Starter Archives - Page 6 of 6 - Import Car
Fundamentals of Electrical System Diagnosis

Electrical principles, like voltage, amperage and resistance, can be described as cars passing along the roadway. Voltage would be the vehicle’s speed, amperage would be the number of vehicles on the road at the same time, and resistance would be the potholes in the road’s surface. Basically, electricity is a supply of atoms with an

Tech Feature: Solving Intermittent Electrical Problems

Intermittent electrical faults are the bane of the auto repair business. If an electrical component has failed, or there is an open or a short in a circuit, you can usually find it fairly quickly because it isn’t hiding from you. It’s a persistent fault that can be isolated by a systematic process of elimination.

Diagnostic Solutions: Identifying Ignition Switch Failure Symptoms

Although the basic ignition switch has remained unchanged for many years, the way it supplies electrical current to modern on-board electronics has made it a key factor when diagnosing intermittent failures in various electronic operating systems. Going back into automotive history, the ignition switch’s sole purpose on early imports was to energize the primary ignition

Ignition Control Modules

Their Important Role in Creating Voltage at the Spark Plug Electrode

Battery, Charging & Ignition System Diagnosis: Getting Around those Difficult-To-Diagnose Faults

What do you really need to know about diagnosing and repairing starting, charging and ignition systems? Basically two things: that electrical and ignition problems are often difficult to diagnose (especially intermittent faults), and that a lot of electrical and ignition parts are unnecessarily replaced in an attempt to repair problems that are hard to diagnose.

Servicing Mazda Electrical Systems: Starting and Charging Diagnostics

While it sounds obvious, the battery is often overlooked when dealing with an electrical problem. Actually, the battery should be more of a maintenance item than a repair issue. I have to think by now all successful import specialist shops are relying on maintenance work to keep their bays profitable. Checking and servicing the battery

Diagnostic Solutions: Charging System Service

Drive belts are an often-overlooked component during routine maintenance service intervals Drive belts last so long on late-model imports that it’s very easy to forget about inspecting them during a scheduled maintenance interval. In the early days of import cars, drive belts didn’t last as long because many were made from a leather belt joined

Selling Service for Low-Maintenance Ignition Systems

ition system maintenance as long as it feels like it’s “running good.” In reality, spark plugs eventually develop high electrical resistance because the electrodes wear away. When this happens, the secondary ignition voltage will increase until the ignition coil, ignition cable, spark plug boot or spark plug develops a high-voltage leak. When a high-voltage leak