Autoblog

Haynes officially releases car manuals online [w/video]

Zach Bowman — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 17:31:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Videos

Chances are if you've ever spun a wrench on a vehicle, you've likely had a Haynes service manual in your hands at some point as well. The company prides itself on producing inexpensive and informative volumes on just about every late-model vehicle manufactured these days. Now, the company's efforts are available online.

So far, the top 50 selling Haynes titles are accessible in electronic form, and the publisher says that more are on the way. Each volume can be viewed from any mobile device with an Internet connection, including smartphones, tablets and laptops, but these are more than just PDF files of the paper versions.

Haynes says that shadetree mechanics can take advantage of videos depicting the tasks at hand, hopefully eliminating time-consuming mistakes in the process. As anyone who has ever suffered through erroneous forum advice can attest, knowing really is half the battle.

Users can purchase a one-year subscription for $25 or a lifetime subscription for $30 per vehicle. Hit the jump for the full press release as well as a quick video on the manuals.

Continue reading Haynes officially releases car manuals online [w/video]

Haynes officially releases car manuals online [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Nov 2011 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Car repair costs ranked state-by-state... where does yours rank?

Dan Roth — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 11:31:00 EST

Filed under: Etc.

You're going to pay more per year for car maintenance if you live in a western state, and the cheapest states for repairs related to a "Check Engine" light are Mississippi and Washington D.C. That's according to fresh data from the annual CarMD Vehicle Health Index, an analysis of repairs made to 225,000 vehicles with problems that led to a CEL. The average cost to fix the problem and extinguish the lamp is $305.56 in the United States, with Florida coming closest to said average at $305.05. Alaskan motorists can expect to pay the most for such repairs on average ($353.74), while Mississippi residents have been shown to shell out the least ($256.47).

Among the study's other bits of wisdom, if you live in Alaska, you're more likely to be stuck replacing a catalytic converter than you are an airflow sensor, a common repair item in America's dry Southwest region.

Across the board, the most common repair is replacing an oxygen sensor, and the CarMD study breaks out its results by average parts and labor cost in each state. While informative, these results are admittedly narrowly focused on problems on OBD-II vehicles (built between 1996 and present) that cause the "check engine" lamp to alert the driver. The sample size of a quarter-million vehicles was polled through CarMD's network of Automotive Service Excellence-certified technicians, skipping over some shops and technicians entirely and not counting problems with other systems not tied into the check engine lamp.

Still, it's an interesting and informative look at the cost of keeping your car on the road. Check out the press release after the jump to see whether your state is cheap or expensive.

Continue reading Car repair costs ranked state-by-state... where does yours rank?

Car repair costs ranked state-by-state... where does yours rank? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 11:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

DentBetty provides body shop estimates from your uploaded photos

Dan Roth — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 17:45:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Technology

Whether the cretin responsible for flattening the grille of your mint Isuzu Impulse left a note or not, the damage wrought on your vehicle is going to require repair. DentBetty streamlines the traditional pain-in-the-tuchas process of traipsing around to various body shops to get estimates for cosmetic repairs. Any incident that results in structural damage still requires a firsthand look by body professionals, but cosmetic damage is a very common annoyance that many people forgo repairing due to the aggravation.

DentBetty is up and running in California, Massachusetts and New York, with a total of about 120 participating shops so far. Vehicle owners can visit the DentBetty website and upload at least two photos of their car's damage. Participating repair facilities will then respond with estimates. The web-based form also asks whether the repair will be paid for by insurance or personally, and both users and shops are rated, so feedback scores can factor in to the decision-making process. It's a nice insulator between you and the repair facility; DentBetty doesn't share your email with the shops, and you're not asked for credit card information, either. Eventually, the DentBetty service will be branched out to SMS messaging, and a smartphone app doesn't sound like much of a stretch, either.

[Source: Mashable.com]

DentBetty provides body shop estimates from your uploaded photos originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 03 Oct 2010 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Keeping it on the road: Vehicle maintenance for fun and profit

Dan Roth — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 15:23:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Maintenance, Etc., Technology

Economic doom and gloom might have you thinking differently about the vehicle sitting in your driveway. Keeping it alive a few extra years will head off increased expense, and cars are easily able to reach beyond 100,000 miles these days. Inveterate wrench-turners have long relished stretching their dollar by breaking out the tools. When you spend less than ten bucks to solder in a new set of regulator brushes in your alternator, you feel like you've won something; you've certainly saved a fistful of cash. So what do you spend time on repairing yourself versus going with remanufactured or new parts? Popular Mechanics has a quick guide that makes some good points about the repair versus replace conundrum. The general gist is that you'll be spending more time rebuilding calipers and rodding out radiator cores on your Fury III than you might on a Chevy Lumina, though both vehicles can be kept roadworthy for as long as you please with some savvy maintenance and repair without breaking the bank.

[Source: Popular Mechanics]

Keeping it on the road: Vehicle maintenance for fun and profit originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 01 Nov 2008 15:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toolkit Upgrades Round Two - more fun toys

Dan Roth — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 12:32:00 EST

Filed under: Gadgets, Maintenance, Etc., Technology

A while back, we expounded on some simple items that brought more joy to the automotive arts. Spring is just around the corner, and we've compiled a big ol' list of things to address in celebration of the Vernal Equinox. Unpacking the tools from their long winter nap is a ritual here, and it's like reconnecting with old friends. Off we go.

Continue reading Toolkit Upgrades Round Two - more fun toys

Toolkit Upgrades Round Two - more fun toys originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 18 Mar 2007 12:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Home Depot to sell auto parts

Erin Mays — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 16:05:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Maintenance, Etc.

10 Home Depot stores in Florida are on an auto parts test run for America's largest home-improvement retailer. The stores each have about 500 square feet chock-full of auto parts at discount prices, undercutting competitors by more than 20 percent in some cases. The company hopes that male do-it-yourselfers,their prime demographic, won't be able to resist as they pass by aisles of motor oil, fuel additives and other supplies. All of which must be keeping executives at AutoZone and Pep Boys up late.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Home Depot to sell auto parts originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 13 Apr 2006 16:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Is D-I-Y wrenching D-O-A?

Eric Bryant — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Maintenance, Trends

Jerry Flint and Doug Flint - two automotive pundits that we've spoken of here many times before - team up as father and son and tackle the topic of do-it-yourself auto maintenance in the elder Flint's recent column.

The theme that's woven through a few example is that times, tools, and technology have changed... making it just about impossible for owners turn a wrench.

From where we sit, while technology has indeed conspired against the shadetree mechanic, plenty of good work can still be done.

(More thoughts and a link to the Flintstones after the jump!)

Continue reading Is D-I-Y wrenching D-O-A?

Is D-I-Y wrenching D-O-A? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 01 Mar 2006 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments