Automotive News & Information - Dirk's Auto Clinic

When you are having trouble with your car or truck starting and you open the hood up to take a peek to see this....you'll see what an overly corroded battery looks like. This happens naturally over time on vehicle battery terminals. If you are like 99% of normal Crystal River drivers, you don't check your oil or your battery so you don't keep an eye on the amount of corrosion that's building up on your car or truck battery. Here at Dirk’s Auto Clinic, we do and there are solvents that we can use here in the shop during a battery maintenance service that will help slow the corrosion process but nothing that can prevent it 100%. Way before it gets to this point, we will be suggesting you consider replacing the battery.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we understand that safety and driving comfort are largely dependent on truck maintenance. Driving in the rain can be a hassle, especially if your vehicle isn’t prepared.

Essentially, there are a few things you can do to ease the burden of driving in the rain. Keep good quality windshield wipers installed, maintain a clean windshield, and regularly coat your windshield with Rain-X or comparable water-resistant chemicals. If applied properly, water-resistant coatings will dramatically increase visibility on rainy days. Quality windshield wipers, in good condition, are equally effective.

If your wipers don’t completely wipe away water with each pass, get them replaced. Driving in the rain is hard enough; inadequate equipment to deal with the situation only makes it that much more difficult. A clean windshield also goes a long way...rain won’t wash off the dirt that has had adequate time to adhere to your glass.

If you need new wipers, bring your truck to Dirk’s Auto Clinic and let one of our experienced technicians get you fixed up. No matter your repair or maintenance needs, our team has you covered.

At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, we’re familiar with the many over the counter remedies that promise to cure your car, truck, or SUV of all its transmission woes. But, do any of them actually work, and are they even safe for your transmission?

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.

As cars become more technologically advanced, the importance of your vehicle’s battery becomes more important. In the old days, a car battery essentially worked, or it didn’t; if it was good enough to start the car, it was good enough. Modern vehicles are a different story. A faulty battery can cause a variety of issues, including engine codes, sensor failures, irregular transmission behavior, and the list goes on.

Battery failure often causes issues that are commonly misdiagnosed, and in the hands of the wrong auto repair shop, a mechanic may spend hundreds of your hard-earned dollars chasing problems that don’t exist. At Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, our mechanics are familiar with modern vehicles and the problems that accompany them.

Your vehicle configuration determines how it should be properly towed to avoid transmission damage. Specifically, it matters if your vehicle is front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive and whether it’s an automatic or a manual. From the professionals at Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River, FL, here’s how to tow your vehicle:

You may occasionally hear the term “transaxle” used in place of “transmission” for your car or SUV. Is there a difference, and if so, what is it? Dirk’s Auto Clinic in Crystal River is here to help.

Fuel economy isn't far from the minds of our Crystal River drivers and we hear these questions daily such as: Why can certain cars zip along at close to 40 mpg while others are lucky to get anywhere near 20? As it turns out, there are as many factors that go into how well your ride does at the pumps! Here are the 10 factors that have the greatest impact on fuel consumption that we would like to share with you.