Kansas City Auto Repair

The hottest Missouri news story may be different every day, but there's one topic that seems to come up over and over again – the price of gas in Kansas City. If you feel like most of your paycheck goes into your gas tank, this post is for you. Here are several basic things people in Kansas City can do to greatly reduce their gas consumption, save money, and help the environment. You can really improve your fuel economy by how you drive – but first, here's a review of things you can do for your vehicle that'll save gas no matter how you drive.The first one for Kansas City drivers is keeping tires properly inflated. That can save 2 miles per gallon/.85 km per liter. Driving on low tires is like driving through sand – your car just has to work harder. Most Kansas City service centers will fill up your tires for free, so just ask I - 70 Auto Service. Also, make a habit of checking your tire pressure whenever you fill up. Many Kansas City gas stations ... read more

Many Kansas City car owners have probably wondered: "What's the harm in putting off replacing an engine air filter? The answer is that not replacing it could cause your Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor to fail. This expensive sensor is situated between your engine air filter and your engine. Dirty air filters are a leading cause of mass air flow sensor failure – and these babies can cost several hundred dollars to replace in Kansas City.Change your vehicle air filter at I - 70 Auto Service when it's dirty. Your vehicle engine will thank you.Give us a call. I - 70 Auto Service3111 Stadium Dr.Kansas City, Missouri 64128816-921-0505http://www.i70autoservice.com    

Today's I - 70 Auto Service article focuses on severe service maintenance. Many Kansas City drivers are not aware of them and yet there are also very vocal advocates in Missouri who think that severe service schedules apply to everyone. Somewhere between a complete lack of awareness and the dire blanket statements lies a reasonable approach to severe service maintenance at I - 70 Auto Service.To back up a little, vehicle owner's manuals have schedules for preventive maintenance: things like oil changes, transmission service and so on. They say you should change your oil after a certain distanced traveled or after so many months. Kansas City drivers understand this very well. What they may not know is that there are actually two service schedules: the regular schedule and the severe service schedule. The mileage and time intervals are lower on the severe service schedule.Now when you hear 'severe service,' you may think it doesn't apply to you bec ... read more

If you're reading this article in Kansas City, Missouri, then you probably care about your vehicle and how it runs. Even though you care, there is still that moment of dread when your professional service advisor at I - 70 Auto Service tells you the manufacturer recommends some additional service. Your heart beats a little faster, your blood pressure rises. You worry about spending more money than you had planned. And you worry that if you say "no," you might be harming your vehicle or risking your family's safety. At the risk of sounding like your dad, you really should have done your homework. Service recommendations are in your owner's manual. But it is not like you want to keep your vehicle auto maintenance schedule on your nightstand for bedtime reading.Vehicles are complicated machines and it takes some effort for Kansas City residents to keep them running well. That is why they have maintenance schedules that explain how to keep your vehicle performin ... read more

Missouri service centers have a menu board that lists the services they provide. Some Kansas City drivers may not be familiar with all of the items on the board so here is a quick description of some of the typical services that might be listed.I - 70 Auto Service fuel system cleaning: Over time, the vehicle fuel system gets gum and varnish built up. A fuel system cleaning gets rid of that and cleans out the fuel injectors. Saves gas, by the way.I - 70 Auto Service headlamp replacement: Halogen and standard headlamps gradually fade. It's usually good to change them every year or so.I - 70 Auto Service inspections: Kansas City drivers get inspections for many reasons. Maybe they're going on a trip or just want to make sure their vehicle's ready for a Missouri summer or winter. Maybe they just bought a used vehicle and want to give it the once over. An inspection may reveal some things that are broken or ... read more

If you are a driver in Kansas City and you aren't currently using synthetic motor oil in your vehicle, maybe now's the time to consider it. Need more information? Well, synthetic motor oil is a substitute for petroleum based oil. Synthetic oil doesn't gel or gum-up like petroleum based oil and it doesn't vaporize as easily. It protects better in severe driving conditions like stop and go driving around Kansas City, as well as in very hot or very cold conditions. More and more new vehicles are being delivered with full synthetic motor oil, with the recommendation to use synthetic for the life of the vehicle. Why is this? Synthetic motor oil maximizes engine power and fuel economy. To see why, we'd need a microscope, so we'll have to settle for using our imaginations. The molecules of conventional motor oil are long hydrocarbon chains. Synthetic motor oil, on the other hand, has uniform, round molecules. Which is more slippery, a pile of penc ... read more

There's a segment of the Kansas City area population that's not committed to proper vehicle maintenance. Now, the ignition system in your vehicle is electronic and controlled by the engine management computer. Spark plugs rarely get fouled and will last for as much as 100,000 miles (160,000 kilometers). So tune-ups used to force you in to I - 70 Auto Service for service, and while you were there you just took care of whatever else was on the list.Also, in recent years, a large percentage of new vehicles in Kansas City have been leased. These folks plan on turning the vehicle in after two or three years, so they haven't focused on the maintenance that helps a vehicle last longer.Given all that, what's the benefit to keeping up with factory scheduled maintenance? Well, your vehicle will perform better and return better fuel economy.Those benefits pay for themselves as they go along. The big plus is that major repairs ar ... read more

Your vehicle is important to you, and keeping it running properly is important to your lifestyle. That's why you're smart enough to have it serviced regularly at I - 70 Auto Service in Kansas City. And even though it may just be routine maintenance, you want it done right by automotive professionals.It's also very important to your Kansas City service center to keep you happy and on the road. You might be surprised at the amount of money our Kansas City auto service center spends annually to make sure our friendly and knowledgeable technicians are properly trained.I - 70 Auto Service offers a variety of automotive services for many kinds of vehicles. We need to be current on the latest techniques and parts so that we can give you quality service. Our Kansas City service centers subscribe to data services that list the high quality parts and fluids recommended by your manufacturer.And each service has a checklist of standard procedures. I - 70 Auto Service technicians follow these ... read more

If you've ever heard a squealing sound under your vehicle hood, chances are it was your serpentine belt. More importantly, the belt powers the alternator. The alternator creates electricity that's used by your vehicle's electrical systems and also charges the battery. Without the alternator, the battery will go dead after a short distance.The serpentine belt may also run the pumps for both the power steering (some are electric) and power brakes (some use vacuum boost).And, on most vehicles, the serpentine belt powers the water pump. The water pump circulates coolant through the engine to keep it within optimal operating temperatures. On some Kansas City vehicles, the water pump is powered by the timing belt instead of the serpentine belt.When they understand what it does, Kansas City drivers realize that if it breaks, it affects a lot of systems. That's why vehicle manufacturers outline recommended replacement guidelines in the owner’s manuals. If ... read more

As Kansas City consumers, we live in a disposable society. It's amazing all the stuff we throw away.New stuff comes out so fast in Missouri, and much of it is fairly cheap, so we just toss the old and move on. It seems like when we were kids our parents were real sticklers about taking care of our stuff - especially parents who grew up in the Depression. You know, hang up your clothes, polish your shoes, put away your toys. If something got lost or ruined by neglect, tough; we had to do without.  We couldn't afford new cars very often, so we tried to make them last as long as we could. It's a good thing that cars are more reliable these days. They just don't break down as often. And the good news for us Kansas City penny pinchers is that a modern car can easily go 200,000 miles (320,000 km) with proper care. The engineering's there and so is the manufacturing quality. The missing ingredient is us making sure we follow the vehicle manufacturer's maintenance schedules.Is it really t ... read more