Has this happened to you lately? You jump in your truck or car in the morning, and it feels like someone left the freezer open all night! It’s been cold lately! We’ve had some mornings that were definitely below freezing temperatures, and this can affect your car. Here are some tips for taking care of your car in cold weather:

1. Take time to warm up. Remember to always give your car a little extra time to warm up in cold weather. If you have a self-starter, start it up 10 minutes before you go to get in it. If you don’t have a self-starter, make sure you get in the vehicle and let it warm up for a little bit. This will allow the fluids, oil, everything to warm up before you jump in and take off. Rushing off when everything is still cold is not good for your vehicle’s longevity.

2. Watch out for frozen windshield wipers. If it’s raining, and it looks like that rain might turn to ice overnight, pull your windshield wiper blades up off the window. A lot of times there will be frost or ice, and it will freeze your windshield wiper blades to your window! People will get in their car and try to wipe off the windows first thing—but if your wiper blades are frozen, that won’t work! So either pull them up off of the window and leave them suspended in the air overnight, or get in your vehicle and defrost the window way ahead of time so that by the time you need to drive and clean your windshield, your wiper blades are unfrozen and can move.

3. Keep your tires aired up. Make sure you have good air pressure in your tires. Cold air is dense and will bring your tire pressure down. Your tire pressure lights will come on, and then you’ll have to worry about whether or not you’ve got a flat. So make sure our pressures are good!  Usually this means 35 psi on standard cars and trucks. For heavy-duty vehicles, this will be a lot higher, up into the 45-55 psi range.

4. Check your antifreeze and wiper fluid. This is also a good time to think about coolant or antifreeze. This is the life-giving, engine-saving liquid that you need to have in your vehicle to keep your car from overheating. A lot of times people will drive around with just water. You definitely don’t want to do that! Most of the time you want to have a good 50/50 mix. If you haven’t had your coolant flushed in awhile, make sure you get out there and get it done. Or, just stop by and make sure you get it checked out. Also, you want to make sure you have enough windshield wiper fluid in. If you’re in colder areas, make sure you use a high alcohol-based wiper fluid so that it doesn’t freeze. Here in the south, there are some brands that are not as high in alcohol, but you can use them here. 

5. Never forget your oil! Make sure your oil is good. If you’re using a little heavier oil in the summer time, you definitely want to lighten that up in the winter time, so that you don’t have thick oil going into your motor. 

6. Make sure your battery can handle the cold. Check your battery! Make sure it’s charged and ready to go, and able to handle cold cranking starts. Right now, with the cold temperatures we’ve been having, it will take a lot more power to turn that motor over. You want to make sure your battery has good cold cranking amps! 

So stop by anytime, and let us know how we can help you! If you’re not using us, ask someone you trust, someone who knows how to handle your vehicle, to get your vehicle checked over for the winter temperatures. As always, you can come by and we’ll do free inspections and check-outs for you. We’ll make sure everything is running smoothly!

For more tips, please like us Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/solutionsautomotive

Solutions Automotive
1513 S. Tennessee St., Suite 106
McKinney, TX 75069

info@solutionsautomotive.com

http://solutionsautomotive.com/

All proceeds from oil changes at Solutions Automotive for the month of April will benefit Project Graduation for Prosper High School to keep our seniors safe! If you know anyone who needs an oil change this month, please send them our way!

Solutions Automotive
1513 S. Tennessee St., Suite 106
McKinney, TX 75069

972-978-8797

You can also support Prosper High School here: www.phsprojectgraduation.com 

To mail in a donation, please write and mail your check to:

PHS Project Graduation

PO Box 51

Prosper, TX 75078

When your car needs service, it can be stressful to figure out who to take it to. There are all kinds of horror stories about bad mechanics and repair shops out there. How can you make sure that you are taking your car to a reputable auto repair shop?

1. ASE Certified. First, check to see if they have ASE Certified technicians. ASE stands for “National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence.” The ASE tests and certifies automotive professionals in all the major technical areas of repair and service. This is a non-profit organization that works to help consumers know that their mechanic meets national standards. This way you don’t have to wonder if your mechanic is qualified—you know, because he’s been tested and certified to national standards.

