Bob Hope’s Auto Repair has been selected as the Winner for the 2022 Best of Trenton Awards in the category of Car Inspection Station.
The Trenton Award Program purpose to support and offer public recognition of the contributions of businesses and organizations in and around Trenton.
In New Jersey, rain is common any time of year, but with our warmer winters, and spring ahead, rainy drives are all but certain.
Here are tips to ensure that both you and your vehicle are ready for the weather.
1. Keep up with your maintenance
Visibility and reaction time are everything when conditions are poor. That’s why it’s so important to keep your tires and wiper blades in good order. Your tires should be properly inflated and have the tread depth necessary to maintain your vehicle’s grip on the road—even in the wettest weather. Also make sure your car’s temperature controls are doing their job and all vents are working. When your windows fog up, you’ll need them.
2. Slow down.
In rain, you won’t be able to stop your vehicle as quickly and your visibility will be lessened. Combine that with other drivers’ also facing challenges and you need all the time you can to safely slow to a stop. While most drivers will lower their speed in extremely heavy rain, light rain doesn’t always prompt the same caution. Unfortunately, fatal accidents are 27 percent more likely during even a light rain.
3. Turn on your lights
While drivers usually remember to turn on their lights as evening approaches, you’ll see more cars without lights on a rainy day. Even if it’s only raining lightly or there’s a light fog, turn on your lights. While you may be able to see just fine, you also want other cars to see you. Rain can easily make your vehicle seem nearly invisible to others.
4. Keep a light touch.
When driving in the rain, keep a light touch. Avoid slamming on the brakes or punching the gas. If you do hit a patch of water and begin to hydroplane, do your best to stay calm. Take your foot off the accelerator and steer the direction you need to go, making no sudden movements.
5. Don’t get in too deep.
If water is covering the markings on the road, it’s too deep to drive on. Unfortunately, you can lose control with as little as three inches of water on the road. And even if you manage to stay in control, a larger vehicle could push some of that water underneath your car, causing your engine to stall. If you come to a body of water you don’t know the depth of, find a new route. The inconvenience is always worth protecting your life.
6. Wait it out if you can.
If there’s a forecast of dangerous conditions or the rain looks particularly heavy, plan around the weather. Try to delay your trip until the worst of the rain passes. If, when you’re driving, you feel like you’re losing visibility and are no longer comfortable, pull into a lot or safe location if you’re able to.
Unfortunately, weather-related crashes do happen, sometimes requiring body repairs. If your car has been damaged in a crash, contact Bob Hope’s Auto Repair today. Our trained technicians can assess your vehicle’s damage and advise you on needed repairs.
With the current price of gas eating into our household budgets, it makes sense to try to improve your vehicle’s gas mileage. Fortunate, there are a few ways to improve the return you get on a tank of gas.
1. DO Check Your Vehicle’s Tire Pressure Regularly
Failing to check your car’s tire pressure on a routine basis may lead to various problems, including poor gas mileage. Experts believe that if tires drop one PSI (pounds per square inch), 0.4 percent of the vehicle’s gas mileage will be reduced. The numbers may not seem significant, but this can add up.
The simple way to avoid this being a problem is to check your vehicle’s tire pressure regularly. Refer to your owner’s manual (you can also find it online) for the correct tire pressure. When you note that tire pressure has dropped below that recommendation, it is time to add air to your tires.
2. DON’T Run Your Car’s Air Conditioner Unnecessarily
Try not to run the air conditioning in your vehicle on days that are warm, but not really hot. If you can manage it, open the windows instead. Running your air conditioner constantly will waste fuel and reduce your gas mileage.
When driving on city streets, turn off your air conditioner and open windows. On the highway, switch your AC on as needed.
Also, remember that your air conditioner will need to work harder if your car and engine is running hot. It is logical that when the car is working harder, more gas will be consumed. To avoid overheating your car, park it in a shaded area out of direct sunlight, or park it in a garage if possible.
3. DO Choose the Right Type of Motor Oil for Your Vehicle
Check your vehicle’s owner manual. If your auto calls for a low viscosity motor oil, stick with that type.
Lower viscosity type motor oils are known to increase gas mileage. Your vehicle’s fuel economy may also improve by switching to a synthetic motor oil.
Equally important is that you don’t neglect to change the oil in your car as recommended. Keep track of your last oil change so you will know when it is due for another change.
4. DO Change Your Air Filter
Air filters should be changed at least once a year since they can have a big effect on the efficiency of a vehicle’s engine and fuel usage. The air filter protects your engine from all the dust and dirt in the air that constantly tries to seep into all the mechanical parts. If the filter is working properly, it will capture all the junk in the air and eventually get clogged up. Then your engine will have to work harder to compensate for the reduced airflow and that means using more gas.
5. DO Correct Your Bad Driving Habits
Speeding increases fuel consumption and decreases fuel economy as a result of tire resistance with the road and also air resistance. While vehicles reach optimal fuel economy at different speeds, gas mileage usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 50 miles per hour. Reducing your speed by 5 to 10 mph can improve fuel economy by 7%–14%.
Using cruise control on the highway can help you maintain a constant speed; vehicles use the most energy when accelerating. Obeying the speed limit, accelerating and braking gently and gradually, and reading the road ahead can improve the fuel economy of your vehicle by 15%–30% at highway speeds and 10%–40% in stop-and-go traffic. These sensible habits also make driving much safer for you and others.
