Los Altos Auto Repair

Cayenne wants to know if you have found yourself in the following situation: You go to get your oil changed and the service adviser at Allied Auto Works recommends you get a new engine air filter. You say yes, but because you didn't know what an air filter is or what it does, but you were too embarrassed to ask.

First of all Cayenne wants you to know, you did the right thing by getting a new one. And, you should never be too embarrassed to ask for more information from any of our Allied Auto Works staff. It's your money and you have a right to understand what you're paying for.

"Let's review what an air filter does" barks Cayenne:  

Air is the focus of this discussion. What is the air like outside in Los Altos right now? Can you see any smog? Is it full of pollen? How about dust? Anyone in CA with hay fever can tell you that there's plenty in the air that you can't see. Well, it's the engine air filter's job to clean that air before it goes into your engine, to mix with the fuel and be burned. Without an engine air filter, the inside of your engine would be extremely dirty from all the gunk that was burned in the cylinders.  

Allied Auto Works
2073 Grant Road
Los Altos, CA 94024
650.968.7227

In fact, for every gallon of gas you burn, your engine needs 12,000 gallons of air. That little filter does a very big job. It's no wonder that the air filter gets dirty and needs to be replaced. Think about a vacuum cleaner. When the bag gets full of dust and dirt, the vacuum doesn't clean as well. It can't move enough air to create good suction. A clogged engine air filter is the same way - the engine can't get enough air to burn the fuel efficiently. That means less power and wasted gas.

That's why your manufacturer has recommended that you change your filter at regular intervals. Of course the conditions you drive in will affect how quickly the filter gets dirty. If you drive where it's very dusty or where there's lots of pollen or pollution, you may need to change the filter sooner. The filter is easy to check visually, so your service technician can quickly make the call. He might recommend immediate replacement, or simply let you know that it is getting close and that you'll need to replace it soon - like at your next oil change.

Because a severely dirty air filter hurts your fuel economy, many people find that a new air filter pays for itself in gas savings before the next oil change. They also make premium air filters that have been proven to increase your horsepower and torque. If more power is important to you, a high performance air filter is some of the cheapest horsepower you can buy.

The better your car breathes, the better it runs - kind of like dogs and people. And don't worry - if you have a question or don't understand a recommendation just Cayenne or better yet stop by Allied Auto Works and talk to Matt or Travis.

Welcome to Cayenne's Weekly Blog. Before the recession hit, the median age for cars in the Los Altos CA area (zip code: 94024) was over nine years. And two-thirds had over 75,000 miles. Cayenne and  Allied Auto Works hear reports that those numbers continue to rise.

Cayenne recommends if you have a high-mileage vehicle in the Los Altos area, bring it in for high-mileage maintenance:
Allied Auto Works
2073 Grant Road
Los Altos, CA 94024
650.968.7227

Many people in Los Altos are keeping their vehicles longer. The economy has influenced that, but the fact that modern sedans are more durable and reliable means that owning a high mileage vehicle doesn't have to be a painful experience.

Local car owners in Los Altos with over 100,000 miles on their vehicles often ask Cayenne which service intervals they should follow. Cayenne's advice starts with the special needs of the older vehicle...

The reality is that time and mileage will take its toll. The engine and transmission will have more sludge. The fuel, steering and brake systems will have gum and varnish built up. There'll be more dirt and contaminants in the fuel tank. Corrosion and deposits in the cooling system. And seals and gaskets will start to dry out.

All of this, plus normal wear and tear, means that the engine might not be as strong as new, so it just has to work harder to get the job done.

So we need to compensate. Consider high-mileage formulations for oil changes, transmission service, etc. These special formulations contain additives that condition the seals and gaskets to prevent leaks. They also have more detergents to clean sludge and other deposits. They cost a bit more, but they're worth it.

In general, if an auto service was recommended every 15,000 miles when the car was new, you should continue to get the service done every 15,000 miles.

Cayenne recommends talking with your Los Altos service advisor at Allied Auto Works about the condition of your engine. See if he thinks you should adjust your auto service intervals for oil changes or other auto maintenance to account for the older engine working harder.

Expect the oil filter to get dirty faster. Same goes for the fuel filter. And some leaks are to be expected so you need to keep a closer eye on fluid levels.

If anything, following recommended service intervals for your sedan is more important in a higher mileage vehicle. Skipping oil changes or other services can lead to problems much more quickly than with a newer vehicle.

So, have your Los Altos auto service advisor at Allied Auto Works help you with an assessment of your older car or truck. If you haven't gotten around to a fuel system cleaning, or replacing power steering or brake fluid, a differential service or transmission service – it's time to start taking care of those things. It'll help keep you on the road for many more happy miles and happy dogs hanging out of the window Cayenne's says.  "We love our car rides!"

From Cayenne's point of view in very simple terms, a fuel injector is a valve that squirts fuel into your sedan engine. Your engine control computer tells the fuel injector how much fuel to deliver as well as the precise time it should be delivered. Of course, Cayenne wants you to know this happens thousands of times a minute in every single fuel-injected car driving down Cupertino, Sunnyvale, and Mt. View interstates.  Cayenne's knows as she loves car rides.

