Auto Maintenance and Service - Blog Posts by Category

Vehicle Air Conditioner Repair is Not Always a DIY Project

August 7, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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We’ve entered the hot part of summer in Murrieta, so you probably know by now if your car’s air conditioner is working or not. When a vehicle’s air conditioner stops blowing cold air, the first thing many people want to do is add refrigerant to the air conditioning system. While this seems logical, it can actually do more harm than good if low refrigerant isn’t the actual cause of the problem. It’s important to bring your vehicle in to your Murrieta auto mechanic sooner rather than later to diagnose the problem so it can be repaired properly.

Often, an air conditioning system that is blowing warm air is the result of a broken condenser fan. If repaired in a timely matter, this problem should not affect the rest of the system. However, if you add refrigerant to a system with a faulty condenser fan, it could cause an overcharge, which raises the pressure in the air conditioning system and can cause additional damage. [Read more…]

Putting off Vehicle Maintenance is Hazardous to your Vehicle and your Pocketbook

July 31, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

You’ve heard the saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” While this saying is true in many areas of life, it doesn’t exactly apply to your vehicle. Performing regular vehicle maintenance can fix things before they become a problem and prevent costly repairs down the road. The maintenance reminders you receive in the mail are more than just helpful suggestions. They really are necessary actions you need to take to ensure that your vehicle continues to run as it should.

We know it’s easy to put off vehicle maintenance when your car or truck seems to be running perfectly well. Newer vehicles have electronic ignition systems and engine control systems that tend to perform better (and for a longer period of time) than the mechanical ignition systems in older vehicles, which have parts that need frequent replacement. Because of this, we are seeing more and more Murrieta vehicle owners who only bring in their car or truck when there is a problem. However, routine auto maintenance is important, even if you have a newer model vehicle. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Lexus Repair and Service, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: lexus maintenance, lexus repair, lexus service, murrieta auto repair, scion maintenance, scion repair, scion service, temecula auto repair, toyota maintenance, toyota repair, toyota service

Reduce Your Chances of Overheating by Maintaining Your Vehicle’s Cooling System

July 25, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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The cooling system in your car or truck is designed to keep your engine at the optimal temperature for the best performance. It does this by circulating a coolant, also called antifreeze, mixed with water through the engine and transferring the heat generated by the engine to the radiator, where it is cooled. Coolant/antifreeze also keeps the water in the system from freezing in cold climates. Coolant/antifreeze is specially formulated to both increase the boiling point and reduce the freezing point of the water with which it is mixed.

When a car overheats, it is because there is a problem with the cooling system. One of the most common problems that causes overheating is a low coolant level. If there is not an adequate amount of coolant circulating through the engine, it causes heat to build up. You can make sure your auto has the correct amount of coolant in the system by regularly checking the overflow reservoir. The reservoir contains markings or notches, which will indicate how much coolant needs to be added. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Lexus Repair and Service, News and Updates, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: cooling system, lexus maintenance, lexus repair, lexus service, murrieta auto repair, scion maintenance, scion repair, summer auto maintenance, temecula auto repair, toyota maintenance, toyota repair, toyota service

Five Star Yelp Review for Auto Service in Murrieta, Ca

July 10, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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We have to thank our customers for their great auto service reviews on Yelp and other sites, including our Facebook page. Sometimes, it takes the perspective of one of our customers to remind us about all that we have to offer local car owners.

Toyota Auto Service and More from Trained Technicians at Inland Auto

We often highlight our expertise in our specialty areas of service, namely Lexus auto service and Toyota repair. Most of our customers are Toyota, Lexus and Scion drivers and our auto technicians are Toyota factory trained. In fact, Inland Auto is considered a top Toyota auto repair dealer alternative in Murrieta and in Temecula.

But, as our longtime customer Gary shared on Yelp, we also service other cars, and have a wide range of experience in repairing and maintaining Japanese cars of all types. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, News and Updates, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: customer review, murrieta auto repair, toyota maintenance, toyota repair, toyota service

Auto Air Conditioning Repair and Maintenance in Murrieta

June 25, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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Summer is upon us here in Murrieta, and if you haven’t done so already, you will soon be turning on the air conditioning system in your vehicle. Most people take their air conditioning system for granted, and only think about it when it stops working. But most manufacturers recommend that you have your auto air conditioning system checked every two years. Bringing your vehicle in for air conditioning maintenance now, even if everything seems to be running well, can prevent costly repairs that seem to always be needed at the most inopportune times—like later in the summer, when temperatures are soaring above 100 degrees in Murrieta. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service Tagged With: auto air conditioning repair, lexus maintenance, lexus repair, lexus service, murrieta auto repair, scion maintenance, scion repair, temecula auto repair, toyota repair, toyota service

Murrieta Toyota Repair Pros Answer: Why Do I Need to Maintain My Vehicle’s Suspension?

