Automotive News & Information - Nick's Automotive

mechanic running diagnostics on a vehicle

At Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV, our technicians have a wide variety of top of the line tools and equipment available to diagnose and repair your vehicle. We utilize equipment at the forefront of technological innovation to best provide for the specific needs of your car.

For obvious reasons, air brakes are an essential part of your rig. They also add a level of complication to the braking system that a conventional vehicle doesn’t have. At Nick's Automotive in Reno, our mechanics have the knowledge, equipment, and ability necessary to keep your air brakes in top shape.

At Nick's Automotive in Reno, we know that in order to keep your car in good shape, it helps to know how it works. Here’s a quick rundown of a system that’s very important, but you take for granted until there’s a problem; your brakes. While there is a multitude of configurations and levels of complexity in automotive brake systems, they all essentially work the same way. Disregarding anti-lock brake systems and the like, this is how braking works in its simplest form.

Judging by the number of near-rear-endings we witness on our morning commutes, the typical attitude toward brake maintenance appears to be, “Brakes: Don’t let them stop you!” This puzzles us because monitoring your braking system’s health is one of the most straightforward aspects of car ownership. You do have to know what to look for, though, or rather, what to listen and feel for. So let us, uh, break it down for you. Here are the top three signs that your brakes need fixing.

Your car’s radio and headlights, plus a slew of other important functions, are powered by an electrical current generated by your vehicle’s engine. A vital part of generating electricity is having a place to store it while it’s not being used. This is where your car battery comes into play. The battery of your vehicle holds electrical energy while the car is off in order to help the engine turn over and create a spark to start internal combustion. Without a working battery, your car will not be able to start. If you allow our team here at Nick's Automotive to perform proper maintenance, an average car battery can start your car reliably for roughly four years.

There may come a day when you go to shift your vehicle out of “Park”, and the shifter refuses to move. Perhaps you are already experiencing this issue intermittently, or currently have a vehicle stuck in park. While this is a serious inconvenience, it doesn’t necessarily indicate a serious problem; let Nick's Automotive in Reno, NV put your mind at ease.

While diesel engines have become more common in trucks and certain cars, overwhelmingly the most common car, truck, and SUV powerhouse found on the road today is the gasoline combustion engine. At Nick's Automotive in Reno, our technicians are skilled in every aspect of gasoline engine maintenance and repair, to keep yours reliably on the road and running strong.

A car that brakes well and brakes correctly are just as important as acceleration, handling, or any other aspect of a vehicle’s drivability. A car with brake issues has the potential to be a far more enjoyable ride when fixed. Your brakes have a lot to do with how your car drives. Brakes are a frequently neglected item on a lot of people’s checklists, and many drivers on the road have subpar brakes and don’t even know it.