Van Nuys Auto Repair & Service Center

YES, your car is on, and NO, you aren’t the first person to ask us this question. Unlike the loud gas-powered engines that can be heard from blocks away, hybrid and electric cars have a much more stealth-like approach. AutoAid customers tell us their cars are so quiet they forget to turn them off! They only realize it when trying to lock the doors. Luckily, car manufacturers have figured this out and installed a safety device that won’t allow you to lock your vehicle if the engine is running. Extremely quiet car engines have also become a concern for pedestrians, especially those who have sight issues or are blind. If they can’t hear your car, then they don’t know your car is coming their way. What to Do About the Quiet If you already own an electric/hybrid car with no alert system, don’t be too concerned. But be aware of your surroundi ... read more

So you just got in a wreck and your engine is beat up. You love your car with all the nostalgia and memories that come with it and you don’t want to give it up. However, your car insurance provider has deemed your car totaled and won’t let you get back on the road until you get a salvaged or rebuilt title. If you wish to keep your car, you will first need a professional like AutoAid to get the job done correctly to make sure your insurance company will accept the salvaged or rebuilt title. It’s important to know what these titles mean to you in order to make the best decisions moving forward. There’s a clear difference between a salvage and rebuilt title. A salvage title means the vehicle was totaled. A rebuilt title means that the car has been rebuilt from a totaled state. If a car is damaged to the point ... read more

This October is Fall Car Care Month, and here at AutoAid, we want to remind you to take a little bit of time to be “Car Care Aware,” as the team at CarCare.org put it. Every year in April and October, CarCare.org celebrates a month of vehicle maintenance awareness, in the hopes of reminding drivers like you that taking a few simple steps now can save you the trouble of an emergency breakdown – not to mention more than a few bucks on the cost of repairs – down the road. Whether you handle some of these tasks yourself or prefer to trust Jack, David, and the expert team at AutoAid of Van Nuys, CA for your auto service & maintenance needs, we recommend these important steps to take this Fall Car Care Month to ensure your vehicle performs well all year long. Battery. Check your connections, and make sure they are tight, clean, and free from cor ... read more

It’s back to school time, and that means worries for parents. Even if you’re confident in your teen’s ability to drive, there are many things which can go wrong with a car including flat tires, dead batteries, and other maintenance issues. If your teen driver doesn’t know how to respond to these issues, it can lead to worry, stress, or increased damage to the vehicle. Here are AutoAid’s tips for back to school car care – and if you want to be certain your teen’s ride is school ready, come on in for a free courtesy check here at AutoAid. Please call ahead 818-305-6632 or make an appointment on-line. When All Else Fails, Read the Manual Step one for learning car care should be familiarizing yourself with the vehicle’s manual. Many maintenance tips will appear here, including the correct type of oil, tire pressure levels, and service inter ... read more

Welcome back to the AutoAid Blog as we continue our discussion of common (and commonly confusing) dashboard warning lights. Ever see a light you didn’t recognize on your dashboard? Is one lit now? Not sure if your vehicle is safe to drive? If your check engine light is illuminated and you’re not sure why, check out Part One of this article for the lowdown on the CEL, or just swing by AutoAid in Van Nuys and let us check it out. If you have some other dashboard warning light illuminated, read on and get illuminated yourself! Battery Warning Light The battery warning light usually appears when you start the car, and then vanishes. If it stays on, or appears while driving, it could be an issue with your battery or with your alternator, or with the drive belt that powers the alternator. In any case, a battery warning light shouldn’t be ignored, especially at night when headlights and other components cause a higher strain on the battery. If your battery is more than 2 y ... read more

If you drive a car, you know about dashboard warning lights. Of these, the Check Engine light is one of the most infamous, and here at AutoAid we get daily calls from perplexed drivers with this mysterious light. “Check engine light” is also ranked among the most popular internet search terms for anything car care related. Modern cars, however, have a variety of warning lights you may catch a glimpse of when you start your car. These are lights for tire pressure, cooling system warnings, engine oil warnings, and more. So, if one of these lights illuminates, what should you do? Keep driving? Panic? Call a tow truck? Should you stop driving where you are, or is it okay to to “limp home?” Could you keep driving for a few more days, or weeks? Let’s tackle some of the most common warning lights below. Check Engine – Flashing vs. Solid We have all seen the dreaded Check Engine Light. This warning light can be an indicator of many different problems, whic ... read more

Uzma A.Porter Ranch, CA  6 friends  27 reviews 3/22/2017 By far the greatest auto body shop known to man! I called in from a recommendation from a friend, and was not disappointed at all. I got my side mirror fixed and an oil change in one day. I was very worried they wouldn't find the mirror parts, but thankfully they did. They even gave me a ride back to my office after I dropped off my car.  I dealt mostly with David S., who was such a great gentleman! When I first talked to him, I knew right away that he would do everything possible to help get my mirror fixed. And he did! I like that they respected me rather than judged me. Most mechanics up their prices just bec ... read more

There’s no more an important time to talk about potholes in LA. The cost, the danger, the unsightliness of them. You know, the ones Mayor Garcetti promised to fix in his first Mayoral run in 2013. Oh, and by the way, he’s running again today. Yes there is an election in L.A. today March 7, 2017. Also, the much needed rain amped up the pothole problem by making existing ones worse and new ones ample. The Laurel Canyon Sinkhole may have started as pothole. The danger to drivers is obvious. Blown tires, bent wheels, broken shock absorbers and struts, bent suspension, detached bumpers, broken mufflers and exhaust pipes and on the extreme side, accidents and sinkhole swallows. At AutoAid we’ve addressed all but the sinkhole vehicle damage and we’ve directed clients to recover the cost of the damage to their vehicles from the City of L.A. https://claims.lacity.org/Home/BasicClaim

There's a new Donut in Town. Dunkin Donut opened a new store in Van Nuys and celebrated it's Grand Opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony supported by the Greater San Fernando Valley Chamber of Commerce. As active members of the Chamber, I attended and enjoyed a hot cup fo bold coffee and a delicious French cruller. Welcome to Van Nuys Cuppy

Anti-Lock Brake systems were introduced to assist drivers in maintaining control of their vehicle during emergency braking in all weather conditions. Especially in rain, snow, ice and slick conditions. Simply stated, The ABS computer senses when a wheel locks up  when applying the brake pedal and electronically compensates for it by equalizing the brake pressure to all the wheels, thereby  avoiding a skidding and out of control vehicle. If you've never experienced the ABS engaging, the brake pedal will pulsate, the brakes will make unfamiliar and sometimes strange growling noises, but not to fear, the system is doing what it's designed to do.