Listening to Your Car: It’s Tune-Up Time

Our cars have long been considered an extension of ourselves — part avatar for our personality, part member of the family. In many ways, our cars are like a dog or cat; they need to be groomed, fed regularly, and taken in for regular check-ups to ensure that they’re healthy.

Anyone who owns a pet will be able to identify when they are trying to communicate that they’re hungry, sick, or want to go outside. Your car, too, has a language all its own that we must learn to listen to if we want it to continue operating at the highest level. Let’s take a look at some of your car’s most common indicators that it needs a trip to our Orem car repair shop.

Warning Lights

As you’ve no doubt observed, there are numerous lights on your car’s dashboard that will light up when certain problems arise. Depending on the light that is illuminated, the car could either be giving you a gentle reminder that it’s time to start thinking about maintenance or that there’s a catastrophic problem in need of an immediate car repair.

Oil Light

This turns on when your oil is getting low or the oil pump has stopped working properly. Most times this light simply means that it’s time for an oil change or a top-off but could also be an indicator that the oil cap is loose.

• Change your oil every 5.000 – 7.500 miles.

Battery Alert

There are two ways to know that your car battery is dead or dying: this light will come on and/or your car will simply fail to turn on. Dead batteries are one of the biggest culprits behind unexpected car repairs. Luckily, changing one out usually coincides with the time your car should be getting a tune-up anyway.

• Change your battery every three years.

Check Engine Light

One of the most common dashboard lights you are likely to see. This is a general indicator that your car needs to be seen by a specialist. It can come on for a number of reasons, including a broken gasket, a loose gas cap, a problem with a piston, or simply needing a quick cycling of its computer diagnostics. 

• Over 20-50% of drivers admit to ignoring the check engine light for a space of time, ranging from days to months.

As drivers, we all want our cars to perform well for the entire length of time we have them. In order to ensure that happens, we must not ignore the car’s warning signals when they light up, but instead, take them directly to the Orem Master Muffler.

Noises Aplenty

A car running smoothly can be as comforting to listen to on a long drive as it is for a baby to listen to white noise while they sleep. Over time, people who drive every day will become accustomed to the regular noises that their car makes. It can be alarming, therefore, when the car makes an unusual sound. 

Often, certain sounds will accompany a specific problem. Here are a few examples:

•  Squealing: A high-pitched tone that occurs when you’re braking usually means the brakes are in need of repair or that the brake pads need to be replaced.
• Repeated Whirring: A pained sound that repeats quick succession when you’re turning the key to start the car, this could be a sign that your battery is dying or needs a charge.
• Loud Roar: A very loud cacophony that sounds like it’s coming from directly under the driver’s seat, this could be a sign that the exhaust system has a crack in the lines.
• Long Yawn: A drawn-out droning sound that lasts as long as you are turning the steering wheel, this could be an indication that the power steering is about to fail.

For a machine as complex as a car, there is certainly no shortage of things that could go wrong. The upside: your car wants to tell you all about it and will find different ways to let you know that something isn’t right. If you’re getting a signal from the vehicle that it’s tune-up time, don’t delay! We at the Orem Master Muffler are ready to assist you.