Automotive Industry News & Information - Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service

When something goes wrong with your vehicle, it can be tempting to take the cheapest route. With eBay, Amazon, and the countless other sources for car and truck parts on the market today, many people decide to go that route to save some money. Here we choose only quality automotive parts for our Midlotian, VA driver at Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service because we want to ensure their parts match our commitment to providing them high quality repairs.

When you are having trouble with your car or truck starting and you open the hood up to take a peek to see this....you'll see what an overly corroded battery looks like. This happens naturally over time on vehicle battery terminals. If you are like 99% of normal Midlotian drivers, you don't check your oil or your battery so you don't keep an eye on the amount of corrosion that's building up on your car or truck battery. Here at Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service, we do and there are solvents that we can use here in the shop during a battery maintenance service that will help slow the corrosion process but nothing that can prevent it 100%. Way before it gets to this point, we will be suggesting you consider replacing the battery.

There’s a huge appeal to buying a used car from a private party seller. Bypass the dealership, the hidden fees, the markups, the hassle, and save yourself some money in the process. But what’s the risk? Have you found a deal or a dud?

As cars become more technologically advanced, the importance of your vehicle’s battery becomes more important. In the old days, a car battery essentially worked, or it didn’t; if it was good enough to start the car, it was good enough. Modern vehicles are a different story. A faulty battery can cause a variety of issues, including engine codes, sensor failures, irregular transmission behavior, and the list goes on.

Battery failure often causes issues that are commonly misdiagnosed, and in the hands of the wrong auto repair shop, a mechanic may spend hundreds of your hard-earned dollars chasing problems that don’t exist. At Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service in Midlotian, VA, our mechanics are familiar with modern vehicles and the problems that accompany them.

Fluid levels, tire condition, dashboard lights, and a variety of other items typically are briefly explored whenever you bring your vehicle in for maintenance here at Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service in Midlotian, VA, where we are good at noticing things that need repair, but the fact of the matter is that only you know your car. You know when your car feels off when it's been serviced last (or that it hasn't been serviced at all,) and have at least some vague idea of what’s going on with your vehicle day to day. Here are some questions you can ask us next time you come by the shop;

Your vehicle configuration determines how it should be properly towed to avoid transmission damage. Specifically, it matters if your vehicle is front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive and whether it’s an automatic or a manual. From the professionals at Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service in Midlotian, VA, here’s how to tow your vehicle:

Manual transmissions require far less maintenance than automatics. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t need a fluid check from time to time. Here’s what you should know about checking and adding fluid to your manual transmission, from Stuart Rolfe Muffler & Auto Service in Midlotian, VA.

Your car’s fuel system works with the rest of the engine control system to deliver the best performance with the lowest emissions. Check your car’s fuel system regularly or immediately if you smell gas or suspect a problem.

What does it do? - The fuel system transfers fuel from the fuel tank and passes it through a fuel filter for straining before it arrives at the injectors. A pressure regulator controls fuel pressure to ensure good engine performance under a variety of speed and load conditions. Fuel injectors, when activated, spray a metered amount of fuel into the engine. Some vehicles use a return line system to return unused fuel back to the tank.