Happy New Year from the team at John’s Automotive Care in La Mesa! January is a good time to talk about money-saving tips while you drive to kick off the new year. Let’s be kind to our wallets!   Steady speeds Did you know that driving smooth and steady, avoiding sudden braking or acceleration, can save you money? Although it is fun to drive fast and accelerate quickly, it becomes costly. If you want to become an economical driver, practice driving just below the speed limit and avoid quickly accelerating. Driving this way also reduces the wear on your engine, suspension, and tires.   Turning off your engine Running your car while waiting can get costly at the pump. If you park your car so someone can run back into the house or a store, and you might be idling your vehicle for over 1 minute, turn off your engine. Not only will you save fuel, but you will also be saving the environment one minute at a time.   Oil Check Proper oil for your vehicle. Wo ... read more

What is the Importance of an Oil Change?   We all hear time and time again that the most important service you can schedule for your car, but why? Well, oil is the most critical part of your cooling system and is the primary lubricant for the internal components of your engine. Neglecting to have regular oil change services can ultimately lead to expensive, otherwise avoidable repairs.   Fundamentally, an oil change consists of draining and refilling your engine oil and installing a new replacement filter. Here is the process. First, we remove the sump plug to drain the oil, remove the old filter, replace the drain plug and add oil, refilling to the correct amount based on factory specifications.   What does an Oil and Filter Change Do for my Car? Oil goes bad. No matter how well you drive, dirt and debris end up in your engine oil. The quality of oil you run in your car prevents or increases friction, which causes avoidable stress and wears on the internal compon ... read more

Can you believe that Halloween is coming up and pumpkin spice lattes are in abundance? Even if you are still holding onto summer, now is the time to think about winter road trips during the holidays and seasonal changes that can affect your car. If you are wondering what types of seasonal maintenance to focus on, keep reading to find car care tips to ensure your vehicle is ready.   Fluids The first thing you want to do is check your fluids. This is most critical of all, as the fluids not only lubricate your engine, they keep your car from overheating. This is a perfect time to pop the hood and look at your engine oil, coolant level, brake fluid, Automatic Transmission Fluid ATF, and power steering fluid. Be cautious if you have been driving your car because the coolant in your car is HOT and could severely burn you if you have been recently driving your car. If your vehicle has a transfer case or differential, you should also check these fluids to make sure there is no viscosit ... read more

    Increasing driver’s safety in summer   According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, most auto-related incidents and injuries occur in July and August, including teenage accidents and deaths. In summer, we experience many weather-related changes and cultural patterns, which increase driving hazards during the summer months. This month’s blog will cover the most common summertime driving dangers and how we can avoid them.    Tire blowouts When it is hot outside and the pavement heats up, that heat transfers to your tires, causing the air inside to expand. Even new tires can blow out during a heatwave if you are not mindful of your tire pressure. The opposite occurs when it is cool outside, meaning that your tires will have low air pressure. Shifting between temperatures can cause frequent flat tires and blowouts, and if this occurs while driving can cause a terrible accident, especially while driving at high speeds. &nb ... read more

  Happy March from our team at John's Automotive Care La Mesa! For this month's blog, we wanted to stray away from a typical automotive blog & highlight what we are doing to promote & increase our positive company culture. This topic is rarely discussed in the automotive world, despite its importance for all businesses. If you've ever been to either of our John's Automotive Care locations, you will likely have seen how important a positive work environment is for our team & our wonderful customers. As a company, our foundation is built upon giving back to the communities that raised us, specifically within John Eppstein, the owner of John's Automotive Care. John follows the "pay it forward" approach and credits this company mindset to our success.    What does "paying it forward" truly mean? Community building. If there's one thing our team does well (besides auto repairs) it's being ... read more

Happy October JAC La Mesa family!  With October comes a new blog for you! And what better way to tackle the "spookiest" month, by talking about all the scary sounds that can come from your vehicle. We will go through different haunting and intimidating sounds that can come from one's vehicle to prepare you for this spooky month! And to prepare you on how to tackle and handle them with the help of our auto repair experts at John's Automotive Care La Mesa. We now present our October blog, The scariest automotive sounds we've heard in a car! Please stop in and have one of our amazing customer service specialists go for a ride with you so we can pinpoint the noise that you are hearing.   Screeching- If you hear ear-piercing screeches that sound like nails on a chalkboard, there are a couple of things to do. First, it's crucial to determine where the screeches are coming from. Are they from the wheels and tires? It may be your brake pads, a wearable pa ... read more

Extended warranties are a kind of service that drivers can purchase when their car's original manufacturer's warranty expires. It is not an extension of the manufacturer's warranty. This type of warranty is an optional type of warranty you pay into that will be used for future auto repairs to a vehicle's major systems. Extended car warranties, in the end, can save you major money if you ever run into significant car problems. While they can do this, about half of drivers see themselves never using their extended warranty or having a repair cost less than the warranty. In this case, it would make sense to just set aside money yourself for potential auto repair needs. But before making any decisions, it is crucial to understand the pros and cons of extended car warranties.    Pros 1.     Save Money  If you do need a costly repair, extended warranties could cover the repair. So, instead of paying the entire bill, you would only need to pay ... read more

I’m pretty sure we’ve all seen this light come on at least once or twice in our lives. Either in our vehicle or family and friend’s vehicle. Some may even cover the light with a picture or scrap paper to bring a sense of relief we call “Out of sight, out of mind.”   I know that may give you a temporary feeling of peace of mind, but let’s go over what this light means so you can get it in the shop instead of pasting over it!   The service engine’s soon light’s function is to let the driver know that the vehicle’s sensors have picked up on an issue. The emission control system often triggers this light, but other various causes could activate the sensor. Seeing this light come on can cause some alarm, but all cars need maintenance, and it doesn’t mean your engine is broken or cause for panic.   If the service engine soon light comes on while you’re driving, it’s best to pull over and assess t ... read more

  Spring is in the air, and the upcoming season is waiting for no one. Are you ready for a road trip? How about your car? No one wants to find themselves on the side of the road with a vehicle that lets you down when there is fun to be had. By giving your car a once over by a professional auto repair technician, you will have peace of mind, knowing what to keep an eye out for, what is urgent, and what services you can wait on.   Visual Inspections Auto repair professionals know what to look for, wear points on your specific vehicle, and help prevent unplanned breakdowns through regular maintenance check-ups. When you get a visual inspection done at John's Automotive Care, you receive a checklist showing photos of each report item listed in green, yellow, or red. Each color represents the level of urgency for service. Knowing your vehicle is thoroughly checked out before hitting the road will keep you feeling confident about your upcoming adventures.   Fluid Ser ... read more

Life can be hectic and inspecting your vehicle can easily fall to the bottom of the list before you know it. Visually inspecting your vehicle can be the first indication of possible issues that can help prevent major repairs. However, sometimes it's hard to know what to look for, and things can appear normal. Let our experts at John's Automotive Care take the guesswork out of inspecting your vehicle.  At John's Automotive Care, a visual inspection involves a qualified repair technician looking at your car's parts and systems. Our mechanics notate what looks normal while looking for anything out of the ordinary. We take special care to inspect your vehicle and even take photographs of your vehicle to keep you informed about our findings. We email the photographs to you along with the full report so you can see exactly what our technicians are referring to regarding your vehicle.  Our technicians take visual inspections very seriously. However, even the most s ... read more