Tech Tip: When to Change the Automatic Drive Belt Tensioner
While CARDONE water pumps, alternators, smog pumps and power steering pumps all do different jobs, they all have one thing in common: they are belt-driven. Without a properly functioning belt-drive system, these units can’t work as designed. Most late-model vehicles use an automatic belt-tensioning device of some design.
Brake Lathe Care and Feeding: Breaking the Cycle of Neglect When it Comes to Machining Rotors
How often do you use your brake lathe? Once a month? Once a week? Once a day? If you’re like most undercar shops, your brake lathe is humming along for at least several hours per day, every day. Even a one-man shop will find a brake lathe to be an indispensable piece of undercar equipment.
2006 Ford Explorer Pointers
Photo 2). Another change for the 4.6L in 2006 is that it no longer uses a knock sensor. Both, the 4.0L and the 4.6L use a PCM-controlled heated PCV valve. The PCV valve on the 4.0L SOHC engine is located in the back of the left valve cover, mounted horizontally, and is well hidden from
Honda Performance Upgrades
Service & Diagnostics Call it what you want — the compact performance market, sport compact market, import scene or the tuner market — but there’s no denying the import car performance segment has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade. According to SEMA’s 2006 Compact Performance Market Report, retail sales for this niche
Diagnostic Solutions: Cylinder Head Service, Restoring the Engine to Precise OE Tolerances
Although cylinder head repairs have been a staple of the import repair shop for many years, modern technology has changed the way we should sell and perform cylinder head services. In years past, for example, a cylinder head repair need last only 30,000 or 40,000 miles until the vehicle was retired from service. Today, however,
Rotary Improves SmartLift Inground Lifts
Rotary Lift has improved its twin-post SmartLift inground lifts to offer technicians smoother working conditions and greater efficiency. SmartLift inground lifts are installed a quarter inch above the shop floor to help prevent water from infiltrating the lift housing. This installation had previously created a quarter inch bump that made it inconvenient for technicians to roll equipment, such as jacks or carts, over the lift.
Tech Tip: Ready-to-Install Struts Save Time and Increase Profits
It should come as no shock that preassembled, ready-to-install struts have been a huge hit lately. The pros like them because they are much easier, faster and more profitable to install than ordinary struts. They don’t need a spring compressor to disassemble and reassemble the strut and they can get the customer back on the road much faster because of the time saved by not replacing the entire strut assembly.
Maintenance Essentials…, OBD II & Chassis Checks
All cars need maintenance. The fact is mechanical devices wear and fail in normal use, and deteriorate over time, so being able to diagnose a future failure has become a part of the automotive repair and service industry. Customers always ask how long it will be before a component will fail, and are usually not
JASPER 4-Speed Transmission Takes Montoya to Sonoma Victory
Juan Pablo Montoya utilized a JASPER 4-Speed Transmission in his #42 Dodge to claim his first NASCAR Nextel Cup Series victory. Montoya was one of eight drivers running the JASPER 4-Speed Transmission at Sonoma this past weekend.
Tech Tip: Common Mistakes to Avoid when Resurfacing Cylinder Heads and Blocks
Cylinder heads and blocks may need to be resurfaced to restore flatness or to improve the surface finish, or milled to change the deck height for a variety of reasons. The deck surface on the head or block may need to be resurfaced if the surface isn’t smooth or flat. A head may need to be resurfaced after welds or other repairs have been made, or milled to increase the compression ratio.