Articles:

Automotive Tips from Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.: A Broken or Damaged Timing Belt

The timing belt rotates the cam shafts which open and close the valves that allow air, fuel, and exhaust to flow through the engine as it powers your car when you drive around Maumee.An old timing belt can lose a “tooth” in the belt allowing it to slip. The engine could stop or misfire. Timing belt slips – or a broken timing belt – can be disastrous on some engines. In “interference” engines, open valves can get in the way of the piston when the timing belt breaks or slips. When that happens one or more valves can be bent requiring expensive engine repairs.It is important for Maumee drivers to replace their timing belts as recommended in their owner’s manual to avoid unnecessary breakdowns. Ask the team of professionals at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. in Maumee if it’s time for your timing belt to be replaced. Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.825 Ford St Suite AMaumee, OH 43537419-897-9988htt ... read more

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Timing Belt

Cruisin' on Down Main Street

When automakers first came out with cruise control, it was a real luxury item.  The older cruise controls used a mechanical vacuum system but it worked.  Well, some of the time.  Now days, cruise control is all electronic, thanks to computers.  It's reliable and a real convenience on long trips.  Cruise control is offered on most vehicles and standard on a lot of them.  Because it's electronic, when it breaks, it's usually some electronic component.  Your vehicle's cruise can be the victim of a blown fuse. Or your vehicle's speed sensor, which—not surprisingly—measures your vehicle's speed, can also stop working.  And that will cause your cruise to stop cruising.  Vehicles with cruise control also have a built-in feature that, when the brakes are applied, turns off the cruise.  With electronic cruise control, that happens thanks to the brake pedal switch, and if a problem develops in that switch, the cruise might not work. T ... read more

Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. Automotive Tips: Alternator

Your alternator makes electricity to start and run your engine and all of the vital electrical systems in your vehicle. That’s everything from the on-board computers to the turn signals. And of course there is the entertainment system, seat heaters, power windows and everything you plug into the power outlets. After your alternator makes enough electricity to do all that, it recharges your battery with what’s left over.When Maumee drivers constantly have a low or dead battery, the alternator is usually a prime suspect. However, the alternator is just one vital component of the starting/charging system, and a problem with any of the other components could be the actual cause.In addition to the alternator, the charging/starting system includes the battery, starter, serpentine belt system and all of the electrical cables that connect them. Your Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. service advisor has a systematic process of testing components and connections to get to the source of yo ... read more

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Alternator

It Is Time to Check Your Intervals

Part of the engineering that goes into designing a vehicle is testing the components to ensure that they meet durability and safety standards. Because of this, manufacturers have a good idea as to how long the parts in your vehicle will last under normal driving conditions. For this reason, they give us guidelines to follow regarding how often to inspect the various parts and systems on our vehicles.Vehicular components are required to meet certain standards. The government mandates some of these standards. Others are set by the auto industry. Recommended car maintenance schedules are designed to help Maumee vehicle owners maintain these standards. Disregarding routine maintenance or procrastinating preventive maintenance will result in lowered performance and reduced safety for a vehicle.Maintenance schedules are designed to ensure three areas of automotive performance for Maumee drivers: protection of the vehicle itself, efficiency and safety. Protection ... read more

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Inspection

Automotive Tips from Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.: Air Conditioning ? Common Problem

Your auto air conditioning system cools and conditions the air in your passenger compartment when you are driving around Maumee. It also removes moisture from the air to keep your windows from fogging up.A common A/C problem for Maumee drivers that visit Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. is contaminated refrigerant (the gas that cools the air). The inside of the A/C hoses deteriorates over time and tiny fragments of rubber clog passages. This makes the system less efficient and overworks various components.Leaks can develop at seals and gaskets and may reduce the amount of refrigerant, causing the system to work too hard to compensate. Dirty components can have the same consequences.Ask your Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. service advisor for an air conditioning system inspection to make sure everything is up to spec.Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.825 Ford St Suite AMaumee, OH 43537419-897-9988http://www.langesauto.com  

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Air Conditioning

How to Know When to Change Your Oil at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.

