Your pickup truck is heavy and hard working, whether it’s a Chevy, Ford, or Dodge. If you add towing to the mix, it’s even heavier and has to work harder. Your brakes are one of the most wear and tear prone systems on your diesel pickup, but at Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we can help you keep yours in good shape.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we know that in order to keep your car in good shape, it helps to know how it works. Here’s a quick rundown of a system that’s very important, but you take for granted until there’s a problem; your brakes.  While there is a multitude of configurations and levels of complexity in automotive brake systems, they all essentially work the same way. Disregarding anti-lock brake systems and the like, this is how braking works in its simplest form.

There may come a day when you go to shift your vehicle out of “Park”, and the shifter refuses to move. Perhaps you are already experiencing this issue intermittently, or currently have a vehicle stuck in park. While this is a serious inconvenience, it doesn’t necessarily indicate a serious problem; let Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL put your mind at ease.

If you drive a Dodge, Chevy, or Ford diesel pickup, you know the amount of hard work your truck puts in. You may also be aware that diesels run a little dirtier than your average gas burner. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, our goal is to keep your Duramax, Cummins, or Powerstroke truck on the road for many miles to come. A huge part of that is keeping your oil maintained.

Your brake master cylinder is an integral part of your brake system. When one fails, some odd symptoms may arise, and it may be difficult to diagnose. Here’s some information to help you decide if yours has gone bad. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL we want you to know what to look out for so that you can be safely on the road.

Every car, truck, van, and SUV on the road today has headlights. However, you've probably noticed an increase in different types of headlights in more recent years - gone are the days where every vehicle on the road had the same bulb. Here is some information on headlights, from Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL.

If you drive a car with a manual transmission, you already know you have a clutch. But what exactly is it, and what does it do? At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we believe that knowing a little more about your car better prepares you to keep it maintained. Here’s what you should know about your clutch disc.

What does a flex plate do, and how do you know if yours is faulty? Your vehicle may be telling you things you may not know. Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River has the answers you need.

Tires are what keeps your vehicle rolling, literally. Many people have found that shopping for tires is overwhelming because there are just so many choices. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic, we want to break it down for you so that it's easier to understand. There are four main categories of tires, and the right ones for you will depend on the kind of driving you do. Let's talk more about that! 

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we know how irritating an issue with your car, truck, or SUV can be, even if it doesn’t immediately affect your vehicle’s performance. One such problematic issue, the excessively loud radiator cooling fan, is a common plague many automobile owners will experience.

Your drive belts are simple but integral components to the function of your car, truck, or SUV. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, belts are one of the first things we assess when looking over a vehicle, as they alone are in charge of operating your AC, water pump, alternator, and power steering.

Your drive belts are simple but integral components to the function of your car, truck, or SUV. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, belts are one of the first things we assess when looking over a vehicle, as they alone are in charge of operating your AC, water pump, alternator, and power steering.

Your drive belts run everything - your AC, power steering, alternator, and water pump are all dependent on the belts that turn them. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, our goal is to keep your truck maintained, so you’re never stuck out on the road. Drive belts are a critical part of that goal.

You know how often to change your engine oil; but what about the gear oil in your standard shift transmission? Here’s a short guide, from Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River.  Unless you’re lucky enough to own a car with a transmission dipstick, inspecting the gear oil in a manual transmission is a lot more inconvenient than doing so with an automatic, or checking your engine oil. The car must be jacked up, supported, and the oil checked from underneath. As a result, you may just want to change it when the time is right. But how do you know when that time comes?

Your car, truck, or SUV is equipped with various filters that keep the air going into your engine clean, the air you breathe in the vehicle, the fuel that supplies your engine, and the oil that keeps it going. How often should you have them replaced? It depends on the filter, the vehicle, and the environment. Here’s what you need to know, from Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL.

Ride quality is an essential part of your driving experience. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we strive to keep your car, truck, or SUV as smooth and comfortable to drive as the day it came off the lot. Your shock absorbers play a huge role in ride quality; here’s what you should know.

The key to maintaining a healthy transmission is understanding how it works. Here’s the rundown on shifting your car, truck, or SUV into park before it stops, from the professional technicians at Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River.

We know you’re busy. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, 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.

Does your steering wheel feel like it’s fighting you when trying to drive in a straight line? Does your truck turn too aggressively when you try to go one direction, and poorly when you try to go another? There are a few possibilities as to what it means if your truck resists going in a straight line. Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River has the answers for you.

Good steering is an underrated and often neglected aspect of driving. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we believe in making sure you have the best vehicle possible, whether you’re driving across town or traveling long distances.