Automotive News & Information - Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair

The transmission in your diesel truck is built for hard work. But, after many miles and hard days on the road, inevitably the time will come to replace it. When that time comes, Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair has the professionals you need, for the best truck repair service in St Augustine.

In the diesel world, "blow-by" is a term you're bound to run across at some point if your line of work involves diesel-powered vehicles of any kind. What is blow-by, what causes it, and how concerned should you be? At Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair in St Augustine, FL, our fleet maintenance and diesel technicians see it on a regular basis. Here we'll take a quick look at blow-by, correcting it, and preventing it.

What is Blow-By? - Diesel blow-by is a term that describes an event of lost compression into the crankcase. Blow-by occurs whenever a burnt or unburnt fuel and air mixture escape from the cylinder and past the piston rings and into the crankcase. In a perfect world, the piston would be sealed tightly in the cylinder, able to move up and down but keeping all the air and fuel and exhaust that enters or exits the cylinder during the combustion process out of the crankcase. As you'll see, this perfect world doesn't exist, but it is important to minimize the amount of blow-by in a diesel engine.

In today's economic climate, people are working hard to make their dollars go further. Not only are drivers holding onto their vehicles longer, but they're also looking to improve fuel efficiency to get the most gas mileage out of every gallon of gas. You can do both by following a few simple tips from our team here at Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair!

Changing the oil in big trucks and commercial vehicles is an expensive, but necessary, part of keeping your vehicles going. You don’t want to wait until it’s too late to change your oil, but changing it too early can be a waste of time and money. Having your oil tested regularly helps us to hone in on exactly how often your oil needs to be changed, to optimize reliability and efficiency.

Is your diesel having issues starting up? Do you hear a knocking noise? Is there blue colored smoke coming from your engine? Don't ingore the signs, those could all be signs of engine failure. One of the leading issues that lead to diesel engine failure is fuel contamination. Fuel contamination comes in different forms, but always has the same result - engine trouble and fuel system failures. Here’s what you need to know about fuel contamination with diesel trucks, from Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair in St Augustine, FL.

Transmissions are one of the more mysterious and unknown aspects of automotive engineering, to most people. In the modern world, this is more true than ever, making technicians with expertise in transmission maintenance and repair more of a necessity than a convenience. At Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair in St Augustine, our technicians have the skill, knowledge, and equipment necessary to diagnose and repair any sort of transmission issue you may be experiencing with your Dodge, Chevrolet, or Ford diesel pickup.

Dirty Hands Working on a diesel truck engine

Keeping your fuel system maintained will prevent premature parts failure and poor running conditions. Here are some important aspects of diesel fuel system maintenance, to keep your fleet running smoothly. While your system and components should typically be serviced by a professional technician, there are some things you can be conscious of that will go a long way toward keeping your engine in good shape.

If you’re reading this, you probably not excited to be here; the time has come for a new transmission. Fortunately, we at Melvin's Auto & Truck Repair are here to offer you solutions, and let you know that it’s not all bad. Replacing a tired and worn transmission will truly bring your car back to life, and you’ll probably be glad you did it.