San Diego Auto Repair

A day doesn't go by without clients bringing in their vehicles and describing some type of strange or new noise. We cannot begin to explain how important it is for us to diagnose these noises to properly identify the source. Just imagine getting into a car that you don't drive on a daily basis; you may have a hard time pinpointing the noise of concern. Many times, we have driven a vehicle and identified multiple noises that seem abnormal to me. only to find out the client's concern is just the "new" noise, and not the other previous noises. Then, we have the exceptions to the rule, like this case of the noisy Volkswagen. A brief call from the client explains that the brakes in the VW have been making some abnormal noises. Now the brake pedal feels low, and they feel it may be unsafe to drive, so they've made the decision to tow it in. A great decision, indeed! The vehicle arrived, and as stated, it not only had no brakes, but when the brakes were applied, the noise was so loud that it ... read more

When winter approaches in San Diego, we break out the sweaters, coats, boots and mittens. We want to be ready for winter conditions. Your vehicle needs to be ready for winter as well. The last thing you want is to get stranded out in the cold. You need your vehicle to be safe and reliable. It's a good idea to get caught up on any neglected maintenance items anytime - but the stakes are higher in the winter. There are some specific things that we need to do in San Diego to have our vehicle ready for winter. The most obvious is having the antifreeze checked. If the antifreeze level is too low, it can't properly protect your engine, radiator and hoses from freezing. If your car does not seem to be making enough heat to keep you warm, your antifreeze level may be low or you could have a thermostat problem. Get it checked out. If you are due for a cooling system service, now is a perfect time to have it done. In the cold months around San Diego we always worry about being able to stop in t ... read more

Spring is officially here, and if you're looking for some vroom-worthy events happening in Southern California, there are a few exciting things on our radar! Whether you prefer fast rides or classic beauts, read on for tons of automotive fun in San Diego and beyond. Not too far north of San Diego sits another city just as dedicated to auto events as we are. Irvine is about an hour’s drive up the I-5 freeway and frequently features tons of great auto events. Every Sunday, at the Great Park Farmers Market, is the Car and Bike Show from 11am-2pm. This free show features a 50/50 opportunity drawing, awards, and live music. Participants in the show also receive discounts from selected Great Park Farmers Market Vendors. Great Park is situated in the geographic center of Orange County within the city li ... read more

One automotive service issue that doesn't get much attention is driveline service. Drivelines don't get talked about very much around San Diego, but they're very important. First let's define what the driveline is: Taking a small step back, the power plant is comprised of the engine and transmission. The driveline starts there and includes all of the components that transfer power from the transmission to the wheels. That's not really a lot of components, but they handle the full force of the engine. Without the driveline you're not moving. So we need to take good care of it. The driveline components differ depending on whether your vehicle has front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, all wheel drive or four wheel drive. For purposes of our discussion, we're going to have to over simplify a bit. Let's start with front wheel drive. The point where the transmission stops and the driveline begins is a little blurred with front wheel drive because the transaxle houses both t ... read more

A while back, the Cash for Clunkers program was all over the news. San Diego people could trade in their old vehicle for a new one that got better fuel economy and receive a government rebate. A lot of San Diego motorists had so-called clunkers that they wanted to keep. They're good commuters, grocery getters or toy haulers. They enjoy that fact that they're paid off, or soon will be. They would gladly like to keep their sedans for 200,000 miles or more - as long as it's economical to do so. There are plenty of San Diego drivers whose vehicles are running after 150,000 or 200,000 miles. We can learn from what they're doing to keep our own sedans on the road in CA. San Diego drivers of high-mileage cars often report a common denominator of never skipping an oil change.That may sound a bit unsophisticated, but it's really not. First off, oil is the life blood of your sedan's engine and ... read more

Whether you’re waiting for your car to be serviced at Convoy Auto Repair, or you just happen to be in the neighborhood, Kearny Mesa is a great spot to grab a burger in San Diego. Here are our personal favorites. Smashburger - Located at 3737 Murphy Canyon Rd. near the Escondido Freeway, “smash. sizzle. savor.” is their motto. They begin by literally smashing a chunk of 100% Angus Beef on the hot grill, searing it and seasoning it to perfection. The burger is then placed on a butter-toasted artisan bun and topping with the best quality cheeses, freshest produce, and your favorite condiments. You can select from one of their recipes or create your own personalized burger with their myriad of ingredients. The prices are affordable and your burger is served on a plate, not in a bag like some of those other, more famous “burger joints.” Check out their ... read more

There are a number of factors that contribute to the high nighttime accident rate in the greater San Diego area, things like drowsy driving and a higher rate of impaired driving. Without a doubt, visibility is a major contributor. Let's focus on visibility... It's said that 90 percent of our driving decisions are based on what we see. Nighttime driving has the effect of reducing 20/20 vision to the equivalent of 20/50 vision. What you could clearly see at 50 feet in daylight can't be seen until you are just 20 feet away at night. Too make sure your headlights are giving you the greatest visibility, visit us at Convoy Auto Repair. you'll find us located on 3909 Convoy St., San Diego, CA 92111. Please give us a call to make an appointment: 858-560-9131. Accident avoidance is dependent on reaction time. Reaction time deteriorates measurably in low light conditions. One thing we can do to improve visibility is to make sure our headlights ... read more

Welcome to the Convoy Auto Repair blog. Today, let's talk about the effect of tire tread depth on braking. When talking about stopping power, most of us drivers tend to focus on our brakes. But our tires are where the rubber meets the road. So having good brakes isn't enough. Safe drivers need to have tires with enough traction to translate braking power into stopping power.Let's focus on stopping in wet 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. If it's really bad, drivers 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 your sedan tire and you'll see channels: channels that run around the tire and channels that flow across ... read more