Cayenne says fuel injectors for gas engines are known in the Los Altos automotive community as port fuel injectors because they deliver the fuel to a port just outside the cylinder. The fuel pump provides pressure needed to squirt the right amount of fuel into the engine.

Cayenne has noticed a few auto makers have recently introduced gas direct injection systems on some engines. They are now available at some Los Altos dealerships. These systems inject the gas directly into the cylinders under very high pressure – many times the pressure of port injection systems.

Although more complicated, direct injection technology promises greater power with improved gas mileage for gas-poor Cupertino, Sunnyvale, and Mt. View car owners. CA motorists can expect to see more of it in the future.

High temperatures under your sedan hood and variations in Los Altos gas quality cause fuel injectors to be fouled with wax, dirt, water, additives and carbon. Injectors can become partially clogged, preventing them from delivering the proper amount of fuel at the correct pressure.  You do not want this says Cayenne.

When injectors are dirty, the fuel doesn’t burn as efficiently resulting in poor fuel economy and loss of power. So it’s important for Los Altos car owners keep their fuel injectors clean.  

Cayenne recommends Allied Auto Works service center where they can perform a fuel system service for you in which the fuel injectors are cleaned so that they operate properly and deliver the right amount of fuel at the right time.

Proper maintenance of your sedan fuel system means that you will spend less on gas, enjoy strong performance and prevent costly Los Altos repair bills down the road and Cayenne says that extra money you will save on gas can go towards a nice bone for your dog.

Cayenne wants you to make an appointment with Allied Auto Works to have your on board diagnostics analyzed.
2073 Grant Road
Los Altos, CA 94024
650.968.7227

Today Cayenne's going to talk about on-board diagnostics and the questions she hears from folks around Los Altos CA who need answers about diagnostic services. They want to know what diagnostics are, what's involved and what the benefits are. They really want to understand the value of diagnostic scans by a trained technician in Los Altos CA.

Cayenne's knows these are valid concerns. If you don't understand something it's really hard to know its value. Let's start with some history.

Cayenne did some research and since 1996, all cars and light trucks in Los Altos CA have been required to use a standardized diagnostic system to help repair technicians determine what's wrong with your vehicle. The diagnostic system works with the vehicle's Engine Control Module – the computer that controls many engine functions.

The computer monitors dozens of components and processes. Depending on what the sensors read, the computer will make adjustments to compensate for conditions and minor problems. When there is a condition that it can't adjust for, the computer will turn on the check engine light.

It is also called the 'service engine soon' light on some vehicles. The warning light signals you to get into your Los Altos CA service center so that the trouble code can be read and the problem can be fixed. Your service center will have a scan tool and powerful software that will help the technician diagnose the problem.

If you've searched for check engine light on the internet, you may have seen that you can buy an inexpensive scanner or go to an auto parts store to have the trouble code read to tell you exactly what's wrong.

That's a common myth. The code itself doesn't tell you what's broken. It starts you looking in the right place. It tells you what engine parameter is out of range – but it won't tell you what's wrong or how to fix it.

Let's say you think your daughter has a fever. You take her temperature and it reads one 102 degrees. You've confirmed a fever, but you don't know what's causing it. Is it a 24 hour flu, an infection, appendicitis or leukemia? A fever is a symptom of all of these medical problems, but it takes a skilled physician's examination and additional diagnostic tests to find out what is actually causing the fever.

An example of a trouble code could be: P0133, which reads 'Bank 1 sensor 1 circuit slow response'. This means that the front oxygen sensor has a slow response time to changes in the air-fuel mix. If that's all you knew about cars, you would think your oxygen sensor was broken and would replace it. Now, it could be the oxygen sensor – but it could also be a bad or contaminated airflow sensor, exhaust leak, electrical problem, an intake manifold leak or any of a number of other things.

Cayenne imagines a lot of oxygen sensors have been replaced because of that code. So the on-board diagnostics point the way to where the trouble lies, but it takes some skill and high-tech equipment to actually pinpoint the problem. The cheap scan tools that a consumer can buy do not have the ability to retrieve some of the operating history that's stored in the engine control computer. That history's very helpful in diagnosing the problem. Service centers like Allied Auto Works invest a lot of money in high-end diagnostic tools to help solve the mystery and get you back on the road as soon as possible without replacing a lot of parts that don't need replacing.

So, on-board diagnostics provide a powerful starting place for a highly-trained, well-equipped technician to get to the bottom of your problem. When your check engine light comes on, get it checked at Allied Auto Works. If the light burns steady – don't panic. Get in to Allied Auto Works soon to have the engine scanned. A flashing check engine light means that there is a severe engine problem. Get in as soon as you can – waiting too long can lead to very expensive damage.

And try to not drive at high speed or tow or haul heavy loads with a flashing check engine light.  Cayenne strongly recommends this needs to be attended to as soon as possible.