Gilbert Auto Repair

Steering is one of the things we take for granted in our vehicles. Let’s break it down into two areas: first, the power assist and second, the actual parts that steer the vehicle. Most people under 40 have never driven a car or truck without power steering. Most vehicles today have a hydraulic power steering pump that provides boost to help you steer. The pump is usually driven by the serpentine belt, but some newer vehicles have an electric pump. Some vehicles even have an electric motor that directly powers the steering. The important thing to keep in mind is that these pumps and motors will eventually wear out and the hoses will start to leak. You can postpone that day by having a power steering service from time to time. We will drain the old fluid and replace it with fresh fluid. This removes water and contaminants that can corrode power steering parts. Ask your service advisor for the recommended change interval. What about the mechanical steering parts? Is there anythin ... read more

Suspension systems should continue to operate effectively for many years and over long distances, holding your tires’ footprint on the road.  Eventually, components do wear out, but how long that takes depends a lot on how you drive in AZ. As you can imagine, if most of your driving is on smooth Gilbert, AZ, highways, your shock absorbers will last a lot longer than if you do most of your driving on bumpy Gilbert roads or hauling heavy loads.  In addition to just wearing out, suspension components can be damaged in an accident or by a hard impact – like hitting a pothole, a curb or a rock in the road. Because the life span of shocks can vary so widely, your vehicle manufacturer recommends periodic inspections.  During an inspection, your Spectrum Car Care service technician will check for worn, broken or missing suspension parts. If the inspection reveals any problems, take care of this important safety and handling work.  When you replace your shocks ... read more

There are two main reasons that you should be concerned about your wheel alignment. They are safety and money. If your wheels aren’t aligned then it could cause them to pull to one side, often harshly. It could take just a second for you to find yourself in oncoming traffic or pulled off the road. Bad alignments also seriously damage your tires when speeding along the highway. Someone once came into Spectrum Car Center and told us that he knew his wheels weren’t properly aligned before taking a family vacation, but he felt the problem wasn’t serious enough to be addressed before leaving. A few days and a thousand miles later and there was nothing left of his front tires. He lost half a day of his vacation finding a town with a service station that could replace his tires.   The wheels of your car need to be in perfect alignment all pointing in the same direction. Every so often your wheels will go out of alignment and pull against the other wheels. It can destro ... read more

Steering is one of the things we take for granted when it comes to maintenance and bad things could happen fast if things break down. Let’s take a look at two areas: first, the power assist and second the actual parts that steer the vehicle. Most people under 40 have never driven a car or truck without power steering. Most vehicles today have a hydraulic power steering pump that provides boost to help you steer. The pump is usually driven by the serpentine belt, but some newer vehicles have an electric pump. Some vehicles even have an electric motor that directly powers the steering. So beside all the technical talk, the important thing to keep in mind is that these pumps and motors will eventually wear out and the hoses will start to leak. The good news is that you can postpone that day by having a very simple power steering service on a regular basis. This means draining the old fluid and replace it with fresh fluid. This removes water and contaminants that can corrode power ... read more