Vancouver Auto Repair

Top Coolant System Issues – Vancouver Auto Repair How important is your cooling system to your vehicle? Like any other part or system, it’s vital. Your cooling system prevents your engine from overheating and breaking down. Essentially, it keeps you from breaking down on the side of the road every time you drive. But like any other car component, your cooling system does wear down over time. Cooling systems can get leaks. They can also get clogged. The coolant you use can get old and dirty, or thicken, and any of the parts that make up your cooling system can wear out and stop functioning properly. The bottom line is, you have to take care of your cooling system if you want it to keep taking care of you. So how do you do that? Common Cooling System Issues First let’s take a closer look at what can go wrong with your cooling system and then we’ll talk about taking care of it so you can avoid those problems. Leaks ... read more

The Right Fluids and Filters Keep Your Car Running – Vancouver Auto Repair Quick quiz: do you know how many different fluids your car needs to run properly? There are a lot. Every car is a little different, but all gas-powered vehicles need the standard fluids to function correctly. That includes gas, oil, brake fluid, coolant, wiper fluid, and power steering fluid to name just a few. The fact is your car is full of different fluids and each one of them plays a key role in the effectiveness and safe operation of your vehicle. It’s also important to keep an eye on these fluids to make sure they are changed at regular intervals. How often you change each fluid depends on the fluid and what it does. Your owner’s manual will have instructions for fluids, including what type to use and how often to change it. Common Fluids Here are some of the most common fluids to pay attention to. But there are others, so don’t ignore any of th ... read more

Signs You Need to Replace Your Muffler – Vancouver Auto Repair We still have about six more weeks of winter ahead of us, but before you know it, it will be spring again. Hopefully, your travels have been safe so far this winter and will continue to be so. One thing to keep in mind when spring does come around is what things look like underneath your vehicle. With all the wet driving conditions, whether it’s rain, snow, or ice, your car has been pounded with a lot of moisture over the past several months. On top of that, your vehicle has been subject to sand, deicer, salt, and other substances on the road used to help with winter driving conditions. That means the underside of your vehicle is probably not looking too pretty. And because it’s out of sight, it often gets overlooked. That’s why it’s important to include that when you inspect your vehicle. One of the most parts of your car is the exhaust system, which includes the muffler. And your muffler ta ... read more

Top Vehicle Accessories to Carry with You This Winter The winter driving season is full of a lot of different driving conditions and hazards on the road. In fact, here in the Vancouver area, you could be hit with just about anything. Most people, driving back forth to their daily stops, don’t have to worry about getting stranded somewhere. Although, it has happened before with some of the huge winter storms we’ve had in the past. But in most cases, getting stranded is not likely. On the other hand, if you drive anywhere far from home, or perhaps in more rural areas, you have to be on your toes. Getting stranded without help is little more common it and could end up being very costly. That’s why it’s so important to be prepared. And even if you don’t have to worry about being stranded, there are several winter car accessories that are a good idea to have. Battery Jumper Cables Car batteries tend to expend more energy in ... read more

How To Keep a High Mileage Car Running Smoothly in Vancouver Happy New Year from Hoesly Automotive! We hope you and yours had a wonderful and safe Christmas and New Year’s celebration. We are excited for another new year and thankful to be in business serving the good people of Clark County. We look forward to taking care of all your auto repair needs and we promise to continue providing you honest, reliable, and expert auto care in Vancouver that you can count on. As we start another new year that means we are all getting older. It also means your car, truck, crossover, or SUV is another year older. And in most cases, that means the miles are adding up. But just because your car has a lot of miles, that doesn’t mean you can’t still get a lot more out of it. High mileage cars often need more attention than cars with fewer miles. But for the most part, if you take care of them, high mileage vehicles will run as smoothly as most other cars. R ... read more

What Should You Do if Your Vehicle Overheats – Vancouver Auto Repair Have you ever seen someone on the side of the road with their hood up and steam pouring out of the engine? Or, maybe you’re the one that was on the side of the road. That’s a terrible situation to be in. When your engine overheats, that usually indicates there is an issue with your cooling system. But there are other things that can cause an engine to overheat. Why Is Your Vehicle Overheating? When your cooling system has an issue, the engine can’t stay cool, because not enough coolant is reaching the engine block. Typically, there is a blockage or a leak somewhere in the system. It takes a trained professional with the right tools to find it. Other cooling system issues that can cause your vehicle to overheat include a broken water pump, a bad thermostat or radiator fan, or a broken or blocked coolant hose. Other than the obvious bellowing steam coming from under the hood, there are some other ... read more

Is My Mass Airflow Sensor Bad – Vancouver Auto Repair Has your car been acting up lately? Maybe the check engine light has come on, or you’ve notice dark exhaust coming from your tailpipe. If your engine has been acting up at all, you might have a bad mass air flow sensor. What is that? Many drivers have never even heard of a mass air flow sensor. It’s not exactly the first thing that comes to mind if you’re having engine issues. But is actually a common cause of engine trouble.   What is a Mass Air Flow Sensor? So, what exactly does the mass air flow sensor do? The sensor is located close to the air filter and plays a key role in the fuel injection system. It measures the amount of air flowing into the intake valve and ensures that the fuel to air ratio is correct. This allows your car to run smoothly. So, what happens when the mass air flow sensor goes bad?   Signs Your Mass Air Flow Sensor is Bad ... read more

Time for a Car Battery Replacement – Vancouver Auto Repair Do you know how old your car battery is? Most people don’t give their battery much thought. As long as their vehicle starts right up every time, then why mess with a good thing, right? Car batteries are all different, which means while one can seemingly last forever, another one might go bad in just a couple of years. The good thing is batteries come with warranties so if yours dies before the warranty has expired you should be able to get a free replacement. But there really is no one perfect answer to the question, “how long will my battery last?” However, there are some things to pay attention to that should give you some clues as to whether or not it’s time to replace your battery.  What Causes Batteries to Wear Down? Over time, batteries wear out. It’s just that simple. They do have a lifespan and eventually they have to be replaced. The way you ... read more

What’s that smell? That’s usually not something you want to hear when you’re talking about your vehicle. Cars do have plenty of different smells and some are nothing to be alarmed about. However, there are other foul odors that you definitely need to pay attention to. Many of the bad smells from cars, come from the exhaust system. Your exhaust gets rid of a lot of pollutants, so it’s not surprising that it can smell bad at times, including the smell of sulfur. Sulfur is very unpleasant and if it’s coming from your vehicle, then you need to get it checked it out sooner rather than later. Catalytic Converter Problems – Vancouver Auto Repair When you notice the smell of sulfur, most likely there is an issue with your catalytic converter. If your converter gets clogged or starts to malfunction your emissions levels will be affected as well. Your vehicle will still run, but it will likely not have as much power because your exhaust sys ... read more

Happy New Year, from Hoesly Automotive! We hope you and your family had a wonderful celebration as we kicked off 2022. We also want to say thank you for your continued trust in us and for your ongoing business. As we start this new year, we are excited to serve you and promise to continue providing honest, reliable, professional, and experienced auto repair in Vancouver, WA. Many people start the new year with resolutions or goals. We all want to improve ourselves and the new year is always a good time to start that process. We encourage you to consider your vehicle at this time of year, as well. Now is also a good time to make some resolutions for your car, truck, crossover, or SUV. Resolutions for the New Year There are numerous auto services that you could add to your list of resolutions. Let’s go over a few of the most basic ones. Doing these simple things will help both you and your car. Oil Change – it all starts with the oil. Mos ... read more