Posts by dakotaridgeauto

Oh, thank goodness for oil filters on our vehicles.  As your engine runs, dirt gets into the oil.  Oil sludge can also start to build up.  Fortunately, motor oil contains detergents that clean the engine and gather up contaminates.  The oil circulates through the oil filter where clumps of dirt and sludge are captured.  An…

Here are 5 tips from Dakota Ridge Auto for used car buyers: 1. Ask for service records. Most owners who document regular maintenance service take care of their vehicles. 2. Inspect the vehicle thoroughly. Check for uneven tire wear, alignment, suspension issues, strange sounds and funky odors. 3. If everything checks out up to this…

Most in the Littleton area may not know much about transfer cases, but if you have a four-wheel-drive vehicle, you’ve got one. It makes sure you have power available for both the front and rear axles when driving around CO. For example, if you have a rear-wheel drive SUV, power goes to the rear wheels…

Many Littleton drivers have probably noticed a bunch of warning lights on their dash when they start their engine. They flash on to test the circuits and then go off if everything’s OK. One of the warning lights looks like a car battery. Its job is to tell you if your vehicle battery’s not charging properly.…

We know we need to take care of our cars, but it just seems hard to remember to do it.  We generally accept that many things in life require regular maintenance, but just may have not applied it to our vehicles. For example, we water and mow the lawn every week.  And weed the flower…

People need to be concerned about wheel alignment for two primary reasons: safety and money.  When your wheels are out of alignment, they can pull to one side. A moment of inattention could put you into on-coming traffic or off the road.  And a bad alignment will chew up your tires very quickly. We had…

Your serpentine belt is powered by the engine as it turns. Your alternator, air conditioning compressor and power steering pump depend on your serpentine belt to run. On some vehicles, it also runs the water pump, radiator fan, and power brakes. If your serpentine belt breaks, your battery won’t last long. If it runs your…

An oil change at your local Littleton, CO, auto shop sounds simple, but there are some pretty important things to know about preventing oil sludge. Oil eventually starts to turn into jelly, literally:  petroleum jelly. Sludge clogs up oil passages and keeps oil from getting to some areas of the engine, causing parts to wear out prematurely.…

You don’t have to be an auto expert to know what a fuel pump does: it pumps fuel.  The fuel pump happens to be one of those vital parts of your vehicle that can leave you stranded when it isn’t working the way it should.  Here are a few things to be aware of that…

We’ve all been there.  You park somewhere only to return and find one of your tires is flat; you’ve picked up a nail on the road.  You’re hoping you can just have it patched and be on your way.  That beats the cost of replacing the tire, but will that patch hold up for the…