The Check Engine Light strikes fear into the hearts of some St. Peter drivers, and is totally ignored by just as many. Just what it means is a mystery to most people.

Let’s get the urgency issues out of the way first. If your Check Engine light is flashing, that means that something is wrong that could cause engine damage. Naturally, you need to get that taken care of right away. If your check engine light is flashing, you shouldn’t drive at high speeds, tow or haul heavy loads. Take it easy all the way to your St. Peter service center.

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If the light is glowing steadily, you should keep an eye on it for a day or two. If the light doesn’t go off, schedule an appointment with your friendly and knowledgeable pros at Autotronics of St. Peter to get it checked out.

Some more information on how the Check Engine light works may be helpful for St. Peter drivers. Most of your engine functions are controlled by a computer, not surprisingly, called an engine control computer. The computer is able to adjust many engine parameters for environmental conditions, engine condition and even the way you drive.

In order to make these adjustments, the computer relies on a network of sensors to provide data. The computer knows the proper operating range for each sensor. When a sensor reading is out of range, the computer runs some tests and may turn on the vehicle’s Check Engine light.

A simple example is a loose or missing gas cap. This may cause one of the sensors to read out of range. The computer doesn’t know if it’s a serious condition that caused the reading or just a loose gas cap, so it stores a trouble code and turns on the Check Engine light.

Now when you tighten up the gas cap, the sensor readings will be in the correct range. The computer will keep checking on the report for a day or two. Since a bad reading didn’t come up again, it turns off the Check Engine light. The computer will also try to make adjustments to compensate for some readings. If it can do so, it’ll then turn off the Check Engine light.

If the problem can’t be resolved then the light will remain on, and you should get your vehicle looked at. Your friendly and knowledgeable pros at Autotronics of St. Peter will plug a scanner into the on-board diagnostic port and read the trouble code stored in the computer. The trouble code will give the technician a starting place as he diagnoses the cause of the problem.

Autotronics of St. Peter
111 Jefferson Avenue
St. Peter, MN 56082
507.934.9290
http://autotronicsstpeter.com

There are some things drivers should know about St. Peter car service and repair. First and foremost, Autotronics of St. Peter cares about you and your family’s safety. And we really appreciate your business. Autotronics of St. Peter in St. Peter wants to build a trusting relationship that becomes the foundation for a mutually beneficial experience for years to come.

Building on that foundation, there are some things that would help you understand the auto service and repair business better. First, it can be really hard to fix vehicles. The days of shade tree mechanics are long gone. The majority of automotive systems are computerized. It takes a lot of training and very expensive equipment to diagnose and repair modern vehicles. The pros who work for Autotronics of St. Peter need extensive computer training – not just how to run the diagnostic systems, but also searching for the right parts, networking with other technicians to help them with a difficult problem and pulling together a job order that makes sure that each step of the process is addressed.

The threshold for getting started as a technician gets higher all the time in MN, and there is a huge commitment to on-going training every year. This training takes time and money. It contributes to business overhead. Average consumers in St. Peter may not realize the business and environmental regulations Autotronics of St. Peter must comply with. Of course that costs money, too. Like any MN business, overhead is a big factor.

When you go into your favorite St. Peter area restaurant, you don’t value the meal by what the food would cost at the grocery store. The restaurant has rent, wages, insurance, taxes, utilities, professional fees, equipment, supplies – you get the picture. The restaurant has to charge enough to not only pay for the ingredients, but for all these other things as well while making enough profit to remain in business. If you value the meal and are satisfied with your dining experience, you’ll come back and tell your friends.

It’s the same for Autotronics of St. Peter. The value of its service is not the cost of the parts they replace, but in your satisfaction with the results. If they deliver a good product at a fair price, customers are happy to see them succeed as a MN automotive business.

Contact Autotronics of St. Peter to learn more about our extensive auto service training.
You can find us at:
Autotronics of St. Peter
111 Jefferson Avenue
St. Peter, MN 56082
507.934.9290
autotronicsstpeter.autotipsvideo.com

At Autotronics of St. Peter, we love to see our St. Peter customers whenever they come in, but we would much rather see them three or four times a year for routine maintenance than once a year on a tow truck. We want to work together with you to avoid breakdowns. Tell your friends and family to come in for their scheduled maintenance too. That lowers our marketing costs and helps keep labor rates down. That’s good for everyone in St. Peter.

Most St. Peter folks worry about running out of gas or having a breakdown on the side of the road. That is why we practice preventive maintenance on our vehicles — that and to keep our repair bills down. But one important part of preventive maintenance that may get overlooked by drivers in St. Peter is a periodic alignment inspection.

Poor alignment causes tires to wear rapidly, unevenly or both. This means they will have to be replaced early, and new tires are more expensive than an alignment check in St. Peter. Bad alignment can also cause damage to suspension and steering systems, which can be expensive to repair in St. Peter.

Tire wear on misaligned wheels can also lead to blowouts, which are dangerous, can lead to serious accidents and can seriously damage your vehicle. Also, poor alignment itself can be the cause of an accident since the vehicle may not steer properly.

One or more wheels on your vehicle can be knocked out of alignment by running over a curb or a pothole on a bumpy St. Peter street. An accident —  even a minor one — that involves a wheel on your car can lead to misalignment. The small bumps and bangs of everyday driving can also gradually put your wheels out of alignment.

If you have had wheel damage to your vehicle, or if you suspect that your wheels are out of alignment, you should get your alignment checked NOW. Any service center will give you that piece of auto advice. But good vehicle care suggests that you also get your alignment inspected on a regular basis. At Autotronics of St. Peter in St. Peter, we can take care of that for you.

Your owner’s manual or Autotronics of St. Peter can give you a suggestion on how often your alignment should be checked. If it doesn’t, then once a year is a good rule of thumb. However, if you drive a lot — and especially if you drive on rough surfaces a lot — then you may want to consider alignment more often. Ask the pros at Autotronics of St. Peter for a recommendation.

If your vehicle is out of alignment, one or more of the wheels is not tracking correctly and will “pull” against the others. Thus, one sign of poor alignment is that your vehicle pulls to one side when you drive around St. Peter. Also, if you are driving a straight path and your steering wheel is off-center, that usually indicates an alignment problem.

St. Peter drivers should also check the wear on their tires. If they seem to be wearing out too quickly, or if you notice that a tire is wearing on one side more than the other, you should get your alignment checked.

When you get an alignment inspection, your vehicle will be put on a rack and all the parts of the steering and suspension systems will be inspected for wear or damage. The alignment of the tires will be charted and compared to the original factory settings. If no repairs are needed on the steering or suspension systems, the wheels will then be adjusted to bring them back into alignment.

This may seem like a lot of bother for drivers, but it’s a lot less trouble than a blowout or an accident. The old adage is good auto advice for all St. Peter residents: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

So keep on driving, and keep all four tires on the road.

Autotronics of St. Peter
111 Jefferson Avenue
St. Peter, MN 56082
507.934.9290
http://autotronicsstpeter.com