You’ve known someone at some point that has a seemingly impossible amount of keys, keychains, and other accessories hanging from their key ring. You might even be guilty of that yourself. At [BUSINESS_ NAME] in Crystal River, FL, we’ve seen our fair share of these loaded down car keys, and also the damage it can cause. Here’s what you need to know.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we’ve witnessed our fair share of burnt out and broken clutches. While clutch failure is an inevitability, there are a variety of ways to make sure yours lasts as long as possible.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we know that the first and most important step toward keeping your car, truck, or SUV reliably on the road, is knowing how to properly care for it. Here are a few tips on how to keep your vehicle in shape.

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 Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, 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;

Fluid levels, tire condition, dashboard lights, and a variety of other items typically are briefly explored whenever you bring your vehicle in for maintenance here at Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, where we are 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 it's 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;

Travelling can be difficult, and traveling can be fun. The difference usually comes down to how much preparation you do in advance, and how many unplanned obstacles you meet along the way. A great way to avoid setbacks, mishaps, and stressful situations is to make sure your car, truck, or SUV is ready to hit the road. Here are some important points to check before travelling, from Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL.

Manual transmissions require far less maintenance than automatics. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t need a fluid check from time to time. Here’s what you should know about checking and adding fluid to your manual transmission, from Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL.

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...Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River has the info you need to properly jump-start your car.

If you drive a performance or luxury vehicle, you know that your precision engineered equipment demands precision tuning. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we specialize in high-end imports and performance vehicles and keep them up to par.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, our goal is to keep your car, truck, or SUV on the road. The best way to prevent a huge problem is to pay attention to the small ones and get issues taken care of before they leave you stranded. As you know, small problems can lead to big problems and if you're not careful you could miss the signs and your transmission could fail you. 

Gauges are your first, and often only, line of defense in catching a major problem before it’s too late. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we know that sometimes a faulty gauge is overlooked when the truck is still running fine and there’s a busy day ahead. However, gauges are extremely important, and are typically easy to repair.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, our priority is keeping your transmission shifting smooth and running strong for years to come. While proper maintenance, driving habits, and a myriad of other conditions affect the life and reliability of a transmission, there are also ways to increase the overall efficiency of your unit, even above stock performance.

A huge part of what the hydraulic system in your transmission does is tell the mechanical components what to do and when to do it. Even if you don't understand how that works, our technicians at Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL have trained with the best to make sure they understand all the ins and outs of your system. We want you to understand what we're talking about when we talk to you about your vehicle so we'll break down some aspects of your hydraulic system. 

Have you always wondered what a spark plug does? Our team here at Dirk’s Auto Clinic is here to help you out. It's simple in theory but does quite a lot of work for such a small piece of equipment. Your spark plug forces electricity to arc across a gap like a bolt of lightning at high voltage and fits into your engine's cylinder head, where it “sparks” to ignite the fuel and creates combustion within your engine. Without it, you wouldn't be able to drive your car or truck. 

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 Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we can help!

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we recommend always making it a priority to change your oil on time. Here’s a look into why it’s so important, and what happens if you don’t keep up with oil changes.

Sludge - If oil stays in an engine too long, sludge begins to build up anywhere oil can go. The oil absorbs tiny debris and contaminants, kind of like a liquid sponge - once it’s at capacity, that oil begins to stick, clog, and build up throughout the engine. Small veins that carry oil to components like actuators, turbos, and bearings will become blocked, starving critical components of oil and causing component or engine failure.

Do you hear a funny clicking sound when you turn the wheels of your vehicle? It could be your car or truck's CV or Drive Axle, and it may be in need of repair. Safety is the number one priority for our customers here at Dirk’s Auto Clinic, and it is our goal to keep your vehicle running smoothly. Driving around with a damaged CV Joint or Drive Axle problem can be extremely dangerous. The axle is a structural component that bears the weight of the vehicle, any cargo, and the acceleration forces between you and the ground. It is so important to have your vehicle inspected regularly by a trained automotive repair professional here at Dirk’s Auto Clinic to ensure its safety.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, 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?

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, we know buying a used car, truck, or SUV can be a gamble. While there are no guarantees, there are key points of inspection that tell us a lot about the condition of a vehicle and how it has been maintained. There are some important points of the inspection we verify when checking out a used vehicle.