TPMS Sensor Service And Installation
Most TPMS sensors are held in using just a screw or a nut, but if not assembled or torqued properly, the results can be catastrophic. Carelessness can result in a broken sensor or even a customer being stranded with a flat tire.
Investing In TPMS Tools
Most vehicles require some type of “stationary” relearn procedure to reset the system. This requires some type of TPMS tool to activate each of the tire pressure sensors in a specified sequence so the TPMS control module can relearn their new locations.
Customer Satisfaction: You Can’t Win Them All
When you start your own business, your initial goal is to make every customer happy. But as the years go on, you realize some people aren’t going to be happy no matter how good of a job you do.
Gonzo’s Toolbox: ‘Wanna Be’ Technicians
There’s one situation every professional automotive technician has had to deal with from time to time, and it involves the home-grown garage guy who just so happens to own a couple of ratchets, a repair manual and a broken-down car. In a recent case, the car in question wouldn’t start, and a neighborhood mechanic did his best to read and understand what was on the diagnostic pages of the manual, but he couldn’t make any sense of the wiring diagram for the fuel pump circuit. His final verdict, “It’s not getting any voltage to the fuel pump.”
BRAKELIGHT: 2000 GMC Sierra
“Here are a couple photos from a 2000 GMC Sierra 1500 5.3L. Vehicle has 309,821 miles and customer stated noise had started just a couple days before bringing it to us. Pictures are of the passenger front rotor.” — Michael Conover, Midas Auto Service Experts, Cleburne, TX
BRAKELIGHT: The Car Cradle (March 1986)
Some ideas just never catch on… I wonder if the Car Cradle paid for itself by shaking out the coins that were trapped in the seats? The ad claims that there is no oil in your face. I think the inventor forgot that most vehicles are filled with fluids and oils that can leak out
BRAKELIGHT: The Tale of Sam & Joe (December 1961)
Quality art never goes out of style. OK, so maybe you don’t remember “The Reluctant Student” from the December 1961 issue of Brake & Front End, but the message is as important now as it was then — maybe even more so. In the cartoon, we have Joe, who is content with his book of
BRAKELIGHT: Chevy Avalanche
A customer recently brought in a Chevy Avalanche due to a slight brake noise. Both pads were gone, the caliper piston was AWOL and the rotor looked like this. — Submitted by Ryan Dickerson, Blackville, SC
BRAKELIGHT: SUV Air Ride Suspension
This customer chose an interesting solution when the air ride suspension on his SUV started to leak. The rubber block looks like a wheel chock wired to the trailing arm of the suspension. I am sure the ride was not the most comfortable.
BRAKELIGHT: Reliable Brake Service, St. Louis, MO (Dec. 1965)
Reliable Brake Service in St. Louis, MO, is an institution in the Lindwood Park neighborhood. The two-foot tall letters on the front of the building have stood for more than 50 years and have outlasted two owners. In July 2015, the business was put up for sale due to the partial retirement of the current