June 19, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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Many of the drivers who come to us for suspension repair in Murrieta have misconceptions about how a vehicle’s suspension actually works and why it is important.

Primarily, the average driver thinks about shocks and struts only in terms of ride comfort and performance. While it is true that the suspension affects both ride comfort and vehicle performance, and while both certainly are important, your vehicle’s shocks and struts have an even more important link to safety.

Not only is a good suspension, and by extension, good suspension repair, important for comfort, it also is important for safety on the road and for the reliability and maintenance of other parts of your vehicle, particularly, the braking system. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: brake repair, murrieta auto repair, performance, suspension repair, toyota maintenance, toyota repair, toyota service

Job Report: Not Just Toyota Auto Repair and Japanese Vehicles

June 5, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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Although we specialize in auto repair and service for Japanese vehicles, many of our loyal customers have multiple vehicles. For one Murrieta customer, his 2011 Corvette needed some serious work and he trusted us to take care of it.

Ultimately, the vehicle just needed a new rear main seal and oil pan gasket. Not a very complicated or expensive repair at first glance. But in order to do the job properly, we had to remove both the transmission and differential. For those who know about auto repair and vehicles, you know that’s a fair amount of work. In addition to having the right tools and equipment, a job like this requires confidence and experience, and that’s why our customer asked us to handle the repair work. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service Tagged With: murrieta auto repair, temecula auto repair

Inland Auto Now Provides Certified Smog Testing in Murrieta

May 28, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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Need a smog test? Now you can rely on Inland Auto to handle it. No need to take your vehicle to a specialty shop. As Inland Auto continues to expand our services, adding smog testing to the list just made sense. Historically we’ve relied on other shops here in Murrieta and Temecula to provide smog testing for our customers. But it’s much more convenient for our customers now that we do in in our shop.

The convenience of being able to smog test your vehicle here is further emphasized when your vehicle requires repairs. If repairs are needed, we can very often handle them right here in the same shop. If you take your vehicle to a shop that specialize in just smog testing and it is in need of repairs, you would then have to visit a second shop to get the repairs made, and then return back to the smog shop. In these cases, you would have made a total of three visits to two facilities. Now it’s just one. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Lexus Repair and Service, News and Updates, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: smog check, smog testing

Inland Auto Now Offering 2 and 4-Wheel Alignments in Murrieta

May 14, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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We’re pleased to inform the community that Inland Auto is now providing wheel alignment services. We are trained and equipped to perform both 2 and 4-wheel alignments, depending on what your vehicle manufacturer recommends and what your vehicle needs.

We recently installed a new lift that’s specially designed to perform professional wheel alignments. You can be confident that we’ve invested in the right tools, training and equipment to do the job correctly and affordably. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Lexus Repair and Service, News and Updates, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: tire wear, vehicle safety, wheel alignment

Job Report: Camry Repair after another Murrieta Auto Shop Failed

May 8, 2015 by Inland Auto Leave a Comment

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It’s so important to work with a quality auto shop when your Toyota or Lexes needs service or repair. We’re often quite surprised by what we find after other Murrieta shops work on a vehicle. For this Toyota Camry, the customer recently had their vehicle serviced at a reputable auto shop. But the transmission started leaking fluid quite badly, so they decided to bring their car to us. After inspecting the transmission, we found that the previous shop had replaced the transmission gasket with a cheap rubber-style gasket. It only lasted for a short period of time and then started to leak a lot of fluid. In addition to the mess that a leaking transmission causes, there’s also the risk of overheating or under-lubricating the transmission, as the fluid needs to perform both tasks. In addition, the fluid in an automatic transmission is a key component to its operation, like changing gears. Needless to say, a serious transmission leak needs to be addressed quickly. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Auto Maintenance and Service, Lexus Repair and Service, Toyota Repair and Service Tagged With: lexus repair, lexus service, murrieta auto repair, temecula auto repair, toyota camry, toyota maintenance, toyota repair, toyota service