When it comes to your and your passenger’s safety as well as drivers of other vehicles on the road, why would you evertrust your brakes to the lowest price and does a lower price really save you any money?

This is not to say that you should pay the highest price quoted but you should know what you are paying for. As I have mentioned in other articles not all repairs are created equal as there can be a significant difference in parts quality and the experience of the technician working on your car. When it comes to your brakes and your safety don’t you want the best and safest repair possible?

I am often amazed at how many times I have had to take off one year old brakes done at a tire store or franchised automotive repair chain, for various different reasons such as pulsation, vibration, noise or just a poor stopping experience.

Having started my career at a tire store that offered total car care as well I have seen first hand the problems that come up from cheap parts and cheap labor.

Your Subaru or just about any other Japanese import uses stainless steel brake caliper pistons helping prevent rust that will build up, as there can be a lot of moisture in your brakes hydraulic system. A lot of the calipers that are put on your car by the tire stores and large chains have sandblasted cores and use cast steel pistons which rust very quickly. It is as simple as leaving a cast iron pan and a stainless steel pan out in the rain and seeing which one rusts first.

The original calipers in your Subaru, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, etc. Should rarely ever need to be replaced, they just do not fail that often but yet we constantly see advertised brakes stating “we do brakes right” that includes replacing your calipers regardless if they are ever really faulty. This repair will be ok for a while but will never last as long as the original calipers would be capable of lasting. Worst yet is when not if the aftermarket calipers fail it will be very expensive to put true O.E. quality calipers back on the car.

On a Subaru the right way to replace the brakes in most cases is to replace the pads and hardware as supplied in the box of pads when you buy the parts from Subaru. Add to this the rotors should either be machined until true or replaced if questionable as a result of being close to the minimum thickness allowed, severely warped, delaminated or pitted and rusty.

The way to save money replacing brakes is to use O.E. quality parts and find an Expert like All-Wheel Drive Auto who will charge you less labor than the dealer but always insist on doing your brakes like his or her own family is in the car with.

Have a Summer trip planned with Your Subaru or Japanese import?

Mention you read our blog when scheduling in a brake inspection and save 10% off of your brakes on our already lower than the dealer prices.

 This is what comes in the box when you buy the Subaru pads. 

 These are typical  high end aftermarket pads that do not come with any hard ware and only one set of shims that are already attatched to the pads.

While we don’t yet know the true answer to this question, we will in the not to distant future.

After a friend asked me what I thought of the internet hype and you tube videos showing a “in the vehicle hydrogen generator” that creates browns gas or hho, I decided to look into it further.

One of the common arguments I have observed is that it will take more energy to create the hho than reaped in producing it in the first place. But how can anyone really know this for sure in a car with an alternator.

I want to be sure to point out that I am not a scientist or an engineer; I am merely just a Technician, business owner and concerned father of two boys who I want to have a bright future and I often worry that there are just not enough people truly trying to come up with ways to decrease the amount of fuel used in cars and thus decrease the emissions they produce.

Whether you believe in global warming or not you must realize by now that as the rest of the world becomes more like the U.S. and consumes more commodities such as oil the price of gas may fluctuate a little, but is on a steady rise to much higher prices in the future.

So I look to what I know to be true, If HHO can truly be produced in a hydrogen generator mounted in a car, I can figure a way to decrease the total amperage draw of the car to compensate for the increase in amperage draw from the generator.

So here is what we are going to attempt. We are going to build and install the system as outlined in a book bought online. As the project goes along I will provide updates to our progress as I can. What is learned and achieved as well as any failures. Since this is somewhat of a departure from what we normally do, I am not sure how long this will take. I am optimistic that from research into materials, supply to design, build, installation and finally testing that we can have this done in a few months time.

It is not our intent to try and “cash in” on any hype and the reason for posting an article on our blog is to try and bring about awareness. We might want input from someone in the scientific community if we were to get stuck on one or more particular aspects of the hydrogen generator build.

Here is the vehicle we are going to use as the test car. A 1993 Subaru Legacy, with almost 300,000 miles. Two reasons for choosing this car. One, we know Subaru’s very well and once the Generator is installed it should be immediately apparent to me if it is helping or hurting the car. Two, if it damages the car, it has had a good life and I wouldn’t be out to much.

