San Carlos & Valley Springs Auto Repair

    Air conditioning   Your air conditioning system relies on a closed system that circulates refrigerant through a compressor, an evaporator, a drier and one or more heat exchangers to pull heat out of your car and dump it outside, leaving you 20 degrees or so cooler inside than out. O-rings and gaskets seal the joints in this system and keep the refrigerant inside.  Your compressor moves refrigerant through the system, where it expands to a gas then returns to liquid to “condition” the air without being used up.  Refrigerant gases are environmental hazards if released into the air, so we use special machines to evacuate them from your A/C system and return them after repairs.  When your car sits unused, the tiny seals inside your climate-control system can shrink slightly and let refrigerant escape. Over time, you may lose just enough refrigerant that your vents blow coolish but not cold because you’re low on refrigerant. We’ve ... read more

  Hybrid powertrains Hybrid powertrains rely on liquid coolant to remove heat from the electric motors, batteries and inverters, which are often hidden behind the rear seats, under the floor or in the trunk area, and rely on carefully managed airflow combined with special coolant and radiators.  I remember a Honda Insight that lost this coolant due to a rock striking the grille area, setting a check engine light on the dash.  The owner ignored the warning and kept driving the car, until forced to stop on the side of the road.  That tiny pebble caused the hybrid power system to overheat and take out some other components - several thousand dollars in repairs.  Hybrid batteries use the car’s engine to turn an alternator or an electric motor to charge them, maintaining a complex balance of power to provide brisk acceleration or electric-only driving, then burning fuel to recharge the battery bank and extend driving range.  These cars and trucks are des ... read more

  Rodent damage While you’ve been sheltering in place, rodents may have sheltered under your hood.  In the last couple of months, we’ve seen five or six cars with wiring damage along with remnants of nesting, eating and “visiting the powder room.” Some cars have very complex wiring harnesses that must be replaced as entire assemblies - expensive parts and extensive labor.  Sometimes, the first evidence is a rough idle, a check-engine light, bits of plant material under the hood, or a telltale smell.  These cars usually require a thorough cleaning of the engine compartment, some diagnostic work, replacement or repair of wiring, and some preventive measures. We recommend wrapping wiring harnesses with capsaicin-impregnated tape (it’s spicy hot) to deter rodents from chewing.  Rodent repellents, containing odors rats don’t like such as mint, and fox-urine pheromones, can help a bit, and you can install under-hood strobe lights ... read more

  Catalytic-converter theft The catalytic converter is a component in your exhaust system that converts oxides of nitrogen (NOx) into less-polluting emissions, and they contain several valuable metals.  Toyota Prius cats have larger quantities of these metals, and pay higher prices at the metal recycler.  Thieves target these cars, in particular, for a quick “jack and hack” that’ll cost you a few thousand to repair, but nets them a couple hundred dollars or less. Every car is a potential target, and those parked unused for several days can attract the attention of the bad guys.  Your first clue is usually a car that sounds like the muffler fell off - the entire middle section of your exhaust system gets cut out with a power saw in a minute or two, often stealing or damaging the oxygen sensors, pre-cat and post-cat exhaust pipes, and sometimes even denting things with careless jack placement.  We can install catalytic-converter shields using ... read more

(As seen in San Carlos Living Magazine) What makes Toole’s Garage different is our people – Francisco, Luis, Rob, Dave, and Cameron. Dave Toole, the owner, takes great care in selecting and developing his master technicians, mechanics at the top of their game in training and experience. We rely on their skills to perform the tricky diagnoses and the complex repairs sometimes necessary to get a car running well. There are two paths in becoming a master technician. First, many talented automotive technicians entered the profession at the side of another tech, learning and watching and asking questions while picking up information and confidence along the way. In time, you can get pretty good at working on cars if you learn the right techniques from a patient mentor. Alternatively, other students enter our profession in a more academic way, enrolling in an automotive technology program at a college or trade school, and studying engines, transmissions, electrical systems, gear ... read more

Hey fans!   I get many phone calls from potential clients that ask me if their shocks or struts really need to be replaced. They usually say, "my car does not seem bouncy" or " my car seems to handle very well". Those are both true statements. The downside to cars today is that they are built so well...........Did I just say that???? Yes, they are built very well, components last longer and the car feels fine with higher mileage. The concern with that is that the suspension components are moving a lot more than they would when things like the struts are worn, but you don't feel that as a driver. The manufacturer of struts says they should be replaced every 50,000 miles. The valving inside those struts move 75,000,000 times in 50k. 75 Million times, that is a lot. Not many things last that long.  When the valving wears down, it allows the strut (or shock absor ... read more

What's up everybody! Dave the Car Guy! Today, I'm going to let you know the best way to find your forever Auto Repair Shop Mechanic! This is a question that people ask a lot, and with good reason. There truly is some misconception out shops out there and some of it came from some poor actions of individuals owning a business. Many auto repair shops out there today have great integrity, are convenient, and do have your best interest in mind. There are many more of these type of shops than the ones that you have heard horror stories about. The great thing about being a consumer today, is that the internet has leveled the playing field. You can get a glimpse of any company in which you would like to do business with in the privacy of your own space, by searching them online. This is how we will start our search! Step 1:   Ask a friend, family member, or colleague if they LOVE the auto shop that they use. Whether they have great ... read more

Hey all!    I often get asked the question "Do you replace tires at Toole's Garage?". Well, we absolutely do take care of our clients tires, we also align the vehicle as well. What you should know about tires however, is something that most tire places don't know, or won't mention. The reason why tires vary in price so much is mostly due to the quality of the tire, in some cases, the brand name actually will dictate some of the cost, just like anything else. But there are many ratings when it comes to tires. There is tread wear, temperature, and traction. Tread wear is listed as a number, it typically determines the composition of the rubber if it's either going to be a very hard rubber or a very soft rubber. The hard rubber tires will have a long tread life, but typically are not as grippy once warmed up. On the contrary most soft rubber tires are very grippy when wa ... read more

Hey Fans and people who just want to know!    I get the question asked a lot about brake pads. There are so many brands and types out there, it feels just like walking down a grocery isle. "Hmm, do I go for the pads on the top shelf, or grab the cheap ones down below?" I usually will go with some sort of OEM brake pad that is Ceramic based.There are basically 3 types of pads now, an organic material, a semi-metallic material, and ceramic material.   Primarily, the organic gives you nice quiet brakes, low brake dust, but not the best feel when really needing to stop, meaning, the stopping power is the least effective.      Semi-metallic pads have the best stopping power, but are noisy and create a lot of brake dust. We have also found that the copper used in brake pads is causing some problems in the environment (no good).   Lastly, there is ceramic pads. They are a great combination of both o ... read more

Hey Fans!   I get this question asked a lot. What is a Timing Belt, and why do I have to change it? Simply put, the timing belt is a toothed belt that keeps the engine in sync, or as its name mentions, time. There are essentially 2 halves of an engine, an upper half and a lower half. The bottom side of the engine is the crankshaft, it is known as the rotating assembly because the pistons are connected to the crankshaft. As the explosions happen from the fuel ignition in the cylinder, the pistons are forced downward causing the crankshaft to rotate. The crankshaft has a toothed gear on the front that the timing belt rides on. This rotation causes the belt to move and spin the other half of the engine that contains the camshaft, or multiple camshafts. They also have a toothed gear attached. This camshaft pushes on the valves against the springs to make them open. This lets air and fuel ... read more