San Diego Auto Repair

What Makes a Good Used Car? Buying a good used car takes a bit of research and preparation, but you can definitely find a good deal on a used vehicle and save quite a bit of money compared to buying a new one. No matter what used car you buy, you’ll still have to perform your due diligence to ensure that you buy a good used car and avoid the lemons. Here’s what makes a good used car. Test drive the car Test driving the car on the highway and in the city will help you catch any unreported problems. If you can test drive it on more than one occasion it’s even better. You’ll also get to feel what it’s like to drive the car which is important if it turns out that you don’t like how it drives. Try to take the car up an incline and drive it at least 65 mph to ensure that it properly on the highway and in steep conditions. Get the maintenance record Most responsible car owners will have a maintenance record of their vehicle. Ask the owner to show when oil ... read more

Well, it’s finally over. The best four-ish years of your young college graduate’s life are over and they have a piece of paper proving how educated and employable they are now. And whether your graduate plans to continue their education or they’ve already started the job hunt, reliable transportation is critical. But why settle for just any old car? A used car is the smart choice for college grads saddled with obscene amounts of debt, and it can also speak to their personalities. Let it also speak to their major! We selected five cars that match 9 popular majors, all of which are excellent picks new and used (though it makes more sense to buy used), and all of which we’ve been testing since 2009. Major: Geology or ArcheologyCar: Subaru Legacy The Legacy is the four door sedan version of the Subaru Outback wagon, and for some reason gets much less attention that its high utility, all-wheel drive sibling. Sure, the sedan exterio ... read more

San Diego’s known for having nearly perfect weather pretty much all the time. So when the sun’s overtaken by a chilly, gloomy gray in the months of May and June, it takes many newbies and tourists by surprise. However, locals are quite familiar with this time, affectionately known as “May Gray” and “June Gloom.” There are plenty of scientific explanations for May Gray and June Gloom in San Diego, and you can research them all you want – but it’s not going to change the reality that summer feels more like Maine than sunny Southern California. But fear not! Even when the beach is too cold for your two-piece, there are still plenty of indoor and outdoor activities to keep seasoned locals and first-time tourists happily occupied. Here are our best tips on how to escape May Gray and June Gloom in San Diego (and if we’re lucky, we’ll skip No-Sky July and Fogust th ... read more

When shopping for a new car, you need to be careful and avoid rushing into a deal. Why? Because with a bit of patience, you can save some money. You will need to do a bit of haggling in order to get the lowest price possible, and, although you shouldn’t expect to save a ton of money, there is always some bargaining room when it comes to the price of a new car. Here’s how you can get the best deal on a new car. Don’t buy on your first trip It’s in the dealership’s interest to close the deal the first time you walk in the door. I ... read more

If you’ve decided to go off-roading, safety is a primary concern and there are several things that you should do to prepare for your adventure. Be sure that you are very familiar with how your vehicle works, and don’t try to exceed its capacities.  No matter what vehicle you use, you will want a few features at minimum including: 4 wheel drive, locking differentials to pull your vehicle through rough terrain, knobby tires, off-road suspension, and a powerful engine. There are dozens of other off-roading features that have been added to some of the more recent off-road models such as skid plates and off-road dampers.  Some good recent 2015 vehicles for off-roading include the Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro, Nissan Xterra Pro-4X, Jeep Wrangler (both the standard and the Rubicon), the Land Rover LR4, Toyota Land Cruiser, Ram 2500, and the Ford F-150.  In general, you want to use a vehicle that has been designed for the specific purpose of off roading, otherwise you ris ... read more

Although you wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at our roads in a sprinkle of rain, the winters in San Diego are usually not very cold or unpredictable – especially compared to the winter weather in most of the rest of the country. But that doesn’t mean come spring and summer we aren’t itching to bask in the extra few degrees of warmth or hop in the car to go for a drive like we used to when gas wasn’t hovering around $3.50 a gallon. We’re predisposed to take a road trip in spring or summer because that’s when the kids have breaks from school, but it’s also nice that the rest of the country is a little more aligned with our weather, making driving easier on us and our cars. The Great American Road Trip is an experience everyone should have at least once, and whether you’re taking the kids, the in-laws, your significant other, a group of friends, or are looking for solo time, here are our favorite cars for the open road. Just remem ... read more

The test drive is arguably the most important aspect of buying a new car, and skipping it is one of the biggest mistakes car buyers make. Even if you know the exact model you want – options and all – it’s crucial to get behind the wheel before signing any papers. This is especially true when buying a used car. But there’s more to the test drive than just finding out whether or not you fit comfortably in the driver’s seat. How you handle yourself at the dealership let the salesman know if you are desperate for that particular car or if you are a wise shopper taking the time to find the smartest deal. Our best advice is to always test drive three different vehicles that fit your needs. Then ask the sales person for their card and let them know you will return if you decide that’s the car you want. If they pressure you or make you uncomfortable in an attempt to keep you from leaving, don’t go bac ... read more

Vehicle emergencies can happen at any time, and you never want to be caught stranded without an important emergency tool or item. Even if you have a roadside assistance membership, it’s important to have an emergency kit in your car because it will take time for help to arrive, and cell phone reception (and battery life!) isn’t guaranteed. You don’t need to buy a premade kit because making your own doesn’t take much effort, and you can customize it for your unique vehicle and needs. Below are some of the most important things to include in your homemade roadside emergency kit, and a clear plastic bin or a duffel bag works well for storing the items. First aid kit - A first aid kit is one of the most important things to include in your roadside emergency kit, and you should buy a premade kit that every basic item. Cell phone - Buy a cheap cell phone just for your kit; you don’t need service on it because you can call 911 without a plan, and make sure tha ... read more

If you were lucky (or unlucky) enough to have learned to drive a manual transmission on your parent’s car, you remember the feeling of absolute terror of stalling out in traffic, grinding the gears in front of dad, or – worse – burn out the clutch entirely and risk having to drive the old station wagon to high school. There was a time when sports cars didn’t come with automatic transmission, but today Porsches have to be special ordered with a manual gearbox and Ferrari no longer even sells them. Why? A lack of interest from the North American buying public is one factor and that still very real fear that manual transmission equipped cars require too much attention, effort, and nowadays don’t offer any real fuel economy advantage. But those in the know, those lucky drivers who faced their fears of stalling in an intersection or starting on an uphill, they know the pure joys of what it means to be a driver. Fortunately, some carmakers still know how to ch ... read more

One of the most exciting times in a driver's life is when it's time for a new car. The decision of new car or new-to-you car is a personal one, but if the time is right for a fresh-off-the-lot ride, it's easy to get excited and make mistakes that cost you in the long run. Fortunately, with just a little bit of planning and foresight, anyone can buy a new car at a great rate and be happy with the decision for years to come. Here are 5 mistakes new car buyers make that you should avoid at all costs: Mistake #1 – Making a decision too quickly It can be easy to get caught up in the heat of the moment and pull the trigger on a new car when you’re feeling excited about a deal, but that can be a major mistake. Salespeople are trained to make a deal seem like it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, when in reality there are deals on new car models every day. You should never feel rushed into making a decision, and at the very least sleep on it and ... read more