Vehicle Maintenance

Judging by the number of near-rear-endings we witness on our morning commutes, the typical attitude toward brake maintenance appears to be, “Brakes: Don’t let them stop you!” This puzzles us because monitoring your braking system’s health is one of the most straightforward aspects of car ownership. You do have to know what to look for, though, or rather, what to listen and feel for. So let us, uh, break it down for you. Here are the top three signs that your brakes need fixing.

A good technician will give your car a quick inspection whenever you have maintenance performed. Fluid levels, tire condition, dashboard lights, and a variety of other items typically are briefly explored whenever you bring your vehicle in for maintenance. At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, we're good at noticing things that need repair, but the fact of the matter is that only you know your car. You know when your car feels off when its been serviced last (or that it hasn't been serviced at all,) and have at least some vague idea of what’s going on with your vehicle day to day. Here are some questions you can ask us next time you come by the shop;

At some point or another, it’ll happen to you. You leave your headlights on, your battery finally fails, or for some other reason, you don’t have enough juice to start your car. Don’t call a tow truck just yet, though...Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong has the info you need to properly jump-start your car.

At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, we know you’re busy. We also know that while there are certain issues with your car, truck, or SUV you can ignore for a while, some of them shouldn’t wait. While serious issues are often obvious, sometimes they aren’t - ball joints are one such case.

It’s a busy morning, you’ve finally gotten everyone where they need to be and you’re just pulling into the parking lot at work when your dash light starts glaring at you. Your check engine light shines bright, but you have no idea why. Whether you can tell a difference in the way your car, truck, or SUV is running, your car is trying to tell you something. At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ, we can help!

Sometimes your car, truck, or SUV stops performing quite like it used to. At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, we can fix that. A simple but common issue on vehicles equipped with a manual transmission is shifter bushing issues. Your shifter has a bushing on the end of it, where it connects to the actual transmission. Its purpose is to provide tight, smooth shifting. 

At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, routine maintenance and repair isn’t the only thing we do. For custom parts installation, you can also count on us. Common modification enthusiasts do is swapping to a short-throw shifter; but what actually is a short-throw shifter, and what does it do?

You’ve probably heard the term “transmission flush” before at some point in your automotive experience. But what exactly does it mean to have your transmission flushed, and why does it matter? Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ has the answers.

At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ, quality and precision are our top priority. We specialize in well-engineered performance and luxury vehicles like BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Land Rover, and Subaru - cars and SUVs that require the right touch. For this reason, we employ ASE certified technicians, to guarantee we’re the best in the business.

At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, we know that few problems are simultaneously as simple and confusing as a bad ground connection on your car, truck, or SUV. Here’s a look at some symptoms of a bad ground, and what you can do to correct it.

Hydraulic power has a lot to do with how your transmission operates. There are some basic hydraulic components that keep your transmission running smoothly.

All the lights on your vehicle have an important job to do. Brake lights, tail lights, blinkers, reverse lights, and headlights are a crucial part of driving. Lights make you visible, make things visible to you, and allow you to communicate with other drivers. All of a vehicle’s lights make driving easier and safer, and all of them are important...not to mention legally required.

Tune-ups are an important and frequently neglected aspect of automotive care. Most drivers don’t really consider the mechanical condition of their car, so long as nothing is wrong with it. However, if a vehicle is tuned-up and maintained correctly, many mechanical failures (and expenses) will be avoided altogether. So whne is the right time to get a tune-up?

Chances are you don’t pay much attention to your vehicle’s battery until it dies, when you get to perform the dreary dual task of waiting for a jump while simultaneously calling for an appointment to get a new battery fitted. Of course, that’s if you’re sure it’s the battery that’s dead in the first place. The only way to be certain is to take it in to be tested. However, it generally helps to know the health of your vehicle battery prior to finding yourself stranded.

Modern vehicles are becoming increasingly complex, and as a result, computer diagnostic systems are becoming a necessity rather than a convenience. At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ, our state of the art technology and trained technicians are ready to diagnose any transmission issue you may be experiencing with your car, truck, or SUV.

Routine maintenance keeps your fleet trucks safe on the road and protects you against unplanned trips to your local automotive shop! One thing a lot of people forget about is to have their coolant flushed. Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ will help you make sure your fleet vehicle is properly flushed every time!

At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, the history of cars is a huge topic of interest to us. Here’s an interesting piece of automotive trivia, from us to you.

Whether you drive a Porsche, Audi, BMW, Subaru, Land Rover, or other performance and luxury vehicles, your ball joints are an essential part of your car or SUVs performance and safety. From us at Pine Barrens Diesel, here’s what to watch out for, to make sure your ball joints are in shape and ready to go. 

Transmissions are complex, and over time they will wear out and eventually break. Knowing what to look for will play a key role in preventing your transmission from failing prematurely. At Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong, NJ we want to give you some insight on how your transmission works and how it can fail.

Manual transmissions are durable, reliable pieces of equipment. Still, sometimes problems arise. Pine Barrens Diesel in Shamong has the answer to a question that plagues many manual transmissions; why does my transmission pop out of gear?