Gines Auto Service BLOG

Friday, November 11, 2011

Getting Ready For Winter: Tires Part Two

What are the different types of tires for Winter driving?

All season tires: Most people can get by with standard all-season tires. As long as the tread is not worn out, you should be okay with all season tires.
Studded snow tires: If you are in need of extra traction for severe mandatory have to drive in all storms then we still have Studded Snow tires that are the Greatest! If you find yourself driving in harsh snow conditions frequently, you might want to invest in studded snow tires.

How does the tread on tires work to help me drive better in the snow?

The traction on your tires is what helps you to stop faster on wet and slick roads. If your tires are worn, and the traction is mostly gone, your stopping distance will be greater, and may cause an unnecessary collision. The channels and grooves in the tire tread is where the water and snow goes in and helps prevent hydroplaning.

Tips:

Make sure your tires are properly inflated at all times. Watch this video HERE on how to check your tire pressure.
To tell if your tread is worn, you can use the penny or quarter trick. Put a penny or quarter head first into your tire tread. If you can still see the top of Lincoln's head, you need new tires.

READ MORE about getting your vehicle ready for Winter!

Thank You To Our Veterans!

A big thank you to all of our Veterans and active military service men and women today! Words cannot express our gratitude for all you have sacrificed!

Clyde Gines
U.S. Army
Korean War

J.D.Allison
U.S. Navy
Korean War

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Getting Ready For Winter: Tires Part One

Good tires are one of the most important things to have on your vehicle when Winter arrives.

Here are a few different things to know about the specific features your vehicle may have:

Front Wheel Drive and Rear Wheel Drive: Vehicles with front wheel drive seem to do better in the snow. This is because the front tires are the tires that turn, grasping onto the surface and pulling your vehicle. Rear wheel drive works with the tires as the ones that are turning, pushing your vehicle, and in the snow this can cause you to slide more easily. If you have a vehicle with rear wheel drive, you may want to add some weight in the back for traction. Many people will add sandbags to their trunk to get that extra weight.
Four Wheel Drive: Four wheel drive is when all four wheels are turning to make the car go.
All Wheel Drive: All wheel drive is also when all four wheels turn to make the car go. The difference between the two is that with four wheel drive you have to manually lock in the four wheels to make them all turn; all wheel drive is where your vehicle detects that is it needed, and will lock and unlock the tires as needed in and out of four wheel drive.
Anti-lock Brakes: With ABS (or anti lock brakes), the computer watches the same sensors as Traction Control. When it monitors a wheel skidding then it will release the brake pressure from that wheel and when it starts moving again then it reapplies the brake to the wheel again, over and over again until you come to a stop. (This is the same way you were taught driving on a slick road but a whole lot faster.)
Traction Control: On Traction control there are many different ways to control the wheel spin. The computer can detect when a wheel slips with the Antilock Brake Sensors on the wheels. The computer then either upshifts the transmission, applies brake to the wheel spinning, or can even retard timing to take power away from engine. We were also taught in the old cars that if you are stuck and one wheel is spinning, then slowly apply the park brake to stop that wheel and both wheels will start spinning and possibly get you unstuck. This is the same principle.
Stability Control: Another neat feature on cars today is Stability Control. Stability control has a sensor that is called a yaw sensor. It is the same thing that is used in fighter jets. It measures the G force and how much steering. For example, if you are turning left and the rear end is spinning around to the right (too sharp of a turn), the computer will start applying the right front brake to stop the rear from spinning around. This same principle that has been used on tractors and dune buggies. If you are turning left and the front wheels keep pushing straight ahead and not turning, the computer will start pulsing the left rear brake and it will help bring the front end around.

Next week we will discuss more about tires, including:

How do I properly inflate my tires?
How do I tell if my tire tread is too worn?
Why is tire tread important when driving on wet and slick roads?
Do I need studded snow tires or all season tires?

Read more about Getting Your Vehicle Ready For Winter.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Odometer Fraud: Warning Signs

Odometer from a 1993 Ford Ranger. This vehicle has 300,000 miles on it, and has rolled over three times.
When this vehicle was purchased in 1999 from a dealership, the odometer said 72,000. After knowing the warning signs,
and having us check it out, the owner questioned the dealership, who then looked into it further and said
"Oh, you're right. It has 172,000 miles, NOT 72,000."

KSL recently ran a story about the rise of odometer fraud in Utah. Odometer fraud is hard to detect, but besides a carfax report, here are a few other things you can check before buying a vehicle that seems "to good to be true" on the mileage:

Gas and brake pedals: A vehicle with higher miles will have brake and gas pedals that have been used a lot. If they are overworn on a vehicle with low miles, this is a red flag.
Tires: Ask about the tires that are on the vehicle. If the vehicle has extremely low miles and the owner has replaced the tires a few times, or if the owner claims they are the original tires and they are extremely worn, this is also a red flag.
Leaks: As vehicles age, there may be some oil seeping in older engines.
"Trust Your Gut": We have all heard this popular phrase. The bottom line is, if it seems to good to be true it usually is.