Today in the Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. auto care blog, we're going to talk to Maumee drivers about oil change intervals. It seems that as engine technology advances, oil change intervals become longer for Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. customers. For example, recently four of the world's largest vehicle manufacturer's shortened the published intervals for several of their engine models. They originally published intervals that extended out to a much as 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers).In real world Maumee driving, the oil started to sludge up before the recommended change interval. Oil sludge is a thick jelly-like substance: quite literally petroleum jelly – like Vaseline. This goop was clogging vehicle small engine passages so the oil wouldn't flow to some parts of the engine. This resulted in engine damage. We see it too often at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. in Maumee.The vehicle manufacturers began to offer an extended warranty to cover sludge damage. But there was a catch ... read more

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Fluids

The Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. Guide to Proper Fluids for Your Vehicle

The automotive professionals at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. would like to give Maumee drivers an update on some of the things happening in automotive fluids. You know, vehicles are becoming more sophisticated every day.  Fluids such as, oil, coolant and transmission fluid are becoming more specialized at about the same pace.The Maumee do-it-yourselfer has to be pretty careful so that they do not actually harm their vehicle with the wrong type of fluid. That is why so many OH ] owners rely on the advice of their friendly and knowledgeable Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. service advisor to not only get the correct family of fluids, but to suggest the formulation that is best for their vehicle and their driving habits in the Maumee area.Let's start with engine oil. Maumee drivers who have been paying attention will have noticed a number of new oil weights on the OH scene in the last several years. Modern engines ar ... read more

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Fluids

Automotive Tips from Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.: Making a Battery Last Longer

One thing all Maumee drivers can do to extend the life of their battery is to keep it clean. A greasy, dirty battery holds in damaging heat. Same goes for removing corrosion from the terminals. Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. can help maintain your battery.Allowing your battery to be deeply depleted – like from using your headlights when the engine is off – is very harmful to your battery. Most automotive batteries can only take that about 10 times before they are ruined.Also, making sure you have a full charge every month or so extends battery life. Either an extended drive at freeway speeds around the Maumee are or using a battery charger will preserve your battery’s ability to hold a full charge.Give us a call.Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.825 Ford St Suite AMaumee, OH 43537419-897-9988http://www.langesauto.com

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Battery

New School: Automotive Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. Technician Training

Maumee consumers are demanding. We want a safe, reliable vehicle that handles well and is comfortable to ride in. Oh, and we want good fuel economy, too. We also want vehicle repairs that are cheap, fast and easy. Unfortunately, one usually comes at the cost of the other.Today's vehicles have made significant improvements in reliability and performance over the last few decades. They also deliver more power to Maumee drivers more efficiently than ever before. For example, some of today's 4-cylinder engines are equal to yesterday's V-8's. Our vehicles also offer an amazing range of features that make them more comfortable and convenient than ever before.But all of that improvement has come at a price for Maumee vehicle owners. Our vehicles are more complicated and difficult to repair than ever before. They have numerous mechanical and electrical systems. Fuel systems are so complex they have to be run by a computer. Our vehicles are covered with sensors and high-tech electronic equ ... read more

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Maintenance

Give Your Engine Clean Fuel with a New Fuel Filter from Lange`s Auto Care, Inc.

Your vehicle requires plenty of clean fuel to run. If your fuel contains contaminants, your fuel injectors will eventually become clogged up. When this happens, your vehicle engine may not get the proper amount of fuel at the correct pressure to run at peak performance. This hurts performance as you drive around the Maumee area. It can also lead to the buildup of harmful deposits on valves and in the combustion chamber.That's why all vehicles, including vehicles, come equipped with a fuel filter. The job of the filter is to clean out little pieces of dirt and contamination. The filter captures the contaminants and keeps them out of the fuel stream. Of course, like all filters, it will eventually get clogged up and need to be replaced at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. in Maumee.If your fuel filter is clogged, the vehicle engine can't get all the fuel it needs, and it may sputter at high speeds or quick acceleration. Many fuel filters have a b ... read more

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Fuel System
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