Castro Valley Auto Repair

What Types Of Car Maintenance Does Your Car Need?  Cars are susceptible to wear and tear, leading to performance decline over time. This is why it is important to give your car regular preventive maintenance to maximize its life and performance. Preventive maintenance doesn't just keep your car in good condition , but it also saves you money by forestalling extensive damage to important car components. At the Adams Autoworx auto care shop in Castro Valley, we suggest that following maintenance tasks should be performed regularly for optimal performance: 1. Oil changes  Gasoline and diesel powered cars require regular oil changes so their engines can function properly. The engine needs oil so all its components can move freely, but the oil must be clean and free of debris, hence the need for oil changes. Generally, it is recommended to change your car's oil every 5,000 miles or every six months, if you are using synthetic motor oil – which we ... read more

Castro Valley Hybrid Repair Shop   Welcome to the premier hybrid repair shop in Castro Valley – Adams Autoworx. It wasn’t that long ago that a hybrid vehicle was a novelty – today, we see hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric vehicles everywhere.    At Adams Autoworx we are the number one hybrid repair shop in Castro Valley and the surrounding areas – whether you drive a Toyota Prius Hybrid, Lexus Hybrid, Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid, or a Hybrid Ford Explorer, our nationally ASE certified technicians have the latest digital diagnostic equipment, as well as advanced training in dealing with high voltage batteries, to diagnose and repair problems you hybrid vehicle may present.    As the hybrid and electric vehicles evolve, so do services offered by Adams Autoworx. It wasn’t so long ago that a hybrid battery replacement was an unusual event, but today, it’s just another task in a busy day ... read more

Fuel Filter Replacement – Your Car Will Thank You   Fuel filter keeps debris from reaching the engine, and like any filter, it gets clogged up with gunk and needs to be replaced from time to time. As you can imagine, if the filter gets plugged up, or even if it only filters gasoline at a limited capacity, engine performance can suffer. At Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley we offer complete auto maintenance services, including fuel filter replacement.    Here are some of the signs that the fuel filter may need to be replaced:  • Rough Idling or Misfires – Clogged fuel filter may cause low fuel pressure in the engine, which can result in rough idling and even misfires. Misfires will likely cause the check engine light to come on as well.  • Vehicle Starting Problems – dirty fuel filter may cause difficulty starting the car, though it rarely prevents it – it just ... read more

Subaru AC Refill in Castro Valley, CA Driving without air conditioning on a hot summer day is horrible. There are different reasons your Subaru’s AC might stop working, one of which is when it needs a refill. A simple ac recharge may be all you need to get the AC blowing cool air again.    Your Subaru’s air conditioning system uses a highly specialized refrigerant gas to keep the vehicle cool. Depending on the age of your Subaru, it may be R-134a or for newer cars, the R-1234YF refrigerant. At Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley we have equipment to handle either type of the refrigerant – whatever your Subaru needs, we have it ready.   In theory, your Subaru should never run out of the refrigerant, but like any system, the AC system can develop leaks. This can cause the refrigerant to drop very low. When this happens, the system has to be recharged with refrigerant for it to funct ... read more

Whether you searched for oil change near me, or for oil change in Castro Valley, thank you for visiting Adams Autoworx blog. We offer comprehensive auto repair and maintenance services and naturally we offer oil change for your vehicle.  It’s easy to ignore regular oil changes, yet a lowly oil change is one of the best things you can do for your vehicle. At Adams Autoworx we offer full synthetic oil which provides your vehicle’s engine with superior lubrication, and is a bit more forgiving than conventional oil or synthetic blend (a blend of conventional and synthetic oils) offered by other shops.  Regular oil change and oil filter change should be done every 5,000 miles or so.  It provides your vehicle with multiple benefits – it removes sludge and debris that naturally accumulate when the engine is working, it provides better lubrication, thus putting less strain on the engine – it serves to prolong engine life. When servicing our own veh ... read more

No, it’s not an April Fools’ Day joke. Walnut shell blasting is a procedure for cleaning vales of the direct injection engines.  Older GDI engines (direct injection engines) were designed to improve fuel economy and power through direct injection – they injected fuel directly into the combustion chamber. Unfortunately, over time this design can cause carbon buildup on the valves. Carbon buildup in turn, can cause poor drivability, hesitation, and can cause the check engine light to be illuminated by the onboard computer.  Walnut shell blasting is the solution.  Special equipment uses finely ground walnut shells to “blast” (using air pressure) the dirty valves. Walnut shells are a good abrasive ( and biodegradable too) and they remove carbon particles leaving clean valves for your driving enjoyment. So if you drive a vehicle equipped with a GDI engine – be it a BMW, Volkswagen, Audi, Kia or Mazda, we recommend having it inspected for ca ... read more

Electric Vehicles (EVs) are here to stay. At Adams Autoworx we continue to expand our digital diagnostic capability and continue to train our technicians to be ready for the electric vehicles - however they may get their power.  Fact.MR, a market research company, found that sedans are the best fit for solar power vehicles. They are most aerodynamic, and lighter than pickup trucks or SUVs. For the time being, though, no major car manufacturers announced a solar powered car, but there are startups that are raising money and building prototypes.  According to Realtor.com, homes near public EV charging stations sell for more. US Dept. of Energy claims that there are over 46,000 EV charging stations in the US. Typical charging station, on average, had just over 2 charging outlets, so overall there are about 110,000 charging outlets. By comparison, US has roughly 110,000 gas stations with well over 500,000 gas pumps. When talking about EVs, can't forget Tesla - well, accord ... read more

It wasn’t long ago that auto maintenance was a relatively simple task. Most guys would take machine shop at Castro Valley High, and were familiar with major subsystems of their cars. Tools were relatively inexpensive, and pretty much anybody could perform basic auto maintenance, like oil change, in their own garage. Things started changing in the 1980s, as car manufacturers introduced embedded computers to control various functions inside vehicles. The seminal event was the replacement of a carburetor with electronic fuel injection. For the first time, a critical function of an automobile was controlled by an embedded computer. Moving forward, more and more functions became computer controlled, resulting in modern cars becoming “computers-on-wheels”. Typical car sold today contains dozens of embedded computers, controlling fuel system, braking, air conditioning system, not to mention ADAS – advanced driver assistance systems – which are entirely computeri ... read more