If we are successful, it does indeed work and offer real fuel savings, than we may offer to try and replicate it and offer the systems to be installed.

Again we didn’t event the technology being installed here we are only out to see if it really works. If it does is it practical, reliable and stable.

If we ultimately don’t end up with a success, there is that old saying. Out of failure breeds success and maybe we can have a part in it.

Wish us luck, please send us your feedback and we will keep you posted as we can.

Justin

If you have a car that has a warranty that is about to expire, you should really have a good thorough inspection done by an independent shop. Even if you aren’t having any problems there may be minor things that could turn into major issues after the warranty runs out.

Having someone who specializes in one particular make such as we do with Subaru is even just that much better. We can look at things we know to be common with the vehicle, and report back with our findings. This is especially helpful if there are any campaigns that we are aware of.

A campaign is somewhat similar to a recall except the driver isn’t ever made aware of it in many situations. If a car manufacturer wants to cut their warranty expense and provide good service they will provide the technicians with information to help speed up the process of diagnosing and repairing a problem. Sometimes the process involves updated parts that you can get for free if you know how the system works. A good independent shop like All Wheel Drive Auto stays up to date on common issues with your car.

This gives the driver an opportunity to go back to the dealer armed with factual information as to items that need attention before the warranty is up. The service department at the dealer is not going to call you and schedule an appointment for an inspection and offer to fix it all under warranty before it is too late. You must take the first step yourself.

Chances are your car cost you a lot of money and you may still be making payments on it. The only way you can get as much value as you can, is to be proactive with your car. This means not waiting until something happens before addressing it.

When you buy a new home, often times the builder schedules a time to walk through the house and take care of items that have come up such as cracked sheet rock due to settling. Why should you approach your car any differently? With as much as you spent you deserve full value out of your hard earned money.

At All Wheel Drive Auto we pride ourselves in offering the best relevant information about your Subaru, as well as quality fixed right the first time repairs and service.

Your only real defense against higher gas prices is to get as much out of every drop of fuel you put in your car, or to just stop driving, but unless you don’t need your car to get to work, chances are the later isn’t going to work out.

Keeping your car in tip top shape can help save you money over the long run and has the added benefit of being better for the environment as well. Cars need periodic maintenance to perform at their peak and if your car isn’t running at its best then you can bet it is costing you money.

Today’s computer controlled cars have built in programming that will allow the ECM (engine control module) to try and compensate for a problem with an individual cylinder due to a dirty fuel injector or worn sparkplug. But sometimes it does this with sacrifice to the overall fuel economy of the vehicle.

Check our archive for articles http://allwheeldriveauto.com/subaru-fuel-economy-101/ for specific information on fuel economy tips that will help ease the pain at the pump and keep your Subaru as green as possible.

Included is topping off the fluids, checking and setting the tire pressure and a visual inspection of filters, belts, bulbs, hoses etc.

Get your Subaru ready for Spring and Summer (yes it will stop snowing soon)

We are still offering 10% off of your Subaru factory scheduled maintenance services such as a 30/60 or 90k service.

The fine print.

This offer cannot be combined with any other offer and must be mentioned at time of write up or scheduling. Includes installation of All Wheel Drive Auto license plate frames.  Offer ends May 1st.

As a specialist we know your car better, especially when it comes to the right way to make economical repairs that a general repair shop wouldn’t know about or a Subaru dealer would never consider. Sometimes a vehicle will develop a pattern failure and a real solution needs to be found or a more economical repair procedure can be had.

Through the years we have found solutions to replacing expensive parts by making repairs to existing components rather than just blindly install new ones. We have been able to become very good at repairs and service work by specializing in Subaru and we try to share this experience with our customer with lower labor prices.

We know what parts we can use on your Subaru without sacrificing longevity. Most automakers have become pure design and assemble companies leaving the parts manufacture to other companies. These auto parts companies are free to sell the same parts in aftermarket channels with out the Subaru logo. While in some cases in only makes sense to stick with Subaru parts especially when it comes to slower moving items that may have not been introduced in the aftermarket by the companies that originally made the parts for Subaru. There is also a good chance that the exact replacement part can be found at a 20% savings if you know how to look (we do).

From top to bottom we really know your Subaru well and want to help you get as many trouble free miles out of it as possible. We have seen these cars go well over 300k and I am the owner of a 1992 Legacy with 292k and counting. We take pride in servicing cars with higher miles and often have suggestions to help keep them going. Even though your Subaru may be getting up there in miles don’t discount just how long they will run.

