Goss’ Garage
Pat Goss, MotorWeek's resident master technician, helps consumers understand car problems and how to speak the same language as their technician. As cars becoming increasingly complex, fewer repairs can be accomplished at home. Effective communication with a repair shop is vital to keeping consumer and operating costs under control. From rattles and squeaks to leaks and drips, Pat covers a myriad of issues designed to keep cars on the road and out of the repair shop.
Fuel Economy Scams
As fuel prices go higher and higher, drivers become more desperate for better fuel economy. Well that’s okay, but remember that there are all kinds of crooks out there that would like to take your money, and sell you something that sounds wonderful but in reality, doesn’t work. Take the things that swirl the air that goes into the engine, this is… Read More
Boat Trailer Do’s and Don’ts
Trailering is more popular than ever but there are some things that we really need to be concerned with if we’re towing a trailer. Number one is safety. Now certainly there are all the basic things that you’d have to look out for but you have to look out for some other things as well. Keep in mind safety involves not just the trailer but the tow vehicle and the… Read More
Recycling Automotive Fluids
Nationwide, every one of our waterways is connected to storm drains. Now here’s a problem: if you don’t properly recycle used oil and products that come from your automobiles and your lawn equipment and so on, each gallon of used oil can pollute up to 250,000 gallons of ground water. That’s a serious problem. Here in the repair shop we have to recycle… Read More
Exhaust System Maintenance
For some drivers there’s never enough horsepower, even if it’s something like this 600 horsepower Viper. So what can you do to increase the performance levels of your automobile? Well the first thing is to develop a plan, and that plan should start with the exhaust system. Now, exhaust systems have evolved over the years; huge, huge differences in the… Read More
More Trailer Tow Wisdom
A poorly maintained trailer is a serious hazard, yet if you stop in a rest stop just about any place in the country you’re bound to see at least one trailer that looks as bad as this one. What are some of the things you need to do to keep your trailer safe? Well, the tires of course, they’re what do the work, so you have to check the tires. You’ve got to check… Read More
Convertible Top Care
We have some tips about maintaining convertibles. One of the things that you have to be aware of is that convertibles have a lot of moving parts. Now there are two things that will save you a lot of money and a lot of aggravation over the life of the car: a simple can of white lithium grease and a can of silicone spray. We’ll start with the grease first. What… Read More
Fixing That Leaking Air Conditioner
I have some tips about leaky air conditioning systems. You know how it goes; the refrigerant goes away, the air doesn’t work quite like it should, and yet you can’t see a leak. That’s because refrigerant is a gas and it escapes into the air. Finding the leak is pretty simple if you have a kit like this.This is dye that gets injected into the air conditioning… Read More
Motorcycle Safety
Motorcycles are more popular than ever and that means that motorcycle safety is more important than ever. Here to talk to us about it is Linden Able, General Manager of Patriot Harley-Davidson in Fairfax, Virginia. Linden, welcome to the show. LINDEN ABLE, GENERAL MANAGER, PATRIOT HARLEY-DAVIDSON: Thanks, Pat. GOSS: All right, what’s the first thing we do as… Read More
DIY Exterior Detailing
We have some tips about maintaining the appearance of our cars and joining us is Mr. Cliff Dewey, the owner of Cliff Dewey Auto Detail in Silver Spring, Maryland. Cliff, welcome to Goss’s garage. CLIFF DEWEY, OWNER, CLIFF DEWEY AUTO DETAIL: Thank you, Pat. GOSS: Now people make lots of mistakes when they try to take care of the finish on their cars, even down… Read More
Fuel Line Repair
Seems like everything on automobiles is getting more complicated. Take even basic things like fuel lines…in the past a fuel line was just a simple piece of steel tubing that went from one end of the car to the other, had basic fittings on the end and that’s all there was to it. Well, it still may be made of steel, but the problem now is that they have complex… Read More