Solutions Automotive is ASE certified in several areas, including brakes, manual and automatic transmissions, suspension, engine performance and repair, and A/C and heating. We are also Texas certified in emissions repair. 

2. A focus on helping, not selling. A reputable repair shop wants to help you get your car back in great shape, and keep it there! That’s why we exist. We care about what’s best for your car, and take pride in our work and customer service. We are happy to take the time to teach you about your car, and explain what we’re doing in a helpful way. A reputable shop will not pressure you into buying parts or service that you don’t need, or make you feel like you can’t understand what’s going on. If you feel like all we care about is selling you things, you are not going to come back to us. Our customers come back again and again because they know we will do what’s right, not what’s more expensive. 

3. Check reviews. Always check reviews! You can find our reviews on Google and Facebook. We encourage you to read what other people say about us! It’s not what we say that matters—it’s what our customers say! But whether you use us or not, always check out the reviews before trusting someone with your car. We hope this helps you find a shop you can trust in the McKinney area.

P. 972-978-8797
F. 469-854-2836

1513 S. Tennessee St.

Suite 106
McKinney, TX. 75069

info@solutionsautomotive.com

It’s getting to be that time of the year of holiday traveling. Thanksgiving’s coming around, a lot of people are going to be taking road trips to see grandparents and family, and this is also the time of year when kids start coming home from college for holiday breaks.

Here are a few things for you to keep in mind during these upcoming holiday travels:

1. Get your car checked out. Make sure that you take your vehicle to someone that you trust to get it checked out before any road trip. Get the air pressure checked, take care of fluid changes, wiper blades, things like that. Make sure your vehicle is in good working order before you head out! 

2. Get the kids’ car checked out. If you have a child coming home from college for the holidays, this is a great time to go ahead and get their vehicles checked out. You haven’t seen these cars in three or four months, so you don’t know what’s been done to them—or what hasn’t been done! Bring the car in for a 25-point inspection, and get everything checked out. 

3. Teach your kids about their car. As you’re getting their vehicle checked over, this is the perfect time to teach your student about his own car, and how to take care of it. Make sure he or she knows how to spot trouble signs, and how to get maintenance taken care of when he or she is away from home with the car. 

Of course we are more than happy to help you out with any of this. But find somebody that you know and trust to look over your car and take care of it for you.

If there’s anything we can do to help, let us know! Give us a call at 972-978-8797

P. 972-978-8797
F. 469-854-2836

1513 S. Tennessee St.
Suite 106
McKinney, TX. 75069

All right, folks! It’s that time of year again when ghouls and goblins are going to be running the streets! Halloween is a fun time of the year, but we have a few tips to make sure that everyone has fun and stays safe. 

1. Watch out! Make sure that if you are on the roads, you’re being extra cautious. There will be many trick or treaters running around, and visibility may be an issue as some kids will be wearing dark costumes. So just be extra careful, drive nice and slow, you’ll get there when you get there. Just be aware that the streets are going to be filled with kids.

2. Check your headlights! Go ahead and get your headlights checked! I know sometimes we take them for granted, but we need to have high visibility that evening. Make sure that you have them checked out because you want to have optimum visibility that night to look out for kids.

3. Don’t drive in your costume! This one may sound silly, but do not wear your costume in the car if it has a mask or anything that can affect your field of vision. I know it’s fun to drive around in a mask, but some of them get a little bulky. Even the ones that aren’t bulky limit your peripheral vision—again, we’re looking out for kids and trick or treaters. So if you do have a costume that has a mask, do not be that person who wears it while you’re driving! I know it looks funny, and cool, but … no, just don’t do that.

4. Don’t drink and drive! If you are an adult, obviously over 21, and you’re having some adult “treats” that evening, please please please don’t drink and drive! It’s just not worth it! If you’re going to Halloween parties and places where you’ll be drinking, there are trusted resources in the community that you can use so that you never need to drink and drive. The one we always recommend is Bec N Call. Call Kim at Bec N Call, and she’ll make sure you get a safe ride home! 

Have a wonderful and safe Halloween, and for all of your automotive tips and needs please check us out at solutionsautomotive.com

P. 972-978-8797
F. 469-854-2836

1513 S. Tennessee St.
Suite 106
McKinney, TX. 75069

info@solutionsautomotive.com