Your brakes are important, and as we head into spring and eventually into the summer driving season. Living in and around the great city of Seattle and its many hills its easy to recognize just how much we use and rely on our brakes. But we often see customers live to long with brake symptoms that may be decreasing the overall efficiency of the braking system in your Subaru. Stopping two or three inches sooner is sometimes the difference between having an accident and not having one. 

At All-Wheel Drive Auto we believe in performing brake service the right way, which starts with a complete brake system inspection, including a discussion about how your Subaru is used and what type of terrain it is driven in. Most of the time we will use O.E. Subaru parts when servicing your brake system, but there are some circumstances when using a good quality aftermarket set of brake pads may be a better alternative, such as a set of pads with a higher ceramic content than the original pads.

From now until the end of April we will offer a free brake inspection with any other service we provide. As well as offer 10% off of brake service from now until the end of April as well. Start spring out right, start spring out safe.

With gas prices already as high $3.45 in some places and it isn’t even spring yet the quicker your Subaru is in tip top shape the more you will squeeze out of every drop of fuel you put in it.

From now to the end of March you can save 10% off our already lower than the dealer prices on a 30/60/90k service up to $50.00

Or 10% off of labor on any other service, such as brakes or Head gaskets up to $75.00.

The fine print

This offer cannot be combined with any other offer and must be presented or mentioned at time of vehicle check in to be valid.

Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

According to Subaru the new Coolant must NOT be mixed with any other type of coolant. This means that when the cooling system is serviced for any reason or the overflow bottle is topped off during a routine oil change the new coolant must be used.

Subaru is stating that the mixing of the new coolant with any other type of coolant will alter the protection capabilities of the new coolant, which Subaru claims will last 10 years before service is needed.

The good and bad explained.

By increasing the service life of engine coolant we should be able to cut down on some of the hazardous waste generated when performing routine maintenance. This should also save some money with regards to the cost of service, and has the added benefit of being better for the environment.

The new Super coolant is much more expensive than just regular coolant or even the Factory Subaru coolant used to date. Also is the real possibility that not every shop, (especially quick lube centers) will follow the recommendation of the manufacturer.  

This can and will create a situation where the owner of a newer Subaru will wait the 10 years for service, but because the coolant is mixed may be faced with expensive repairs prior to that service being done.  This is where a good Independent Subaru Repair shop like All-Wheel Drive Auto can serve you better.

Staying informed is the only real way to get the most out of your vehicle.

All Wheel Drive Auto is committed to keeping our customers informed about the cars they drive. And providing tips for Subaru owners who find our website regardless of where they live.
Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

While results will vary and the big variable is always how well the car has been maintained, what I can tell you is a Subaru is capable of going 300,000 miles. And if you are a regular maintenance type of owner you should expect to get that type of mileage out of it. The lower end of a Subaru engine (this would include the pistons, rings, crankshaft and bearings) is virtually bulletproof as long as it is never starved for oil they will last a very long time without ever needing repairs. We have done several head gasket repairs on Subaru’s with over 200,000 miles and the cylinder walls of the engine block still look great. The real key to getting the most out of your Subaru is identifying your driving habits and coming up with a maintenance schedule that matches. In your owners manual you will find two different maintenance schedules one is normal and the other is severe. The real purpose of this is to give the car manufacturer a way to show vehicle ownership costs over a time period. By having a maintenance schedule that requires less maintenance, the car manufacturer is able to decrease advertised ownership costs. All car makers do this and it is very confusing and sometimes frustrating. In the Puget Sound area just about every car owner out there is going to fall under the severe category. As consumers there is this natural need to want to save money. This can truly be done without sacrifice to the longevity of your Subaru. The quality of parts used and the knowledge of the vehicle are very important. Saving a little money on car maintenance isn’t the same as saving money on a pair of shoes. The quality difference may be very obvious with a lesser priced pair of shoes as you are walking in them, but the difference in car service may take a while to be realized. If the original part in your Subaru lasted 5 years and a lesser quality replacement only lasts 18 months what have you gained. The best kept secret on how to reach 300,000 with your Subaru is to establish a good relationship with a great shop that specializes in Subaru service like All-Wheel Drive Auto. We will help you get there.