Chesapeake Auto Repair

West Service Center, Inc. Auto Tips and Videos: Serpentine Belt System Wear       The primary job of the serpentine belt is to provide essential traction to spin the accessories. As the belt wears it loses some of its grip and the accessories may not spin at optimal speeds. For example, if your alternator doesn’t spin fast enough, the battery will not completely recharge while you’re driving and you could end up stranded with a dead battery. In short, a worn serpentine belt will stress all of the accessories it powers leading to premature wear and possible early replacement. When as little as 5% of belt material is lost, the serpentine belt cannot provide the proper traction for the accessories. Your honest West Service Center, Inc. service specialist can check your belt for excessive wear and replace your serpentine belt system if it’s excessively worn. Give us a call West Service Center, Inc. 757-487-4420 904 Cavalier Blvd Ches ... read more

Keep Your Tires Well Rounded in Chesapeake: Tire Rotation and Wheel Balancing at West Service Center, Inc.   Taking care of our tires is an important part of car care for Chesapeake drivers. We know they have to be replaced when they wear out, but tires also require some important preventive maintenance. This maintenance will improve gas mileage and extend the life of the tires, so it’s well worth the effort and expense for Chesapeake car owners to get it done. Tire maintenance includes keeping tires properly inflated, rotating tires and balancing wheels. The recommended tire pressure for a vehicle’s tires is printed on a sticker on the inside of the driver’s side doorjamb. A lot of engineering goes into calculating the correct pressure, so it’s a critical number for Chesapeake motorists to know. Not following this recommendation can throw off the suspension system and can lead to expensive tire damage. Underinflated tires wear out more quickly ... read more

Clean Fuel Equals Clean Performance For Chesapeake Drivers Hello, Chesapeake auto owners. Let’s talk fuel filters. Fuel filters clean the dirt, dust and debris out of your fuel. Both gasoline and diesel-powered engines have them. The fuel filter is located in the fuel line between the fuel tank and the engine. Chesapeake drivers don’t need to filter their fuel because it has lots of grit in it; they need to filter it because it has some grit it in. Any dirt is bad for your engine. The cleaner the fuel, the better an engine will run. Over time, the small amounts of rust, dirt and contaminants in your fuel settle out inside the fuel tank. After about five years, this can amount to a quite a bit of sediment. This means that as your van ages, your fuel filter has to work harder to screen your fuel: more sediment in your tank means more potential for grit in your fuel. The harder your fuel filter works, the more often it ... read more

Vehicle Maintenance Videos by West Service Center, Inc.: Battery Testing The simple fact is that 70% of car batteries fail within 4 years. They just need to be replaced when they are no longer able to hold a full charge. Batteries are a big ticket item for most Chesapeake motorists and it’s tempting to put off buying a new one as long as possible. But a battery that cannot hold a full charge requires the alternator to work extra hard, causing it to wear out prematurely. Your West Service Center, Inc. service professional can test your battery to see if it should be replaced. Testing is a good idea for Virginia motorists because a battery might still be good, but become dead because of a bad alternator or even a worn serpentine belt and tensioner. Give us a call West Service Center, Inc. 757-487-4420 904 Cavalier Blvd Chesapeake, Virginia 23323      

West Service Center, Inc. Smart Car Care Videos: Tire Replacement Overview Tires are an expensive purchase so knowing when tires should be replaced is important for Chesapeake car owners. Tires will just wear out with normal use. The depth of the tread on your tire determines how well it will stop, start and steer – especially in wet conditions. 4/32th of an inch of tire tread is considered a safe amount of tread. Uneven tread wear can be a symptom of other problems and simply replacing your tires will not prevent the same uneven wear from happening to the new tires. We can review your tires for excessive or uneven wear. Unusual wear may lead to further analysis of steering, suspension or alignment problems. We can help with required repairs and with getting you the right tires for your needs. Give us a call West Service Center, Inc. 757-487-4420 904 Cavalier Blvd Chesapeake, Virginia 23323