San Carlos Auto Repair

How long should my car battery last? Car batteries last anywhere from 3-6 years based on the size, quality, location, and the type of battery.  Flooded Lead Acid Car Battery Most car batteries are still using lead acid flooded batteries. The battery consists of lead plates, an acid solution in which the plates are flooded, positive/negative terminals, and a plastic housing which holds it all together. Lead is known as a toxic agent and it will effect ones health but the battery companies still use lead. It’s a great material for maintaining a batteries’ charge, accepting a new charge, and the more lead a battery uses, usually the more energy it’s capable to hold. Size Of The Battery, Bigger is Usually Better The size of a car battery is rated to the amount of the Cold Cranking Amps that a car requires to start. A larger battery will typically last longer than a smaller battery but it certainly depends ... read more

Paul knows Toyota & Lexus Paul is our head Toyota and Lexus technician.     For over 11 years, Paul has been a Master technician with A+ Japanese Auto Repair in San Carlos focusing on Toyota and Lexus products. Many of the cars he works with daily includes Toyota Sienna Mini Vans, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Highlanders as well as the other vehicles on the Toyota line. Most of the Toyota vehicles that he repairs require not much more than service items. Those items might be brakes, timing belts, major and minor services, electrical diagnostic, air conditioning, and check engine light work. With amount of experience & training that he has on these vehicles, he is one of the top technicians in the San Francisco Bay Area. And of course Lexus. Lexus is actually owned by the Toyota corporation. Lexus is the higher end line for Toyota but they really share quite a few parts and posses the ... read more

If you bring your car to Jiffy Lube for service, you should follow this article. After a 3 year investigation, the California Bureau of Auto Repair has found several violations against a northern CA family owned chain of Jiffy Lube stations.  The investigation is on going but we want all customers to be aware of what's out there. Brought to you by: San Francisco (KGO) State undercover agents say they've found a pattern of fraud at dozens of Bay Area Jiffy Lubes -- all operated by a family franchise. In a story exclusive to ABC7 News, state investigators claim those locations have been selling services customers don't need. (KGO-TV) http://abc7news.com/news/state-undercover-agents-allege-pattern ... read more

Are counterfeit parts being installed on my car?      At A+ Japanese Auto Repair, we take pride in installing the best parts on your car and was deeply disturbed by this recent article regarding counterfeit parts.       There was a recent seizure by Australian authorities of counterfeit Toyota parts. This issue seems to be showing up more and more in the world of products, not just automotive parts. The parts that we seized ranged from oil filters to air bags.        The issue that we see with this, besides the obvious moral issues, is the lack in quality control. People count on parts everyday for reliability as well as their safety.  Read more about this issue below... http://www.caradvice.com.au/448539/counterfeit-toyota-parts-destined-for-australia-seized-in-chinese-raid ... read more

With the cold days upon us, we wanted to share 4 easy and safe ways to remove ice off your window. Before you begin any of the below steps, do this: If your vehicle is parked in a well ventilated area, start the car, roll down your driver's side window (so you don't get locked out of the car), and turn the heater on to the defrost setting. Then turn the rear window defrost to the on position.  1. The Makeshift Ice Scraper Save an old credit card or gift card in your wallet. Place the longer edge against your glass starting from the top of the window and scrape the ice down. After you are done with the whole window, lift the wiper blades up and scrape the ice slush off the car. All done! 2. Water makes (Almost) everything Better With this method, be careful of two things... the outside temperature and the temperature of the water. If the outside temperature is too cold (32* F or below), you will build up more ice. If the water is too hot (anything ... read more

When do you need to change a hybrid battery? Let's explore the options on changing a Hybrid battery pack ​We were recently working on a Toyota Prius at our shop, A+ Japanese Auto Repair,  and it needed a hybrid battery pack replacement. We thought this would be a good time to share a few photos and tell you a little bit more about hybrid battery packs. A hybrid battery pack is made up of several batteries connected by a series of connections. The voltage at each cell can range from 9 volts and higher. The hybrid computer monitors two cells at a time and compares the voltages to all of the other paired cells. If there are a pair of batteries that are too far away from one another in the voltage category then the computer will set a trouble code in the hybrid battery computer. There are some companies that will remove the battery pack from the car and only replace the battery cells which&nbs ... read more

How To Change A Flat Tire   Each car has a different approach to change a spare tire. This is a general procedure to change a flat tire on most cars or trucks.   1.   Get your vehicle to a flat safe spot Find a location away from danger and fast moving traffic. It is okay to drive the vehicle for a short distance on a flat tire. Turn your hazard lights on, drive slow, and avoid sudden acceleration, turns, or braking.   2.   Find the location of the tools you need to change the spare hydraulic jack (to lift the vehicle) tools to remove the spare tire (if needed) tire wrench (to remove and tighten the lug nuts on the tire) 3.    Find the location of your spare tire and remove it Usually located in the trunk, under the rear of the vehicle, or in some mini vans the spare tire is located under the middle row seat.     4.    Set the parking brake and put the vehicle i ... read more

How far can I drive on a flat tire? The short answer for how long you can drive on a flat tire is... at a speed above 35mph, you could cause irreversible damage in under one mile of driving.    To properly answer the question "how far can I drive on a flat tire" depends two things: How flat is the tire (the psi) and what type of tire is on your car.   If you need to know how to change a spare tire, click here.   What is considered a flat tire?   A flat tire is considered anything under 20 psi (pressure per square inch). When you are running your tire under 20 psi, the sidewalls of the tire will get very hot, the rubber will breakdown, the tire could come off the rim on a sharp turn, and this will ultimately lead to a tire blowout.   ... read more

Typically, you can drive your car with the check engine light on as long as it's running smoothly. Even though an illuminated check engine light isn't a great sign, we want to help you understand if you can still drive your car, for how long, and what will happen if you keep driving with the check engine light on. Why the Check Engine Light Turns On  Your car or truck has many warning lights on its dash, and they all mean something different. Your check engine light should be easily identifiable as either an engine symbol, the words “service engine soon,” or the words “check engine.” The primary job of a check engine light is to let the driver know that one of the car's sensors is malfunctioning or that the car isn't running properly. The engine light can be solid or flashing. As a side note, the check engine light should always light up when you start your car, but it should turn off within six seconds of ignition. Is Your Check Engine ... read more

The Burlingame Hyundai Dealer Closed - Where do I take my Hyundai for Service? Burlingame Hyundai Auto Service and Repair Department is Closed.  Call 650-595-2277 for Hyundai Service & Repair.  Aug 31st 2015 employees and customers showed up to the doors for the Burlingame Hyundai dealership only to find that it had closed down. It came as a surprise even to the neighboring shops, "We had no news, no idea, and then we showed up to work on Monday morning and their lot was empty!" (local mechanic David K. at a neighboring auto repair shop.) So the next question is where can Hyundai customers take their vehicle for service and repair? A+ Japanese Auto Repair in San Carlos has been the Hyundai Dealer alternative for over 10 years. They have seen the evolution of Hyundai from a car struggling with quality and market share to a thriving automotive company who competes against the likes of Honda and Nissan. Contact ... read more