Vehicle Maintenance

  • How to Fix Foggy or Cloudy Headlights

    headlight of car

    Foggy headlights are a problem that has arisen in the past couple of decades, as we have moved away from glass sealed beam bulbs and into an era of plastic lenses with bulbs inside. While modern headlights are superior to the sealed beam headlights of years ago, they do tend to fog up after years of use. It’s a good trade for far better illumination and easier replacement, but an issue nonetheless. Hours and hours of heat, sunlight, and age eventually cause them to cloud up, which can reduce visibility at night in addition to worsening the appearance of your car, truck, or SUV. From Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV, here are some tips on taking care of your foggy or cloudy headlight issue.

  • How To Get More Miles Per Gallon

    gas tanks

    At Nick's Automotive in Reno, efficiency is a concept that interests us. While your fuel economy is largely dependent on what kind of car, truck, or SUV you drive, there are a variety of tips and tricks to get the most bang for your buck. We’ve provided a few of our favorites here.

  • How to Keep Your Older Vehicle in The Best Shape!

    Tail lights on bumper of older car

    As your vehicle ages, it not only gains sentimental value but a number of maintenance measures arise as well. Vehicles from previous decades have the potential to keep their value and functionality for many years. But how can you make that possible? Here are some tips from Nick's Automotive to keep your older vehicle running and on the road for a long time!

  • How to Make Your Clutch Last Longer

    shifter on vehicle

    If you drive a vehicle with a manual transmission, you know that clutch replacement can be an expensive and time-consuming job. Nick's Automotive in Reno has some tips to keep your clutch replacements as infrequent as possible.

  • How to Reduce Your Vehicle Maintenance Costs

    Man working under the hood of his vehicle

    If you want to avoid nasty and unexpected surprise maintenance costs, sticking to a regimented schedule of preventative maintenance is something you are going to want to get used to. The reason being is simple – frequent maintenance will keep your vehicle in good health, ensuring you get the most out of all those expensive-to-replace parts. While it might sound counterintuitive, the best way to reduce maintenance costs is to stick to a prescribed maintenance schedule.

  • How To Retain Your Car’s Resale Value

    car with for sale sign on the window

    If you drive a performance or luxury vehicle, there are important points to remember in preserving not only your car or SUV, but it's resale value as well. Luxury and performance vehicles depreciate more quickly than other cars. Many who own these cars like to have the newest and the best of the best. In that way, the odds are stacked against you when trying to get a good price for your car. Fortunately, Nick's Automotive has some steps you can take to ensure you get the most for your car when it’s time to sell. 

  • How to test drive a car, and what to look for

    technician with a wrench working on the engine

    Eventually, the time comes to replace your car, truck, or SUV. Often, you’ll decide to go used to save some money. This can either be a great financial decision, but it takes a little more groundwork to make sure you’re getting a good deal and a reliable vehicle. From researching, to test driving, to inspecting a used vehicle, Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV has a few tips to help you get there.

  • How To Test Your Shocks

    shocks

    Ride quality is an essential part of your driving experience. At Nick's Automotive in Reno, we strive to keep your car, truck, or SUV as smooth and comfortable to drive as the day it came off the lot. Your shock absorbers play a huge role in ride quality; here’s what you should know.

  • How to use battery cables.

    battery cables

    If you drive a luxury or performance vehicle, you’re an owner of a reliable machine. Still, occasionally problems do arise. On vehicles like these, with so many electronics, a dead battery is a common issue. At Nick's Automotive we want to keep our customers informed, here’s how to jump-start your vehicle safely. 

  • How to Use Your Jumper Cables

    jumper cables being placed on a battery

    At some point or another, it’ll happen to you. You leave your headlights on, your battery finally fails, or for some other reason, you don’t have enough juice to start your car. Don’t call a tow truck just yet, though...Nick's Automotive in Reno has the info you need to properly jump start your car.

  • How Valve Adjustments Can Keep Your Vehicle Going

    valves on a vehicle

    At Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV, our main goal is to keep your car, truck, or SUV always performing at its best. Valve adjustments are an integral aspect of that goal.

