Lowell's North Lime – Lexington's Favorite Mechanic

One of the most frequently used – but least understood – terms used in our industry is “tune-up”.

A few decades ago, vehicles required frequent mechanical tuning to keep them operating optimally. Over time, “tune-up” became a common way of saying “make my car run better”.

In today’s electronically-controlled vehicles, however, a tune-up is very different. Many of the mechanical adjustments we made in older cars are now made by your vehicle’s onboard computer.

So when we talk about a tune-up at Lowell’s, we mean changing your vehicle’s spark plugs and, when appropriate, your fuel filter and engine air filter.

A spark plug converts an incoming electrical charge into a spark which ignites the mixture of air and fuel that  powers your car’s engine. The spark jumps between two electrodes at the end of the plug, creating the controlled explosion that drives an internal combustion engine.

Spark plugs can wear out. Each spark burns off tiny bits of metal on the electrodes, and after hundreds of millions of sparks, the spark plug doesn’t fire as efficiently. Spark plugs can also become coated with residue (‘fouled’) if your fuel doesn’t burn cleanly.

Fouled or worn-out spark plugs can reduce your fuel mileage or cause your engine to run roughly. When the gap between the electrodes becomes too large, your ignition coils strain to generate sufficient current, and coil damage can result. (Note how the center electrode for the old plug on the left has tapered into a cone-like shape, requiring significantly more current to spark.)

The electrodes for Toyota plugs (made by Denso) are plated with different highly conductive metals: nickel, platinum, or iridium. The type of metal used determines how long the spark plug lasts: Nickel-plated spark plugs typically last for 30,000 miles; Platinum for 60,000; and Iridium for 120,000 miles.

When we do a tune-up at Lowell’s, we remove and inspect your old spark plugs to see whether there are any issues other than normal wear. We replace them with new spark plugs, adjusting the gap between electrodes when necessary. If needed, we’ll also replace the fuel filter and engine air filter.

Feel free to call the shop with any questions, and – if it is time for a tune-up or other service for your vehicle – to make an appointment for service.

Finding and fixing vehicle noises are one of the most difficult tasks for our technicians.

Sometimes, we can’t make the noise occur in the shop or on a test drive. Other times, we might hear a noise, but it isn’t the same one that our customer heard. Often, the customer who brings the vehicle into the shop to fix the noise isn’t the car’s primary driver, and hasn’t really heard the sound and can’t adequately describe it.

So we’ve put together this simple guide to help you describe the noises your car makes. Following the tips we share below will save you time and money, and help us diagnose the issue faster.

1) Describe the kind of noise.

Because your car makes so many sounds, describing the particular kind of noise it is making will usually help us locate the issue faster.

Would you call it a rattle or a squeal? A thump or a hiss? A clank, a ping, a buzz, a scrape, a click, or a pop? Or something else entirely?

Using specific terms like these to describe sounds will help us zero in on the noise and what might be causing it.

2) Notice when and how the noise occurs.

If you can tell us when the noise happens, that will also help us re-create it here in the shop. And if we can hear it in the shop, our chances of finding and fixing the problem go way up.

Here are a few examples of helpful details around noises:

• It usually happens once, and then doesn’t happen again for a while.
• It happens over and over.
• It happens when starting the car; just after starting the car; when the car is cold; first thing in the morning.
• It happens when the car has warmed up; when it is hot outside.
• It happens when turning; turning left; turning right; turning sharply; going around curves.
• It happens when going over bumps or potholes.
• It happens when using the brakes.
• It happens when sitting at the light.
• It happens when cruising down the highway.
• The noise gets faster or slower (or louder or softer) as the car moves faster or slower.
• The noise is accompanied by a physical sensation – a vibration or bump that you can feel in the steering wheel or in your seat, for example.

In addition to helping us replicate the noise, these details can give us important clues about what parts of the car might be causing the noise.

3) Make the noise for us.

It sounds kind of funny, but it really helps if you can mimic the exact sound your car is making. It might seem embarrassing to make an “EE-er-EE-er” sound for us in the lobby, but we truly appreciate how much it helps us find the right sound faster. (Besides, people make sounds for us all the time. We’re used to it!)

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The more that you can tell us about the noises your car makes – what kind of noise, when it occurs, and what it sounds like – the faster that our team here at Lowell’s will be able to help. And we’re here to help!

Every 60,000 miles or so, we advise to you have us perform a “valve clearance inspection” (also known as a “valve adjustment”). You’ll often see us recommend a valve adjustment in the recommendations at the bottom of your Lowell’s invoice.

But what, exactly, is a valve clearance inspection, and why is it important? (We’re glad you asked!)

Related Posts: What’s a flush? and What’s a cabin air filter?

Your engine’s intake and exhaust valves let air in and out of your engine as it burns fuel. The right mixture of air and fuel can keep your engine running smoothly and ensure that you are getting the best fuel economy from your vehicle.

Wear and stress can cause your valves to slowly get out of adjustment, hurting your fuel mileage and causing your engine to run inefficiently.

Left unaddressed, improperly-adjusted valves can cause your engine run roughly, burn your valves, or even damage your pistons. This kind of damage can be very expensive to repair, because it forces us to disassemble your engine in order to get to the damaged components.

So how does a valve clearance inspection work?

At Lowell’s, we’ll remove your valve covers to measure the clearances of each valve (up to 32 depending on your type of engine).

If we find valves which aren’t within specification, we can often adjust the clearances while we have the valve covers off. Some newer vehicles, however, require much more extensive work to adjust valve clearances. (If that is the case with your vehicle, we’ll call you for approval before we proceed with the adjustment. Just ask us if you have any questions about which type of engine your vehicle has.)

After inspecting your valve clearances, we put your valve covers back on. Because valve cover gaskets are also a major source of engine oil leaks, we’ll also replace your valve cover gaskets during this service.