, exactly, should owners of older cars in Southern California be doing whenever they have their car serviced? And what things that aren’t maintenance related can owners do on their own to ensure their car is running in tip top shape? Here are a few tips for anyone with a vehicle enjoying its “Golden Years.” Image: Wikipedia Check Your Tire Condition Yourself Regularly: When you bring your car to ... read more

Most San Diego schools only have a few weeks before classes start up again, and that makes August the perfect time to fit in some last minute road trips before you have to get back to the grind! But even if you aren't in school (or don't have kids who are), there's something about August that just screams road trip season - we think it has a lot to do with the heat! But in San Diego, the real heat doesn't begin until September. If you're looking to heat up the summer before it ends, you'll delight in taking a trip to a hot destination during the hottest season. The desert in the heat of summer offers a dramatic experience for the more determined traveler, and a stunning road trip from San Diego. And if you're looking for a hot summer road trip destination, we have some places in mind - in the most literal sense! Image ... read more

Ever since air conditioning became a standard feature on cars, there has been passionate debate about its effect on fuel consumption. Is it negligible? Is it worth the discomfort? What about rolling down the window? How much fuel does AC really use in a modern car? There are so many conflicting reports and rumors that’s almost impossible to determine a real answer. Here, we'll go over the basics of AC and driving with the windows down (hello physics!), but at the end of the day you may make your decision based on your personal preference on any particular day. (For example, no matter how much money your car might save by not using AC, no one is driving through the desert without it!) Does using the AC use more fuel? Of course. While the quantity can change depending on the aerodynamics of the car, using the AC does use more fuel than driving with the windows closed. This might be an obvious an ... read more

When the AC in your car stops working, it can be hard to quickly identify the problem. Is it the condenser? The compressor? Does it just need a recharge? Does the belt need adjusted? The surest way to know is to grab a friend, pop the hood, and start AC troubleshooting your car's AC problems! (Or, barring that, bring it in and we’ll do the troubleshooting for you.)   Image: Pixabay   Step 1: Determine the exact problem your AC is having. Is your AC blowing hot air? Blowing cooler air, but not cold air on max AC? Now blowing air at all? Not engaging at the motor? All of these problems have a different fix, and it’s important to know which issue you’re looking at. Step 2: Check for leaks - Leaks are the number one pro ... read more

We’ve all know how it goes: white smoke starts pouring from the hood, the temperature light is on, and suddenly you’re on the side of the road with your hood up waiting for the car to cool down. The summer months can be hard for even modern vehicles; the warm weather creates some additional stress on the engine, and then use of the air conditioner adds even more heat and work under the hood. Do you know what to do if your car overheats? Image: Flickr What to do in case of your car overheating STOP DRIVING - The quickest way to be in the market for a new engine is to keep driving after your engine starts to overheat. Even driving to the next exit is too far. Pulling over immediately will save you thousands and hopefully allow you to keep your engine. Call a tow truck - The $50 or so to get your ... read more

It’s summer time in southern California and San Diego is having a scorcher of a week - and that means it’s peak season for car air conditioning. When temperatures go up, the load on your car’s AC unit is higher, especially if you need to run the AC over a long drive (such as a summer road trip!). Here are some tips to keep your car AC in tip top shape!  Image: Flickr How to ensure your AC stays in great condition Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance We go over this in more detail in our post about the topic, What You Need to Know about Car AC Maintenance, but there are some basic steps you can take that will keep your AC blowing cold, including changing your air filter and recharging your system as appropriate. Visual Inspection This is especi ... read more

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: preventative car care is the number one way to keep your car on the road longer, for the least amount of money. There’s a reason the old saying “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is so well known. No matter how old your car is, performing routine services keeps the systems in as good of shape as possible, helping you avoid more costly repairs and dangerous problems. Image: Pixabay Here are a few preventative car maintenance tips to keep in mind this summer: Regularly check and change all fluids- One of the easiest vehicle issues to avoid is a seized engine. Regular oil changes ensure you ... read more

In a major victory for families and minivan lovers everywhere (and a surprise to absolutely no one) the cheapest vehicles to insure are mostly SUVs, crossovers, and minivans, which are rarely bought by single people looking to take them to race tracks come the weekend. Oh, did we mention there is also a station wagon in the top ten? Yes, the station wagon is still being made in 2014. But it was the fact that the station wagon proved to be the cheapest to insure that sort of shocked us. Same as for the most expensive cars to insure, we checked the rates using MSN Money's insurance comparison tool for California - you'll probably find cheaper rates in other states, but then you'd have to move. So for those who just can't get enough of our amazing California sunshine but still don't want to pay a fortune in car insurance, this list of the least expensive cars to insure will be your best start to finding your next ri ... read more