Automotive News & Information - Sac Valley Diesel

When a vehicle has trouble starting, many people initially blame the starter. What is the starter, and how do you know if yours has called it quits? At Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA, we want to keep you informed, and telling you what to look for will prevent further damage when issues arise. The starter is essentially just an electric motor; a gear at the end of that electric motor engages the flywheel, which turns the engine over, allowing it to start. How do you know if yours is failing?

Checking the fluid level on your transmission is fairly easy, but a bit more complicated than checking your oil. Firstly, this only applies to automatic transmissions, and secondly, some modern vehicles don’t have dipsticks or dipstick tubes to check and add transmission fluid. With that in mind, here are some tips from Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA in regard to checking your transmission fluid.

At Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA, we know that fuel contamination is one of the priciest and most problematic issues that may plague a diesel engine. There are a variety of issues that cause contamination in fuel. Knowing these issues will help drivers become aware of fuel contamination and hopefully prevent these issues.

At Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA, we recommend always making it a priority to change your oil on time. Here’s a look into why it’s so important, and what happens if you don’t keep up with oil changes.

Sludge - If oil stays in an engine too long, sludge begins to build up anywhere oil can go. The oil absorbs tiny debris and contaminants, kind of like a liquid sponge - once it’s at capacity, that oil begins to stick, clog, and build up throughout the engine. Small veins that carry oil to components like actuators, turbos, and bearings will become blocked, starving critical components of oil and causing component or engine failure.

Transmissions, while generally durable, can be highly complicated devices. For this reason, they are also expensive to replace, and maintaining one will save you a lot of headache and money in the future. This article from Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA discusses how your driving habits affect your transmission. While automatic transmissions are by far the most common, there are still a considerable number of manual transmissions on the road, so this article covers both.

Your drive belts run everything - your AC, power steering, alternator, and water pump are all dependent on the belts that turn them. At Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA, our goal is to keep your truck maintained, so you’re never stuck out on the road. Drive belts are a critical part of that goal.

At Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, we are quite familiar with the potential for easy maintenance and repair items to become much larger problems. One such issue is the infamous stuck lug nut. You go to change your tire, or a basic maintenance shop tries to take your wheel off, and you discover a lug nut that simply refuses to budge. Now what do you do?

What is an HEUI System you may ask? When it was first introduced, HEUI systems revolutionized diesel technology in groundbreaking ways. Though other technologies have taken the forefront since its development, HEUI systems are still extremely common throughout the diesel industry. From our team here at Sac Valley Diesel in Sacramento, CA, here’s a quick look at how these systems work, and what the advantages are of having one.