Automotive Industry News & Information - Van Meter Auto Repair

Trucks aren’t like cars...your average personal vehicle usually holds about 5 quarts of oil, and you are supposed to change it every 3-5k miles. However, the same logic doesn’t apply to large trucks. At Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua, NJ, we know how important proper oil changes and diagnostics are to keep your truck on the road, for hundreds of thousands of miles. Here’s what you need to know:

The exhaust on your truck is an important series of components, that work together to ensure smooth, reliable operation. At Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua, we also know that exhaust systems are especially susceptible to damage and rust; pipes, mufflers, and other parts are exposed to hazards on the road, and to the environment. This situation, combined with caustic emissions and extreme heat, creates a perfect opportunity for problems to arise.

Automatic transmissions are the default now - with efficiency approaching or surpassing that of manual transmissions, and automatics with 8 or 10 electronically controlled gears, it’s no surprise they’ve gained so much popularity over the past few decades. But where did it all start? Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua, NJ has the answers.

Does your steering wheel feel like it’s fighting you when trying to drive in a straight line? Does your truck turn too aggressively when you try to go one direction, and poorly when you try to go another? There are a few possibilities as to what it means if your truck resists going in a straight line. Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua has the answers for you.

The heads on your commercial or fleet diesel are one of the most integral parts of your engine. The heads are comprised of the valvetrain, exhaust ports, intake ports, and injector ports. In essence, a head’s purpose is to regulate and time the intake of fresh air, the release of exhaust, the compression of fuel and air that provides combustion, and the entry point for fuel into the cylinder. The head is where all the complex aspects of engine operation occur...without it, you just have a chunk of metal with pistons in it, and no way to make them move. Here’s what you need to know about your heads, from Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua, NJ.

Sometimes it is EASY to see if your car or truck needs to come into our shop for professional repairs!
1. You see steam rising from the engine!
2. The Check Engine Light is on!
3. The engine starts, but there is an odor that is not right.
4. You hear grinding or thumping noises.

Tires may be the only part of a vehicle that physically meets the road, but your shock absorbers are next in line. Working with the suspension springs, they absorb shocks from bumps and cracks in the road, while simultaneously controlling bounce and body roll.

There may come a day when you go to shift your vehicle out of “Park”, and the shifter refuses to move. Perhaps you are already experiencing this issue intermittently, or currently have a vehicle stuck in park. While this is a serious inconvenience, it doesn’t necessarily indicate a serious problem; let Van Meter Auto Repair in Mantua, NJ put your mind at ease.