Make an appointment to visit us for more advice and routine maintenance that may help you boost your vehicle’s fuel economy.
Hot summer weather is on the way and you’ll want to use your car’s A/C. IF it isn’t functioning properly, your commute to work or just running errands is going to be miserable.
So test you’re A/C now and make sure it’s blowing cold air. There are many reasons why it may not be blowing cold air. This is a short list of some possible reasons.
The most common cause of an air conditioner not getting cold enough is that it needs to be recharged. Our ASE Certified mechanics are standing by and should be able to get your cold air flowing again pretty quickly.
Freon is the chemical that cools the air. If the freon is leaking out, it will eventually run too low to do the job. Freon leaks may be very, very slow. Today’s A/C systems require a specific amount of freon, measured in pounds, to operate correctly. We can test your volume of freon with a charging machine to see if this is the problem. If your system is low, we’ll add the correct amount of freon. But, if you’re A/C system runs warm again within a few weeks, you may need to have the hoses and other system components checked and replaced.
One reason for this is that there might be an electrical fault in your compressor’s circuit or clutch. Today’s vehicles are computer controlled and one of the first systems that is turned off when the computer senses an engine problem is the A/C system. Usually, the malfunctioning part has to be replaced by a qualified mechanic.
There’s a small hatch inside your car’s ventilation system called the “blend air door”. When you turn on your A/C system (rather than your heat), the door should change to drawing in cold air. If it doesn’t change, it will still be drawing heat from the engine. A qualified mechanic will take care of this.
You Can Feel Cold Air, But It’s Not Blowing. This could mean the A/C’s fan has stopped working. It may be as simple as changing a wire, or you may need a new fan unit. This is probably more complicated than it sounds since it may require taking apart your car’s dashboard to reach all of the components.
Repairing your A/C can be a fairly simple job, but in a few cases the problem is indicative of a more serious problem. The trained and certified auto mechanics at Bob Hope’s Auto Repair will track down your issue and offer the most affordable solution possible, so call us today for your FREE diagnostic appointment!
If you are one of the many Americans who is under a stay-at-home order, your car or truck may be at risk of having problems down the road if it’s left sitting idle for too long. One of the major risks is that the battery could die. This is because all the electronics in modern cars can drain down batteries even when they are just sitting.
How long do you actually need to drive your vehicle for the battery to keep a full charge? 20 to 30 minutes does the trick. For many of us, though, we’re only leaving our homes to buy groceries or to visit the pharmacy, so this is difficult to do.
A compromise is to, at minimum, idle your vehicle in its parking spot for at least 15 minutes. You also need to take into account how old your battery is. People with vehicles that have older batteries should take extra care to make sure they are charged. The more you charge it, the longer it will last.
You should also take care to move your vehicle every week, even if it’s only from one spot in the driveway to another. This will ensure the tires don’t lose air and develop flat spots, something that can happen if they’re left unmoved for a long time. Your tires can become deflated, they can get flat, they can warp or get bubbles.
Flat spots can take many miles of driving to get out. Until they’re gone, you’ll have vibrations. Bubbles can lead to a burst tire, a very dangerous situation. If you do notice bubbles in your tires, don’t drive the vehicle. Have it towed to a repair shop instead.
A vehicle that sits in one spot too long also becomes an attractive “home” to unwanted inhabitants, such as rats or squirrels, who may take up residence in the vehicle’s hood or engine compartment. Rodents can make quite a mess because they like to chew through the coating on the wires. As an extra precaution you could spray a mouse or rat repellent around the vehicle.
If you do develop any problems with your vehicle, contact us at Bob Hope’s Auto Repair. We always prioritize your health and safety, but during this special time we are taking even extra care and are wiping down steering wheels, door panels, and center consoles before and after repairs.
Plus, while our area is under a stay-at-home order, WE ARE HAPPY TO pick up and drop off any vehicles that need repairs!
Take care. Stay safe!
Each make and model of car might have a different manufacturer’s recommendation for oil changes. But the goal is the same: the oil in your vehicle lubricates the engine and absorbs heat, allowing the internal parts to work together effectively without overheating. Over time, engine oil breaks down and wears out and doesn’t do the job effectively. That’s the time for an oil change. The longer you wait after the recommended period, the greater the risk of damage, undue wear and tear, and breakdowns.
So, every time you get an oil change, you are ultimately extending the life of your car, truck, or van.
As critical as this is, though, it isn’t the only point of an oil change. An oil change also provides the opportunity for a trained mechanic to look over your vehicle and spot any thing else that might need attention.
At Bob Hope’s Auto Repair, every oil change comes with bonuses:
So, an oil change adds up to a form of preventive maintenance. This regular review by a trained set of eyes could save you thousands of dollars in the long run. Noticing something small, like odd wear on tires or a slow leak in your transmission fluid, and taking steps to fix the problem immediately, can be the difference between a minor repair today and a catastrophic breakdown in the future.
So contact us at Bob Hope’s Auto Repair today for your oil change and more. We carry a wide range of oils, and can identify the best type for your vehicle, and our expert technicians will go out of their way to make sure you get everything you need.
