May 15, 2012

Get Fresh Air Inside Your Car In Aurora

Filed under: Cabin Air Filter — tildenc839 @ 5:27 pm

Get Fresh Air Inside Your Car In Aurora

Air quality affects us wherever we are in Aurora. Many decades ago, Aurora residents began to become aware of how air pollution negatively affects health. But what about the air inside your vehicle?

Cabin air filters are now coming on most new minivans since the 2000 model year. These filters clean the air in the passenger compartment. They can filter particles down to three microns, so that’s good enough to clean out dust, pollen and most pollutants. If you suffer from allergies in Aurora, this is very good news.

You can look in your minivan owner’s manual to see if you have a cabin air filter. If you do, there’ll be a recommendation for replacing it when it gets dirty. If you live where there’s a lot of dust, pollen or pollution, you may need to change it more often. You can also ask your caring service advisor at Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora.

How hard it is to change a cabin air filter depends on your vehicle. Some are quite accessible; others take some doing to get to them. They’re usually in the minivan engine compartment or under the dashboard.

Because cabin air filters are so new on the scene, some Aurora motorists haven’t heard of them – even people who have cabin air filters. Tilden Car Care Aurora service advisors report customers complaining of an unpleasant odor in their vehicle and it turned out to be a dirty cabin air filter.

An important note for Aurora hybrid owners: there is a special air filter that cleans the air that cools the hybrid battery pack. This filter should be inspected every time the cabin air filter is inspected and replaced if it is dirty so that the battery pack doesn’t overheat.

Give us a call

Tilden Car Care Aurora
720.306.8174
606 Peoria Street
Aurora, CO 80011

At Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora CO (80011) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 720.306.8174. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

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May 9, 2012

Viva la Differential At Tilden Car Care Aurora

Filed under: Differential Service — tildenc839 @ 4:30 pm

Viva la Differential At Tilden Car Care Aurora

With front-wheel drive being so common in Aurora these days, the differential is just taken care of during a transmission service, so most Aurora folks don’t even have to think about it. And most rear-wheel drive minivan differentials don’t need to be serviced for many miles, so it’s understandable that it’s not something on the top of mind. So it’s not uncommon for CO people to not know they have a differential let alone know that it needs service.

To better understand what a differential does, think about a high school track. There are lanes marked off on the track. For the longer distance races, the starting lines are staggered. The starting lines for the outside lanes are ahead of the starting lines for the inside lanes. That’s to compensate for the longer length of the outside lanes. Staggering the starting lines means that each runner has the same distance to run.

The differential compensates for the difference in speeds on drive wheels between the inside wheel and the outside wheel in a turn, because they have to travel together through slightly different distances.

Many minivan differentials do a lot of work and require very heavy duty parts. And those parts need protection. The differential fluid lubricates the gears in the differential and keeps them cool. The fluid eventually gets dirty and worn down. Some kinds of differentials require special additives that break down over time. So manufacturers and Tilden Car Care Aurora technicians recommend intervals for replacing your differential fluid.

Your Tilden Car Care Aurora service technician will drain the used fluid and check it out for metal bits, which could be a sign of excessive wear on the gears. He’ll then replace the fluid and install the additives if necessary.

Aurora four wheel drive minivans need special attention to their differentials because they have a differential on both the front and rear axles that work at different times and sometimes under heavy loads – so they may need to be serviced at Tilden Car Care Aurora at different intervals.

Your Aurora service advisor can look up the manufacturer’s recommended service interval or you can check your minivan owner’s manual.

Give us a call

Tilden Car Care Aurora
720.306.8174
606 Peoria Street
Aurora, CO 80011

At Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora CO (80011) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 720.306.8174. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

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May 1, 2012

Air Conditioning Maintenance At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

Filed under: Air Conditioning — tildenc839 @ 7:23 pm

Air Conditioning Maintenance At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

Most Aurora area car owners don’t service their air conditioning until after it fails. Maintaining your minivan air conditioning system means that you always have enough refrigerant to properly do the job. Small leaks in the air conditioning system allow the refrigerant to escape and the system can’t cool the air as well.

Along with the refrigerant, a special oil circulates in the system. The oil lubricates air conditioning components, and keeps the seals resilient. Low refrigerant and lubricating oil means that the air conditioning parts will wear out prematurely, and we all know that air conditioning repairs can be costly in Aurora.

Air conditioning service at Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora starts with a visual inspection of the components for signs of damage or leaks. The compressor is driven by a belt from the engine, most often the serpentine belt, so it’s inspected for cracks or wear.

