FAQ

• Precision Auto Clinic has been servicing the Greater Moncton area for over 25 years. 2009 is our Silver anniversary.
• Word of mouth is our main source of advertisement, satisfied customers tell their friends and relatives about our great honest service.
• Locally owned and operated.
• Licensed Technicians, plus continuous training!
• Locally owned and operated.
• Personal service
• Modern equipment; we have the most current tools and software.
• We have an environmentally sensitive facility. We recycle anti-freeze, used oil, oil filters, cardboard and more.
  

• Provincial licensing is the automotive industry’s nationally recognized technician testing program.
• A Licensed Technician is knowledgeable on the operation and servicing of today’s complex automobile.
• Our Technicians keep current and up to date by taking ongoing training all year long.
• Precision Auto Clinic has only Licensed Technicians on staff to look after all of your automotive maintenance and repair needs.
  

There are several reasons. First, it is important to know there is a big difference between getting a detailed, complete vehicle inspection and getting the vehicle looked over while it is in our shop. Complete vehicle inspection is much more through, and the customer leaves with a detailed report. The following is a list of reasons you may want, a complete vehicle inspection:

• Pre-purchase inspection; know what you are buying.
• Your vehicle warranty is expiring; it’s important to know if covered items need attention before your warranty expires.
• End of lease inspection; the dealer will charge you back for items in need of repair when you return your vehicle.
• New driver / new family addition; is the car in proper running condition?
• Major repairs; if you are contemplating investing in a major repair don’t you want to know just what shape the entire vehicle is in?
• Trip inspection; all you need is a breakdown when you are on vacation.
• New Brunswick annual safety inspections

We get asked this a lot. There are several reasons to follow the manufacturer's recommended maintenance schedule:

• It helps to minimize breakdowns.
• Better protection for your investment. With preventative maintenance many people are keeping their cars for 200,000 miles.
• To keep the manufacturer's warranty in effect.
• To maintain optimum performance.
• Ensure maximum engine efficiency and mileage.
• Increase re-sale value (A used vehicle has a higher value when there are records to prove it has been properly maintained)
• Most importantly, Safety. Even newer vehicles have defects.

Your vehicle’s computer will often store a trouble code. This code tells us the area in which to look for the problem. For example, an engine miss-fire code may be caused by a bad fuel injector, worn spark plugs, bad ignition wires, a bad ignition coil, an intermittent crankshaft position sensor, a wiring connection problem or more.

A timing belt is what drives the camshaft(s) in many vehicles on the road today. The camshaft(s) open the engine valves. When a timing belt breaks or slips on many engines the valves may remain open while the piston comes up causing major engine damage. The vehicle's manufacturer's have a recommended replacement interval for each engine (usually 60,000, 100,000 or 120,000). Some high performance vehicles have recommended intervals as soon as 50,000 KMs. We can quickly access this information and provide a cost estimate. Because many water pumps are mounted behind the timing belt, we will include replacing the water pump at the same time as an option. Some water pumps act as an idler pulley for the timing belt and could cause it to jump if the pump fails. Many water pumps fail at 120,000-160,000 KMs anyway and there is a substantial savings for replacing the pump while the timing belt is off.

Tire rotation helps prevent uneven wear. Front tires and rear tires wear differently, and rotating them helps extend your tire life.

Balancing does even more to help ensure long tire life while maintaining a smooth ride. Tires get choppy when out of balance. This choppy condition often causes vibrations and noise (the noise is often confused with a wheel bearing failure). Once a tire becomes choppy balancing will only help slightly, replacement is required to correct this regardless of how much tread depth remains.

Yesterday’s vehicles needed constant tuning which included parts replacement as well as many adjustments, engine timing, points adjustments and carburetor adjustments.

Today’s vehicles still require the replacement of parts such as spark plugs, air and fuel filters, pcv valve, ignition wires and distributor caps and rotors (when applicable) plus throttle plate and bore cleaning. On most vehicles, there are no longer any adjustments needed or available. Timing is often not adjustable, and when it is only the base timing adjusts which doesn’t change as it did on older vehicles. Your engine control computer adjusts timing, fuel mixture and even idle speed. This is why today’s engines last so long when properly maintained. The computer always adjusts them properly!

An engine tune-up is included in the manufacturer's recommended maintenance schedules. Some vehicles are equipped with platinum spark plugs, which last 100,000 Km’s, but the other components should still be serviced.

Please Note: Drivability concerns, check engine light warnings and emissions failures require diagnostic time to determine the cause of the problem.

A front end alignment should be checked twice a year or when the vehicle has excessive tire wear, when the vehicle pulls or when new tires are purchased to ensure maximum mileage from your new tires. Sometimes a pull is worn into the tires and will remain even after an alignment is performed unless the tires are rotated. We get a lot of requests for wheel alignment for a shaking symptom. This is usually a tire balancing problem, a bad tire condition or a warped brake rotor.

There are many benefits. The quantity of dirt in your vehicles fuel injectors and carbon deposits in your engine's pistons and valves impacts how noticeable these benefits are. Benefits include:

Increase engine performance

Lower vehicle emissions

Help prevent injector failures

Increased fuel economy

Brake fluid absorbs moisture. So much moisture that, most reservoirs are now clear allowing the fluid level to be checked without opening the cover and exposing the fluid to humidity. Moisture will cause internal components to fail pre-maturely. In addition to brake lines, calipers and wheel cylinders today’s vehicles are often equipped with complex abs (anti-lock brake) valves. Changing the brake fluid helps prevent problems with some very costly ABS components.

Industry standard is 5,000 Km’s or 3 months. Automobile manufacturer’s maintenance schedule may state longer oil change intervals depending on the type of oil and driving conditions. Combustion by-products contaminate and break down your engine oil which reduces its ability to protect your engine. Our main concern is making your vehicle last longer and saving you money. We can set a maintenance schedule that suits your driving and automobile needs.