Maumee Auto Repair

It's important for Maumee drivers to know battery basics. First, let's talk about which is harder on a battery – hot or cold OH weather. Most Maumee area drivers think it's cold weather because that's when we call on our batteries to have enough power to start a cold vehicle engine. However, heat does more damage to a battery than cold. Truth is, our batteries start to die a little from day one. Keeping a full charge slows the process, which is hard with short Maumee trips because the alternator doesn't have time to fully recharge the battery from starting the engine. Maumee drivers can top off the charge with a computer controlled battery charger – say, once a month in the summer and every three months during the winter.As far as how long a battery will last, statistics show that 70% have given up the ghost within four years. By that time, they aren't capable of taking a full charge like they used to, and your veh ... read more

  One topic that hits the news in OH on a regular basis is the price of gas. The answer for some OH drivers is to buy a vehicle that gets better fuel economy. For those of us in Maumee who don't want to add a car payment to our monthly expenses, we need to improve our fuel economy any way we can.Following recommended service intervals by coming into Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. is one of the best ways people in Maumee can keep their vehicle running efficiently. That means better fuel economy. When you give it some thought, it only makes sense. Dirty oil or transmission fluid can't lubricate or clean. That means more drag which reduces fuel economy.Keeping up with scheduled oil changes and transmission services will save gas for OH drivers.Dirty engine air filters are another efficiency pirate. They rob your engine of enough air to effectively burn the fuel, so you need more gas to get the job done. Replacing a dirty air filter can pay for itself in fuel savings before the next oil chan ... read more

Like everything in the OH automotive market, there have been great strides in headlight technology in recent years. OH drivers can be safer at night because of it. Good headlights improve visibility on Maumee roads, enabling you to see farther. They also improve your peripheral vision, helping you to see the sides more clearly. The more you can see, the more quickly you can react to road conditions. This is because nearly half of traffic fatalities take place at night. And as Maumee resident population ages, everything that helps older eyes is welcome.Most new vehicles sold in OH come with halogen headlamps. A decade ago, halogens were exotic and expensive. Now that they are standard equipment, the price has come way down. Many luxury cars are equipped with high intensity discharge, or HID, headlamps. You have probably seen them on some Maumee roads; they're very bright and have a bluish tint.From behind the wheel, there is no doubt that HID headlamps are the ... read more

The biggest issue for Maumee area drivers is always safety. When your vehicle wheels are out of alignment, the vehicle will pull to one side, which could lead to an accident. When you're vehicle is out of alignment, you should have it taken care of right away at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. in Maumee. When undergoing an alignment service at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc., your vehicle is put on an alignment rack where the tires, steering and suspension parts are checked for damage. Then the alignment is charted and checked against the factory settings.Precision adjustments are made to bring the wheels back into alignment. This gets all four wheels going in exactly the same direction.Maumee drivers should be aware of the signs of alignment problems. These include the car pulling to one side. Also, the steering wheel may not be centered when you're going straight. If you see the edges of one or more tires rapidl ... read more

When your vehicle has a problem or just needs some routine service, you might get a little nervous. Your vehicle's so important to your life in Maumee, you need to get back on the road as soon as possible – with the problem fixed right the first time.If you've ever checked into some of the technician training Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. professionals receive, you may be surprised at how much specialized knowledge and skill goes into diagnosing and repairing a modern car. For example: Today there are four cylinder engines that generate more power than the 1980s-era V-8's. I mean a new V-6 Toyota Camry could beat Sonny Crocket's Ferrari in a race to 60 mph/100 kph. Our engines are more and more powerful and at the same time their fuel economy keeps inching up – even with steep Maumee gas prices. They are also amazingly reliable: Kudos to the automotive engineers. But the advances come at the price of simplicity. The modern veh ... read more

Maumee residents know that engines need to burn fuel to operate. Fuel is pumped from your fuel tank to your vehicle engine where it is squirted—or injected—into your engine's cylinders. This is the function of the fuel injectors.There are two ways to inject fuel into an engine. Fuel needs air to burn, so in the first method, fuel is injected into a port and allowed to mix with air—before it is drawn into the cylinders. In the second method, fuel is injected directly into the cylinders and mixes with air after it enters the vehicle engine.Direct injection engines burn fuel more efficiently than conventional vehicle engines. Some models can deliver the power of a V8 with the economy of a V6.For example, in one family of engines, the conventional version (a V6) delivers about 250 horsepower. The direct injection version delivers over 300 horsepower and gets about the same gas mileage. The turbocharged version delivers 350 horsepower.Why ... read more

Local Toledo roadside emergencies can range from a flat tire downtown to being stranded in a snowy ravine for three days. So you may want to consider a basic emergency kit to keep in the car at all times and a travel kit tailored to a specific trip. Your close-to-home kit for around Maumee would have some basic items to work on your car: everything you need to change a tire, gloves, a couple quarts of oil, some antifreeze and water. A can of tire inflator is a great temporary fix for minor flats. You'll also want jumper cables or a booster box, flares, a flashlight and some basic hand tools. Now for your comfort and safety: a first aid kit, drinkable water, high calorie food (like energy bars), blankets, toilet paper, cell phone, towel, hat and boots. Keep some change for a pay phone, emergency cash and a credit card. People who live in areas with frequent severe weather or earthquakes may want to carry provisio ... read more

No matter how well they're made, vehicles in Maumee, OH, will have design or manufacturing problems. And when the government thinks a problem is really serious for people in Maumee, OH, they require the manufacturer to issue a recall notice and fix the vehicle  free of charge. The manufacturer then tries to contact everyone in OH who owns that type of vehicle to get the recall work done. Perhaps you have received a postcard notifying you of a recall. The government has links on its websites, or just visit AutoNetTV for links. There are many websites with free recall information and searches. There's CarFax, AutoByTel and the DMV.Recalls are serious but not all that common. Sometimes there are fewer issues, and for these, manufacturers issue a Technical Service Bulletin, or TSB, that tells service centers like Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. how to repair a frequent or difficult problem.The pros get updated information throu ... read more

Hey Maumee - this is something really amazing: Your vehicle uses 12,000 times as much air as fuel when you drive it. All of that air has to be filtered to keep your engine clean.That's like 100 gallons (380 liters) of air every block! The engine air filter is just another example of a very important but inexpensive part that has to do a tremendous amount of work. And when it works, everything goes well. But, when it doesn't, well, it can lead to problems. Of course, your vehicle manufacturer recommends how often to change your air filter. But like most service intervals, where and how you drive your vehicle in OH affects when your filter needs to be changed.Dusty conditions around Maumee or polluted city driving means you'll need to change your filter more often. Our trained professionals at Lange`s Auto Care, Inc. can check your filter for you. In fact, it's often a routine part of an oil change.When you think about it, a clogged air filter w ... read more

Is your vehicle sometimes hard to start early in the morning? When you turn the key, does it hesitate or stutter? If so, the problem could be the result of a dirty fuel system. Your vehicle's fuel system starts with the air filter and ends in the top of your engine. Over time, different parts of the system get dirty, which robs you of performance and hurts your fuel economy. Most Maumee vehicles have fuel injectors, rather than a carburetor. Fuel injection systems have fewer problems and require less adjustment. But they still need to be properly maintained. This is why your owner's manual has a schedule for cleaning your fuel injectors and other parts of your fuel system.Some Maumee residents are interested in buying fuel system cleaners that they can pour into their gas tank. You can do that - and there are lots of great products available that can help maintain an already clean fuel system - but these products cannot do a major cleaning. For that, you need to see Lange`s A ... read more