Boulder Auto Repair

Boulder drivers know that engines need to burn fuel to operate. Fuel is pumped from your fuel tank to your family car engine where it is squirted—or injected—into your engine’s cylinders. This is the function of the fuel injectors. There are two ways to inject fuel into an engine. Fuel needs air to burn, so in the first method, fuel is injected into a port and allowed to mix with air and before it is drawn into the cylinders. In the second method, fuel is injected directly into the cylinders and mixes with air after it enters the family car engine. Direct injection engines burn fuel more efficiently than conventional family car engines. Some models can deliver the power of a V8 with the economy of a V6. For example, in one family of engines, the conventional version (a V6) delivers about 250 horsepower. The direct injection version delivers over 300 horsepower and gets about the same gas mileage. The turbocharged version delivers 350 horsepower. Why t ... read more

You know you need new tires, but you’re not sure what type. You look at a tire to get the size: 225, 50, R, 16, 92, H. All the way to the Boulder service center you keep repeating it over and over. You even say it over in your mind while waiting in line. Then you get to the counter and the manager asks what size you need. Then your mind goes blank. Tire size can be confusing for many Boulder auto owners. There’s so much on the side of the tire, and it’s hard to keep straight. Even though there’s a lot on a tire – if you know what it all means, it’s actually more helpful than confusing. Let’s start with the size number. For example, let’s say a tire reads: 225 50 R 16 92 H. The 225 part is the width of the tire in millimeters – the width between the sidewalls of an inflated tire with no load. The 50 is the aspect ratio – the ratio of the sidewall height to the tread wi ... read more

If you’ve ever been driving around Boulder and had a headlamp go out, you’ve probably just wanted to replace the bad bulb. If your car uses halogen headlamps, they dim over time. So if you just put in one, they won’t have the same brightness which can be distracting and will affect your field of vision. To have your headlights inspected, visit us at John’s Auto Care. We’re at 1900 55th St. #104 in Boulder, CO 80301. Or give us a call at 303.442.2932 Experts in Boulder recommend replacing your halogen headlamps every year. It’s easy to remember if you do it when daylight savings time changes in the fall. That way you’ll have bright headlamps for those long Boulder winter nights. There are other types of headlamps in addition to halogen. There are the old standard bulbs that have been around for decades. These are OK, but you can usually upgrade to halogen. They cost a ... read more

Getting adequate fuel to your engine is very important for performance, fuel economy and safety. In order to accomplish this, your fuel system needs to be clean. Today’s production cars have fuel injectors, rather than a carburetor. The injectors need to be cleaned from time to time in order to deliver the fuel with the correct pressure, spray pattern and volume. Boulder motorists can buy fuel system cleaners that you pour into your gas tank to help maintain an already clean fuel system, however, they can’t do a major cleaning. For that, you need to see John’s Auto Care in Boulder. They have the tools and chemicals to do the job right. The cheerful team at John’s Auto Care can remove particles, gum and varnish from your fuel syste ... read more