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.
Wash N Wax
Back in 1967 paint was pretty basic. Today’s cars are not like that. They have sophisticated paint systems on them that will last for years and years, if you give them proper care. Now proper care begins with washing. You have to wash the finish regularly, but make sure that you use a proper car wash soap. You do not use any type of laundry or dishwashing… Read More
Spark Plugs
Although everybody seems to ignore them, gasoline engines still have spark plugs. And spark plugs are the first thing that you look at if you have any kind of a performance problem at all, whether it’s rough idle, poor gas mileage, hard starting, stalling, anything like that. You start by checking the spark plugs. Now, when it comes time to check the plugs, the… Read More
Garage Dressups
There isn’t a reason in the world that a garage has to be dull and boring. Well, we went on the Internet to find some things that we could use to, well, make the garage a more appealing place to be. The first thing we came up with is two cool kits. Now this is one of them. Notice the filling station pump nozzle and hose and everything. Here we have the replica of… Read More
Compressor Basics
No garage is complete without air. There’s very little that you can do around an automobile without some form of air supply. Well, one of the easiest ways to do that is with a small portable compressor, such as we have here. Now these are available in gas or electric power, and they can be taken anyplace that you want, and set them up and you have air… Read More
Mobile Electronics
This time we’re going to talk about one of the hottest aspects of the automotive scene, that’s automotive electronics or mobile electronics. And here to discuss this issue with us is Matt Swanston from the Consumer Electronics Association. Hi, Matt. Matt: Hi. Goss: All right, we’ve got quite an array here, so let’s start right here. Matt: Here we have a portable… Read More
Emergency Tool Kit
Stuff happens when you’re dealing with automobiles and you have to be prepared for the inevitable. Some things that you should always have in the car, an assortment of fuses, but because there are a lot of different types, make sure that what you buy actually fits your car. Also, to tie up those pieces that fall off, some mechanic’s wire is a good idea, as is… Read More
Filters, Belts, Hoses
Although cars have changed dramatically over the years, the basics have remained the same. Take the air filter, for instance. You need to check it on a regular basis, and please replace it long before it looks like either one of these. That could be very damaging to the engine. Also you may have a filter on your car that you don’t even know about, a cabin air… Read More
Battery Charging Basics
There have been amazing changes in cars over the years, and that’s really evident when it comes to the electrical systems. One of the things that we’re really concerned with, well, that’s the computer or computers, because many cars will have multiple computers in them. Well, you may have problems with a dead battery or something. One thing you don’t want to do… Read More
Diesel Maintenance
Diesel engines are amazing. They provide great power, great torque, they’re good on fuel and they’re even environmentally friendly. But there are some generic things that you want to be aware of for your diesel. If you live in an area where they run your diesel through emissions, you probably want to use one of the additives that are designed specifically to help… Read More
Cooling System Care
As soon as a car is completed, it starts to decay, and one place where that definitely happens is in the cooling system. Now you can help slow the decay process with proper maintenance. The first thing you want to do in your cooling system is to replace the radiator cap every two years. As a radiator cap goes bad, it allows air into the radiator. The air in turn… Read More