Is Your Equipment Ready for A/C Service Season?
Prepare your customer’s A/C for the summer with these maintenance tips.
ABS Diagnostics: Mechanical Problems and Testing
The ABS controller/modulator is the heart of any ABS or ESC system. The modulator gets the brake pressure from the master cylinder. Inside are the valves and solenoids that control the pressures on the wheel. During normal operation, the pressure from the master cylinder goes through the HCU unaltered. The exception to this rule is
Understanding New R1234yf Refrigerant
The R1234yf refrigerant that will be required in all new cars next year has actually been found in vehicles since 2014 when Chrysler began using it in the Dodge Demon and Jeep Trackhawk, among others. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to tell with certainty how many vehicles already have R1234yf due to the phasing in the process
Servicing Tapered Wheel Bearings
You probably haven’t seen tapered wheel bearings in many late-model vehicles. It seems that nearly every vehicle made these days will run some sort of wheel hub assembly. There are a number of reasons for this, but the biggest reason is this: ease of assembly. Not assembly for those of us that work on these
Replacing Weak Springs
No road is entirely flat. Even a small tar strip or dip causes movement in the suspension. This movement is controlled by the spring and dampener. No matter the type of movement, the spring is compressed and then releases the energy into the body, dampener or road. During this cycle, the steel of the spring
Wheel Bearing Analysis: Why Do They Fail?
Wheel bearings are tiny but mighty. Get this: On a typical passenger vehicle weighing around 3,400 pounds, each pair of front-wheel bearings, as well as the rear-wheel or axle bearings, supports around 850 pounds, depending on the weight balance and driveline configuration. If it’s a 6,000-pound SUV, each bearing might carry about 1,500 pounds. Wheel
Guidelines for Visually Inspecting a Shock or Strut
There have been many technical service bulletins written on how to visually inspect a shock or strut to help OEMs avoid needlessly replacing units under warranty. What was their conclusion? Some oil leakage is expected. The first thing you need to realize is that no seal is perfect. The seal that keeps the oil and
Catalytic Converter Theft: How it Can Affect Your Shop
In the past six months, we have seen a dramatic rise in catalytic converter thefts. Criminals are using lithium-ion battery-powered reciprocating saws to cut the catalytic converters out of vehicles. Criminals are not stealing them for replacement value because it is illegal to install a used catalytic converter unless it’s tested by the Environmental Protection
How Can Cars Communicate With Your Shop Equipment?
OEMs do not just manufacture vehicles out of steel, rubber and plastic. They are producing code for software or firmware at a staggering rate. This code is hardly ever finished. As vehicles in the field rack up the miles, they will update the code to cure problems the engineers did not originally anticipate. This code
Tesla Model 3 TPMS Service
One of the first items to be replaced on any Tesla model are the tires. This is due to tire wear from the instant torque of the electric motor. When replacing the tires, you will have to service the TPMS sensors. Tesla has used Baolong (from 2012 to 2014), Continental (from 2014 to 2020 )
ADAS Calibration: Sensor Operation & Calibration Myths
Do you know what happens during an ADAS calibration? Or why it is a must with today’s high-tech vehicles? Many shops and technicians can come up with multiple reasons why they don’t want to perform ADAS calibrations or invest in the equipment. But, chances are, it’s because they don’t understand what happens during an ADAS
CV Joint Replacement Tips
Constant-velocity (CV) joints have been around since the 1980s when front-wheel drive (FWD) came into widespread use. Although some rear-wheel drive (RWD) and all-wheel drive (AWD) vehicles also use CV joints, most are found on FWD cars and minivans. CV joints are used instead of U-joints because they allow the joint to bend at a