The air conditioning compressor and other components are checked for proper operation by your Tilden Car Care Aurora service advisor. Then comes the leak test. If a leak is detected, often in a hose or connection, it’s repaired and the minivan system is retested. Your Tilden Car Care Aurora technician will also perform a temperature drop test.

If needed, the old refrigerant is evacuated and the system is recharged with clean, fresh refrigerant. A final test insures that the air conditioner is working, and you’re on your way.

How often this should be done at Tilden Car Care Aurora varies from vehicle to vehicle. Your minivan owner’s manual will have the manufacturer’s recommendation and, of course, your caring Tilden Car Care Aurora service advisor can tell you. It’s typically every two years.

Give us a call

Tilden Car Care Aurora
606 Peoria Street
Aurora, CO 80011

At Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora CO (80011) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 720.306.8174. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

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April 25, 2012

Getting The Right Wheels And Tires At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

Filed under: Tires — tildenc839 @ 7:09 pm

Getting The Right Wheels And Tires At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

A lot of people in the Aurora area want custom wheels. When you do this yourself (over the internet . . .) you could run into trouble if you’re not careful. Sometimes they just don’t fit right: The tires rub in turns or over bumps. Consulting a tire professional at Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora can ensure you get the right fit for your minivan. First he’ll ask you a series of questions about your driving needs and what you want in your new wheels.

Now, not every wheel can go on every vehicle. Care must be taken so that tires and wheels are not too large or that the wheel is centered too far towards the outside or the inside. If you don’t want to make any modifications to your minivan, you would need to focus on a wheel and tire combination that would fit. With trucks, some Aurora people like much bigger tires so they need a suspension lift.

Also, most Aurora people don’t realize that you need to keep the rolling diameter of your new tires – that’s the overall height of the tire – very close to what came from the factory in order for your anti-lock brakes and stability control systems to work properly.

The minivan computers that control these systems are calibrated to a certain size tire. When you go bigger or smaller, the computer doesn’t know what changes you made so it can’t tell how fast you’re going. This, of course, means it sends commands to the brakes and traction control that are based on the wrong sensor information. If you go with a different rolling diameter, your minivan vehicle control computer can be reprogrammed for the new tire size. At Tilden Car Care Aurora, we can give you information about control computer reprogramming.

Either way, there are hundreds of wheel and tire choices to choose from in Aurora. You can pick the style of wheel you want and then talk with your Aurora tire professional about how big the wheel should be – and select the right tire to meet your style, performance, ride and handling needs – and the best way to do all this is to have your caring Tilden Car Care Aurora tire specialist see your minivan in person so mistakes are not made.

At Tilden Car Care Aurora, we also offer brake service and serpentine belt replacement.

Give us a call

Tilden Car Care Aurora
720.306.8174
606 Peoria Street
Aurora, CO 80011

At Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora CO (80011) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 720.306.8174. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

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April 19, 2012

Wheel Alignment Service At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

Filed under: Alignment — tildenc839 @ 8:43 pm

Wheel Alignment Service At Tilden Car Care Aurora In Aurora

When all of a vehicle’s wheels are lined up exactly with each other, your wheels are in alignment. Hitting a road hazard in Aurora or even just the normal bumps and bounces of everyday CO driving can cause your minivan wheels to be out of alignment. This can lead to expensive premature tire and suspension wear.

Here are some alignment basics from Tilden Car Care Aurora:
The first angle is called toe: do the wheels point in towards each other or away from each other at the front of the tire.
The next angle is called camber: do the wheels tip in or out at the top.
And finally, there is castor. Castor measures the angle where the front axles attach to the vehicle.

The ideal alignment for your minivan was designed by its engineers. Tilden Car Care Aurora alignment service starts with an inspection of the steering and suspension – so see if anything’s bent, broken or worn out. Then the Tilden Car Care Aurora technician will look at tire condition. From there, the minivan is put on an alignment rack and an initial alignment reading is taken. The wheels are then aligned to manufacturer’s specifications.

Your owner’s manual probably has a recommendation for how often your minivan alignment should be checked – usually every couple of years. If you suspect an alignment problem with your minivan, get it checked at Tilden Car Care Aurora before you suffer expensive tire or suspension damage.

Give us a call

Tilden Car Care Aurora
720.306.8174
606 Peoria Street
Aurora, CO 80011

At Tilden Car Care Aurora in Aurora CO (80011) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 720.306.8174. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

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