Maple Valley Auto Repair

Maintaining the health of your car is essential to ensure its longevity and performance. One of the critical components of your car's smooth operation is the power steering system. Power steering helps you to maneuver the vehicle with ease and control. Power steering fluid is an essential component of this system that enables smooth and efficient power steering. The power steering fluid is responsible for lubricating and cooling the power steering pump and other components. Over time, the fluid can become dirty with debris, pollutants, and moisture, leading to a drop in performance. Therefore, knowing when to replace your power steering fluid is crucial. How Often Should You Replace Your Power Steering Fluid? There is no standard time or mileage limit for replacing the power steering fluid. However, experts recommend changing the fluid every 75,000 miles or every two years. However, this timeline may vary depending on several factors, such as: Driving conditions: If you frequen ... read more

Tire balancing is a maintenance task that you should never skip. As you can guess, this service ensures vehicle tires are properly balanced for optimal performance and safety. Otherwise, unbalanced tires can cause vibrations and uneven wear, affecting your vehicle's handling and safety. What is Tire Balancing? Tire balancing is the process of equalizing the weight distribution of a tire and wheel assembly. It is performed by adding small weights to the rim of the wheel to counterbalance any inconsistencies with the weight of the wheel. Why is Tire Balancing Important? Tire balancing is important because unbalanced tires can cause several issues, including: Vibration: When a tire is unbalanced, it can cause a vibration that can be felt through the steering wheel or the entire vehicle. Not only can it make the driving experience uncomfortable, but it can impact your vehicle's handling. Uneven Wear: Unbalanced tires can wear unevenly, which can lead to premature wear and te ... read more

No one wants to be stranded on the side of the road with a broken-down car. However, breakdowns and accidents can occur, and when they do, it's essential to know when to call for professional help. Sometimes it's tempting to try to fix the problem yourself or to keep driving, but doing so can make the situation worse and put you and others in danger. Here are some situations that may require a tow and when to call for professional help. Engine Failure: If your automobile's engine won't start or stalls out while driving, it may need to be towed. Continuing to drive with an engine problem can cause further damage and potentially leave you stranded. Flat Tire: While changing a flat tire may seem simple, it's not always safe or possible to do so. If you're on a busy road, or the tire is severely damaged, it's best to call for a tow. Overheating: If your car's temperature gauge is in the red or steam is coming from under t ... read more

The heater core is a necessary part of your vehicle's cooling system, and you're definitely going to want it to work for the winter. It essentially is your radiator's partner, and it works to move coolant. Without the heater core, your car will not be able to supply you with heat when it is cold. Besides heating, the heater core helps to defrost your windows.  What Does the Heater Core Do? As you may know, your car's engine heats up a lot when it's running. The coolant disperses the excess heat and moves the air away from the engine and through the radiator. However, the process is altered when you turn on the heat in the winter. Instead, the air gets moved to the heater core to be filtered and warmed up to make you more comfortable. The coolant you add to your cooling system allows this process to happen seamlessly. Over time though, the coolant will age and thus can corrode these parts. If dirty or contaminated coolant is left in your car too long, it can ... read more

When it starts to get cold outside, one of the things you should be preparing for is winter driving. Anything can happen in the winter, whether it be related to the temperature or the status of precipitation in your area. Here are a few things you should do to prepare yourself for winter driving. Check Your Tires Tires for your vehicle can already be a lot of maintenance throughout the year. You have to make sure they have enough tire pressure, plus you have to make sure they have enough treading. As the temperature drops, your tire pressure will drop as well. It may even be a good idea to buy tires meant for winter weather specifically, which usually have longer treading than your average tires. Test Your Wipers In the winter, you never know what to expect weather-wise. Sometimes, it will still rain, and other times, you will get snow, sleet, or hail. Either way, it's a good idea to make sure your windshield wipers are in perfect working condition and top off your wiper fluid ... read more