Johnson City Auto Repair

Do you know someone who just can’t get enough of cars, even down to their stocking stuffers and gifts under the tree? If this sounds familiar, then we think you have an automotive-enthusiast on your hands. To help make holiday shopping just a little bit easier, we have some gift ideas for the car lover on your shopping list:     Car Speedometer Gage Cufflinks $26 Steering Wheel Cover  $16 Ponder Auto Repair Preventative Maintenance Inspection  Prices vary Car Seat Protectors for Pets $30 Anker Roav Dash Cam ... read more

In Johnson City, TN, and the Tri-Cities area holiday weather can include severe storms with thunder, lightning, high winds, hail, tornadoes, snow and icy roads. Wow! Driving in those conditions can be a challenge for the best of us. In addition to taking care of your family and vehicle, your safety depends on your ability to watch out for other drivers, too. Here are some ideas about preparing yourself and your vehicle for the holiday travel season.   Check The Essentials Make sure the basic safety features of your vehicle are in top form. Make sure all your fluids are topped off. Change your oil if it’s been over 5000 miles since the last oil change. Check your tires to make certain they’re in good shape and fill with the correct amount of air. Look at your air filters and see if they’re clean enough. Replace old windshield wiper blades. Make sure your lights and brakes are working properly. There’s a lot to consider, but a quick walk around your vehicl ... read more

Autumn is here and you want to be sure your vehicle is ready. When it comes to road trips, the best way to ensure your safety and the safety of those you love is to bring in your vehicle to Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City, TN, for preventative maintenance. Think of it as a physical check-up for your car. You don’t want to wait and find out you have a problem late some evening in the middle of nowhere.     At Ponder Auto Repair, a thorough preventative maintenance checkup includes inspection of your vehicle’s:   Battery   Tire pressure and tread ... read more

September is National Disaster Preparedness Month. The Federal Emergency Management Administration, National Weather Service, and Tennessee Emergency Management Agency recommend that you learn about the kind of disasters that can affect your part of the country and make plans accordingly.   In Johnson City, TN, and the Tri-Cities area that means severe storms with thunder, lightning, high winds, hail, tornadoes, snow, and icy roads. In addition to securing your home and stocking up on water, canned goods and other non-perishables, you want to be sure your car is safe and in good working order. The short checklist includes:   Checking the tread and air levels on your tires to be sure they can properly maneuver in severe weather Replacing your windshield wipers and topping off your window washing fluid to ensure you can see where you’re going Checking your engine oil and steering fl ... read more

Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City, we know it won’t be long before coats come out, and you come in to let us fix your car heater before the cool weather arrives. No one wants to drive in that morning traffic in a cold car. For fall and winter auto maintenance and repair, we’re here to help. Stop by before you find yourself wearing full outdoor gear inside your car. Besides creating a miserable drive, a broken car heater causes other problems, too. If your windshield is icy or foggy, without your heater working it can’t blow warm air on the windshield to clear it and that is a serious hazard when you are driving. In addition, if your car should break down, not having a heater that works could be dangerous if you are stranded. Very simply, a heating system works when the vehicle gets heat from the car engine’s coolant system. So, when the engine reaches its operating temperature which is controlled by the thermostat, it ... read more

Okay, so your car won’t start but what’s wrong? Is it the battery, starter or alternator? Our technicians at Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City can figure it out and fix it. The reliability of your vehicle is so crucial to everything you do. When you bring it to us, you’ll know the work we do is always done right the first time. The battery, starter and charging systems, including the alternator, work together in your car so sometimes it’s not easy to tell right away which one may be malfunctioning. So, let’s take a look how the battery, alternator, and starter function and how to tell which one is causing the problem with your car. The Starter Your car’s starter does exactly that, it starts the engine. The battery sends the starter a jolt of electricity. Your car’s starter component takes the electricity and uses it to turn the engine over. Now the engine is started. What happens when the starter doesn’t work? You will hear a cli ... read more

It’s important to know the signs of your brakes wearing out, so you will know, do your brakes need to be replaced? At Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City, our technicians can also check them out for you and get them quickly replaced if needed. Good brakes are important for your safety and knowing the signs of bad brakes can prevent potential damage and injury. Eventually, your vehicle’s brake pads will wear out and you will need to replace them. If you wait, the metal parts of the brakes will grind against the rotor and carve grooves in the surface. If it gets to that point, we will try to smooth it out on a lathe. But sometimes the grooves are just too deep or rotor gets warped or cracked. At that point, you’ll need to have them replaced. Our technicians at Ponder Auto Repair will examine the mechanical sliding and mounting portions of your brake system. If the brake pistons are sticking, you might need to get them re ... read more

To keep your car running strong for longer, Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City presents How to Maximize the Life of Your Car, Part 2. Like we mentioned in our previous article, many of us are driving our cars longer and racking up big miles. So how do you get more from your vehicle? According to a Kiplinger article, there are a number of maintenance items that should be taken care of like changing the transmission fluid or getting oil changes on time using synthetic oil. Let’s take a closer look. Fewer Short Trips Your car will last longer if you can avoid driving it short distances because the engine doesn’t have a chance to reach operating temperature. We are talking about trips of less than five miles in normal temperatures or less than ten miles in freezing temperatures. Because water is a byproduct of engine combustion ... read more

Since many of our customers at Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City are keeping their cars longer, here’s How to Maximize the Life of Your Car, Part 1. It’s more common now for cars to be reaching the 100,000-mile mark and beyond. Our experts are dedicated to keeping these vehicles running well for their owners. According to a Kiplinger article, there are some things you can do to help get the most out of your car, including regular maintenance and paying attention to any strange sights, sounds or smells. Regular Maintenance If you make sure your car receives regular maintenance it will last longer and keep running great even past 100,000 miles. Look at the car manufacturer’s maintenance schedule in the owner’s manual for a list of services you should be doing. Our technicians can help you build a schedule of appropriate ... read more

We hear it all the time at Ponder Auto Repair in Johnson City: what does the timing belt do and how do I know there’s a problem? At some point, the rubber timing belt in your vehicle will deteriorate and snap in two or sometimes the belt’s teeth break off. If this happens, your engine won’t work. This can be an expensive tow and repair. We can check your timing belt and replace it before it breaks. What does the timing belt do? The timing belt rotates the engine’s cam and crankshaft so that each cylinder fires at the right time. It is located in the front of the engine and your engine needs the timing belt to run. Your car’s manufacturer offers a recommendation on when you should replace the timing belt. We can also take a look at it for you, but let us know if you see any of the warning signs of a worn out or broken timing belt. How to Identify when the timing belt has a problem? A ... read more