  • How You Can Retain Your Vehicle’s Resale Value

    vehicles lined up

    If you own or operate any type of vehicle, you understand the importance of resale value. Some owners keep the same vehicle until it’s time for the scrap yard, but by and large it makes more sense to sell a vehicle and replace it at a certain point. From Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV, here’s how to make sure you get the most cash possible when it’s time for your vehicles to hit the auction block or when you're ready to sell it to its next owner.

  • Identifying driveway spots: how to determine what is leaking under your car

    If you drive a vehicle with more than a few miles on it, there’s a good chance you’ve noticed an occasional drip underneath it that leaves spots wherever you park. Identifying what is leaking from your car will help you determine whether or not it’s a cause for concern, and what to do about it.

    There are seven liquids a car can possibly drip: oil, gas, brake fluid, transmission fluid, gear oil, water, and coolant. How do you tell the difference? This article aims to help your know-how.

  • Identifying Driveway Spots: How To Determine What Is Leaking Under Your Car

    If you drive a vehicle with more than a few miles on it, there’s a good chance you’ve noticed an occasional drip underneath it that leaves spots wherever you park. Identifying what is leaking from your car will help you determine whether or not it’s a cause for concern, and what to do about it.

  • If you see steam, pull over!

    tow truck and guy calling on the phone by side of the road

    Something will go wrong with your car, truck, or SUV eventually. The important thing is knowing what to do, and how to deal with it. Just knowing what to do in a situation often means the difference between a quick repair and thousands of dollars worth of work. If you see steam coming from under the hood, it’s important to deal with it appropriately and quickly. Here’s what’s going on, and what to do, from Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV.

  • If Your Airbag Light Is On, Have it Taken Care of ASAP

    deployed airbag in car

    At Nick's Automotive in Reno, we believe it’s important for you to know how different systems in your car, truck, or SUV operate. Whether you want to know what to watch out for, or you’re just curious about how things work, we’re here to supply the answers.

  • Improve Your Fuel Efficiency?

    vehicle driving down the road

    You don’t have to buy a new, fuel-efficient car to get great fuel efficiency. No one wants to trade a fuel bill for a car payment, so take a look at our top 5 ways to save on fuel and you may just be able to pocket a little extra money at the end of the month.

    1. Change Your Driving Style- If you’re the kind of person who enjoys the rush of hard acceleration, typically runs 10 mph over the speed limit and brakes abruptly, we’ve got bad news: you’re hurting your vehicle’s fuel economy, and your wallet, in a big way. Depending on the kind of vehicle you drive and just how extreme you are with the throttle and brake, tempering your driving style can up your vehicle’s fuel economy by more than 5 mpg. That’s a serious bump. Scaling back the speed by just 5 mph means you’ll also see an increase in fuel economy.

  • Is it a bad brake master cylinder or something else

    mechanic repairing brakes on a vehicle

    The time to know if your brakes are going bad is NOT when you go to stop at that red light or on the parkway when someone suddenly swerves in front of you.  It's not always "just" brake pads either, your brake master cylinder could be an issue. How do you recognize the signs that you have a real problem with your brake master cylinder and just what is it?   Here atNick's Automotive in Reno, NV we not only have the answers, but we also put together a service schedule for you and keep an eye on issues based on your driving habits, vehicle type and your description of issues you are having.  We treat your car, truck or SUV as if it were ours keeping you informed of issues we find so you can get them fixed "before" there are larger repair bills so you can keep your vehicle Newer - Longer!   Below is everything you need to look for and tips on your brake master cylinder.

  • Is it necessary to warm up your car?

    car on road

    If you drive a performance car or SUV, you want to take every measure possible to ensure it stays in good shape and running well. For many drivers of precision-engineered vehicles like BMW, Audi, Porsche, Subaru, etc., warming up the engine is a part of taking care of your vehicle. But is it necessary?

  • Is it ok to idle?

    push to start button on vehicle

    With temperatures dropping around the country, it’s understandably tempting to let your car or SUV idle to stay warm. At Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV, one of our goals is to keep you informed on how to best care for your performance and luxury vehicles. 

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