As we have said before, knowledge is power, and the more informed you are when buying a vehicle, the better chance you have of buying a good reliable vehicle that is going to last.

If you ever have any questions when buying a new vehicle, or would like us to check it out first, we are always happy to. Just call or come in any time!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

History Of The Logo: Abarth

Info from Car Logos:

Abarth is an Italian racing car maker founded by Italian-Austrian Karl (Carlo) Abarth in Turin in 1949. Abarth was sold to Fiat on July 31 1971, and the racing team sold to Enzo Osella. Abarth became the racing department of Fiat, managed by famed engine designer Aurelio Lampredi.

The Abarth logo consists of the following key elements:

The shape of the logo represents a shield which symbolizes the notion of victory. You can find some of the other racing logos like Porsche also have a shield in their logo.
The red, white and green represent the colors of the Italian Flag.
The scorpion is the key part of the logo and represents the astrological sign of Karl Alberto Abarth who was born on November 15th 1908.
The red and yellow colors apparently represent the racing world.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Getting Your Vehicle Ready For Winter

With winter coming on, a properly maintained vehicle should have no issues with the change of weather. If you have not had your car maintained properly, there are some things you will need to check before Winter is here in full force. Here are some important things you can check to ensure your vehicle is ready for winter, and why they need to be checked before winter sets in:

Anti Freeze
Battery
Emergency Winter Kit
Tires Part One
Tires Part Two
Windshield Wipers
Tips from ACDelco
Tips from AAA and West Valley City
Stay tuned next week when we cover another important check!

GETTING READY FOR WINTER: Batteries

Cold temperatures decrease the power of a battery.

Batteries are rated as CCA cold cranking amps. That is the power the battery will produce at -18 Celsius or -39 degrees Fahrenheit. We have testers that will check the CCA of a Battery in 10-15 seconds. The CCA is different for the car you have. For example, Diesel trucks have 2 batteries because they need a lot more CCA to run them.

The old wives tale is that if you store a battery on cement it will drain a battery. The fact is, cement is always colder and it lowers the temperature of the battery, which lowers the power it will produce.

Everyone thinks that cold is harder on your battery, but the fact is that HOT weather is harder on your battery. More batteries fail in HOT weather than cold, but cold weather also wears on batteries.

If you don’t have your battery tested before the winter, when the extreme cold comes, your battery will not start your car.

Everybody has a tendency to buy batteries in reverse to what they should:

Example: If your battery fails when the car is pretty new, most people go ahead and put the best battery in it; when the car gets a little older ,most people tend to not put in a good battery because their vehicle is older. Just the opposite should be happening. But when the car is newer you starter and alternator and everything in the car is in better shape; when your car is older, that's when the car will need the better battery because the starter and alternator aren't as good as when the car was newer.

As we have said before, proper maintenance will usually keep you from having those surprises of going out to your car on a chilly morning, and not having it start. Proper maintenance is always the key!

If you would like to have the CCA of your batter tested before winter, or have any battery questions in general, give us a call at (801) 966-6021.

History Of The Logo: BMW

BMW stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke or Bavarian Motor Company. The company was established in 1913 and based in Munich, Germany. It started out as an aero engine manufacturer, hence the company logo. The logo comprised of four quadrants of alternating white and blue color. It is a stylized representation of an airplane propeller spinning against the clear blue sky. The logo represents a white propeller blade against a blue sky. It reflects the origins of BMW as a maker of military aircraft engines during WWI. Also, white and blue are the traditional colors of Bavaria.

Read more HERE.

Monday, October 31, 2011

GETTING TO KNOW US: Mark

Mark is the owner of Gines Auto Service. He worked at both Clyde's Chevron with his dad and also ran Gines Auto Service, for a total of 38 years.

He is an ASE Certified Mechanic, and has been interested in working on vehicles since he was a young boy. His father, Clyde Gines, owned Clyde's Chevron in Kearns/West Valley for many years, and his mother says that when he was a boy, if he was nowhere to be found, they would call up to his dad's shop and find him there.

Mark grew up in Kearns and graduated from Kearns High School, where he met his wife Marianne. Together they have four children and six grandchildren.

Mark currently lives in Lakepoint and owns four horses. He spends much of his free time in the mountains "getting away from the rat race city" riding his horses. He also enjoys hunting, fishing, mountain drives, travelling, and family parties.

One of his favorite part of owning Gines Auto Service is getting to know the customers. Customers love coming in to visit with Mark and chat while their vehicles are being serviced. He enjoys the shuttle service that Gines Auto Service provides, and being able to get to know customers while taking them to and from the shop.

Stop in and say hi to Mark, and make sure to mention you read his spotlight this week! You will receive $5 off your total bill THIS WEEK ONLY if you mention at the time of service that you read this spotlight!

Thursday, October 27, 2011

WINNER! Disney On Ice Tickets!

Congratulations toSteve Johnson!
He was randomly selected as the winner for a family four-pack of Disney On Ice Treasure Trove Tickets!
Congratulations, and enjoy the show!
Learn more about Disney On Ice Treasure Trove and how you can buy tickets. There are still tickets available!