Farmington Hills Auto Repair

The cooling system in your engine is extremely important. Because the engine’s main source of power is combustion, there is quite a bit of heat generated. This isn’t the only source of heat, however. There is also heat generated from the friction created when other parts of the engine and surrounding components interact and function. This heat is capable of deforming most metal parts, and definitely non-metal pieces, like timing or drive belts. Because this heat is so powerful, and can be so destructive if not controlled, engines are designed with cooling systems. The water pump, engine fan, vents, and places where air can pass through are all means of keeping things cool under the hood. How does the cooling system work? The cooling system starts with the water pump. The pathway that it follows is through the engine block where the hottest parts of the chemical reactions, combustion, takes place. The coolant starts in the water pump and goes through the engine block, picki ... read more

You probably only hear about your transmission when it breaks, but did you know that there is a possibility you’ll need a transmission flush at some point within the life of your car? Think about all the water you need as a person so that your organs can function correctly. Cars are the same way. They need lubrication so that all the parts can work together and to prevent damage from components rubbing together. Because many parts of the car work as a result of hydraulic pressure, it is even more essential that the right fluids are present and clean to do their job.   What is a transmission and how does it work? A transmission is arguably one of most essential components for making your car go. It allows the power from the engine to translate to the rotation of your tires. Manual and automatic transmissions are built differently but have the same essential function. There are lots of parts that go into making the transmission work smoothly, but this should help you get a ba ... read more

The brake system The brakes are maybe the single most important part of a car. They keep us safe by using friction to stop our vehicles. How do they work? Well, there are two major brake systems; disc and drum brakes. The general parts of a disc brake system are brake pads, rotors, calipers, and caliper supports. This is common in many vehicles. Disc brakes work by transferring fluid pressure from the master cylinder (where the brake pedal is) to the calipers and caliper supports that squeeze the brake pads onto the disc rotor. This causes friction and retards the motion of the wheel. The parts of a drum brake system are the brake drum, wheel hub, back plate, break shoes, brake lining, hold down spring, retaining springs, wheel cylinder, brake adjuster, adjuster lever and spring, and wheel cylinder. The drum brake system, like the disc system, works through hydraulic pressure. Brake fluid is pumped to the wheel cylinder pistons, which push the brake shoes. The brake ... read more

You’re driving along in your Porsche that you just purchased. It’s perfectly perfect in every way… until you employ its high-powered stopping for its high-powered engine. You then hear a high-pitched squeal that takes your breath away. The first question in your head is, “what could be wrong with my brand-new car? Part of the reason I bought this car is so I wouldn’t have to deal with ‘regular’ car issues!” Let’s explore the ways a high-performance car might have some issues as compared with a regular car.   What is brake squeal?  Brakes operate through friction. There may not be many things that are more annoying than that loud sound, but when you have a very high-performance car, you are working with a very high-performance engine, thus requiring very high performance stopping power. When brake pads are pressed down onto the rotor, there is slight vibration. This vibration is released as sound waves, which bounce off ... read more

A timing belt sounds important, right? And it is. It controls parts of your engine that are essential for your car to run. Let’s be honest, there’s not many parts your engine could do without, but the timing belt is certainly an important one. Your engine is comprised of a myriad of pieces that push, pull, open and close in order to function. The timing belt controls the crankshaft and the camshaft, which controls a series of valves that have to open and close in appropriate “timing” for your car engine to run smoothly. Unfortunately, you probably won’t think about your timing belt until something goes wrong because it tends to last a while. It also probably doesn’t constitute one of the things you normally get checked like brakes or oil. Of course, timing belts are just one system of timing. There are also timing chains and timing gears. At Advanced Auto Sports, our technicians are experienced in working with lots of different timing devices!   ... read more