Our Expert Automotive Service & Collision Repair Blog

Since many vehicle values drop by 40% or more in 3 years, buying used can be a significant money saver and there’s a lot to choose from because of the number of vehicles coming off lease is increasing. Finding a good used vehicle isn’t a matter of luck, but rather the result of good research and inspection.

Our oldest grandson got his driver’s license a few weeks ago and being the “car guy” of the family, I got involved in his car search. My first obstacle is to convince him that because of his budget, he can only afford something a little older so he needs to look for a reliable and safe vehicle since he can’t afford a lot of maintenance expense. No fast cars. No turbos.

With our next grandbaby coming soon, I decided to brush up on child seat installation. We had gotten training in the past, but I wanted to be sure I was doing things correctly. As I started reading, I came across a few startling facts.  

No one likes to be in a vehicle accident.  Many times, our first instinct is to try to minimize the situation.  But clear thinking and attention to detail can save you a lot of headache, a lot of time and a lot of money as you navigate the insurance and car repair process.  

It’s that time of year again.  The ski areas are starting to make snow, the 14ers are turning white again and we couldn’t hold off any longer and had to turn on our furnace.

If you have been keeping up with the scheduled maintenance for your vehicle, it’s ready for winter, but if not, here are a few things you can do to cover the basics.

As I was pulling plastic out of our cardboard recycle bin here at the shop, it occurred to me that possibly most of us don’t really know how to recycle. Then someone stopped in and asked us if we would recycle their empty engine oil bottles. I’m still trying to get my wife to look at the pictures on top of our recycle bin at home that shows pictures of what you can and can’t recycle. Then whenever our extended family is over for dinner, I find myself pulling all the napkins out of the recycle bin. I apologize this article doesn’t have anything to do with cars but I need to vent.

A new automotive refrigerant R1234yf is being used in many late model 2015 and newer vehicles.  The United States EPA has mandated that all new vehicles use R1234yf by 2021. The reason is that the new refrigerant R1234yf has a much lower global warming potential (GWP) than the refrigerant that has been in use (R134a) for the last 24 years. In fact the GWP of R1234 is 1 according to its maker Honeywell and it is 4 according to the EPA, while the GWP of R134 is 1430. The EU has mandated that all new vehicles sold there must have a refrigerant with a GWP of below 150 beginning January 1, 2017. Many vehicles sold here are already using R1234yf because the car makers receive tradable emission credits from the EPA.

Last month’s newsletter addressed 3 stage paint challenges. This month we will tackle paint matching a plastic bumper to the metal body of the vehicle.

Every year, more and more cars are made with pearl finishes. These are known as 3 stage finishes. The first coat is a basecoat color, then a translucent pearl is applied and finally a clear coat finish. Pearl colors have been around since at least the sixties. They used to be created by mixing ground up fish scales with the paint. Elvis Presley’s 1960 Cadillac went one step further by adding ground up diamonds to the paint. Now the most widely used pearl additive is titanium dioxide coated transparent mica flakes.

The I-70 mountain express lane from Empire through Idaho Springs opened in December 2015. Since its opening it has reduced travel times and accidents. According to CDOT, during the 2015-2016 winter, this section of highway had normal travel times with traffic volume “that would have collapsed the corridor with speeds of 5-10 mph in previous years”.