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

It’s time for winter tires and with forecasts of a cold and snowy fall and winter season, don’t delay in getting prepared! While most new vehicles are equipped with all-season tires from auto manufacturers, there is a definite difference between all-season and winter tires. In light snow road conditions, all-season tires provide enough traction, but in heavy snow, slush, and ice conditions, winter tires are the proven answer to better road grip, cornering, braking and overall handling. In one recent independent tire test, a BMW equipped with ani-lock brakes and winter tires stopped in 17.28 meters (59 feet) on a snow-packed road, while the same vehicle with all-season tires did not stop for another 9.17 meters. Testing of acceleration and cornering determined that vehicles equipped with tires designed specifically for winter driving out-performed all-season tires in every test. Even vehicles equipped with traction control and stability systems achieved safer and mor ... read more

With the winter season fast approaching, it's that time of year to get your car geared up with Winter Tires. Winter tires' treads have more biting edges for better grip on snow and ice, while their softer compound remains flexible even in extremely low temperatures. Learn more by watching Winter Tire Demonstration videos here!

Well with winter comes cold weather. Money saving tip: After driving home in the rain or snow, make sure you turn your wipers off and let them “park” Then turn off the car. Why? Well if you turn the key off with the wipers on, they will stop right away on the glass, and freeze in that position. Now here is the problem: the next morning you start the car and the wipers will try to move or park, but are frozen in place, this can damage the wiper motor, wipers or the linkage, with new cars getting lighter and lighter to save fuel the wiper linkage is often plastic and replaced as unit. Please pass this on the younger drivers too! Cheers Mark

Well we had our first snow fall. How well were you prepared - winter tires working great or are you a non-believer. I bet the cars you passed stuck on the road have not had their winter service done yet. Kudos to my maintenance customers who made it safely home. Cheers Mark