Oakville Auto Repair

Well winter tires have some advantages over sporty summer tires or even all season tires, mainly they remain softer when the temperature dips below 7 Celsius, and in Ontario we are below that after labour day at night until the end of April. back to the topic "whats involved when mounting my winter rims and tires?"  Well at My shop Mark's Auto Service we always perform a courtesy inspection which includes a short road test. Why? This allows us to test for any warning lights, listen for any noises and get a feel for the brakes and handling. Then drive the vehicle into the shop, for a lift on the hoist, here we will remove the summer wheels, visual inspect the brakes, summer tires and record our findings on a tablet DVI digital inspection, then we will inspect the winter tires, the air pressure, check the winter tire balancing on our Hunter Road Force machine and adjust as necessary, then install and torque the wheels to manufacturer Specificat ... read more

Global warming seems to be affecting snow fall year after year, and one would expect that technologies such as front wheel drive, traction control and even four wheel drive would tend to lessen the need for a change of tires. So, do we really need Winter Tires?The answer is YES and believe it or not, more so than ever. One aspect of the motor vehicle which has not really changed over the past year’s, is the contact patch, or the surface area within which our car comes in contact with the road. Even today, the area that each of our wheels comes in touch with the road is not much larger than the size of one of our hands. It really is not much when one thinks about it, and therefore, we want to be able to maximize the traction within this area as much as we can in order to get the most from our tires. The other aspect not often mentioned is temperature, and that our all-season or summer tires become drastically less effective once th ... read more

MYTH 1 - My vehicle has 4WD, I do not need winter tires. FALSE These systems do provide optimized power transmission delivery but provide minimal assistance in transverse handling and braking situations. Important weight combined with higher ground clearance are other factors that affect negatively the stability and control of these vehicles. With the installation of winter tires, the driver can feel optimized levels of traction during all maneuvers including acceleration, braking and handling situations. MYTH 2 - I have ABS (antilock braking) I do not require winter tires. FALSE These advanced systems are designed for vehicle stability, power transmission, and controlled braking and alone are not substitutes for optimized traction grip during all types of winter driving maneuvers including braking, acceleration, and handling. MYTH 3 - It doesn’t snow that much anymore. I feel my all-season tires are my best choice. FALSE ... read more

Mark's Auto Service now offers environmentally friendly, Remolded Tires!ECO-TIRE MANUFACTURINGRemolds deliver the quality, appearance and warranty equal to new tires. The treads have been designed with 50 years experience, proven for dependable performance with proper and regular maintenance. At up to 50% less than the cost of a new tire you are guaranteed superior performance and value. If you already drive a fuel efficient car — or maybe even a hybrid vehicle — then a remolded tire is for you. You will be actively contributing to reducing the use of fossil fuels without sacrificing safety or performance. And remolded tires come with a warranty that rivals those of traditional tires. What’s more, they are economical, which is rare for high quality ecological products. But that's not all. Most new tires are produced and imported from Asia. In contrast, 90% of the raw materials come from Canada, which limits the da ... read more

The sticker price is only the starting point. Do you know what you really pay for your vehicle?Your biggest vehicle expense? Your No. 1 cost of ownership? Depreciation, of course. “For the consumer, selecting a vehicle with a lower depreciation rate will reduce their overall cost-of-ownership,” says Canadian Black Book executive vice-president Larry Shred, whose company has long been a reliable source for used-car values. The CBB is used by dealers as a pricing guide to help them determine trade-in values. But savvy car shoppers can use the CBB’s “Trade-in Value” estimator (canadianblackbook.com) to calculate depreciation. By doing so, you can determine how much value your car loses over time – and get moving down the road to a complete understanding of what you’re paying for your daily driver. Figures in chart are dollars per kilometre. Source: Canadian Automobile Association and Glob ... read more