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We take on a lot of responsibility when we get behind the wheel of a car. Weighing in over a ton, they can create serious havoc even when going “slow”. Because of this, we have to make sure we all maintain our awareness on the road. Recently, you might have seen news stories about the dangers of texting while driving. We go over why you should avoid it here.

Dangers:

Drinking and driving usually decreases your reaction time by a fraction of a second. However, this creates enough danger that we jail people who do so. When texting, most people tend to take their eyes off the road for much longer than that. Remember, 5 seconds at 55 miles per hour equals the distance of an entire football field.

Stats:

• The National Safety Council has reported 1.6 million crashes a year due to cell phone use.
• Texting creates the most risk on the road of all cell phone usages.
• 11 teenagers die daily due to texting and driving.

Here at J1 Auto Repair, we want to remind you to stay safe out there on the road. If you want to ensure your car does also, bring it by our shop or give us a call. You can reach one of our friendly team members at (630) 932-4427.

When we think increased crash risk, most of us instinctively go to drunk driving. While extremely dangerous, drunk driving doesn’t make up the whole list of activities that raise your risk of getting into a car wreck. In fact, a few others have comparable rates of danger to drunk driving. One of those includes sleep deprived driving; we go over the dangers here.

Stats:

When it comes to driving, constant attention proves necessary to avoid collisions. When we get tired, we have to focus more and more attention on staying awake, thus slowing our reaction times.

• The National Sleep Foundation performed a study on the subject, and found that 2/3 of participants reported driving sleep deprived in the last year. 1/3 reported actually having fallen asleep behind the wheel.
• The same group also found that the young (men especially), shift workers and parents had the highest rate of sleep deprived drivers.

When your car needs repairs to function safely, J1 Auto Repair has your back. On the road, you need to stay focused. To learn more about our services, please don’t hesitate to call one of our friendly team members at (630) 932-4427.

Learning about each individual part in your car and how they all interconnect can seem like a daunting task. To achieve it, you really need to only do a little bit at a time. In the end, though, you will better know how to handle and maintain your vehicle. To help you out, we’ve gone over one of the parts here: the shocks.

What do they do?

Contrary to popular belief, shocks do not actually hold up the vehicles weight. In fact, they just manage the movement of your springs and suspension. They do this by converting the kinetic energy of these moving parts into heat, or thermal, energy that dissipates into hydraulic fluid. This works because they have a piston that pushes down into hydraulic fluid when the suspension moves. 

Keep learning about your car’s parts and you’ll understand it better eventually. If you need shock replacement in Lombard, J1 Auto Repair has you covered. To find out more about this and our many other services, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at (630) 932-4427.

Thank god we have professionals to take care of complex problems like the ones we experience with our vehicles. It takes too much effort for the layman to understand how a car works, at least in a short period. We can all stand to learn a little more about our vehicles, and it doesn’t have to take much effort; learning the basics of 1 part every once in a while can go a long way. To that end, we’ve put together some information about your car’s O2 sensors.

What they do:

Your oxygen sensor monitors oxygen levels in your exhaust. This lets it gauge the entire fuel mixture and then regulate it. If the mixture comes out oxygen rich, the sensor increases the amount of fuel injected. When it comes out oxygen poor, it decreases the amount of fuel. Without your O2 sensor, your car couldn’t run efficiently.

Now you’ve got the basics of one part down, stay tuned for the next; you’ll have proficient knowledge in no time. If you need O2 sensor repairs, or any of our many other auto services, come by our shop today or give us a call. You can reach us at (630) 932-4427.

Trying to understand the workings of your car can prove a hard endeavor; so many parts go into it, where do you start? It may seem hard to understand, but if you take it one part at a time you’ll gain a good overall knowledge in a matter of months. To help you do this, we’ve put together a quick overview of what a muffler does:

Noise Pollution:

Mounted within your exhaust pipes, the muffler’s job includes minimizing the noise that comes out. See, as pressurized gas gets let out of your engine through the exhaust, it makes a whole lot of noise. The muffler has perforated tubes and things called baffles that stop the air on the way out of the exhaust, making it bounce around first to cancel itself out and keep it quiet.

Improve Performance:

While the muffler’s main job involves keeping the noise pollution down, it also can improve performance. Certain mufflers actually increase exhaust flow.

Hopefully, after this, you understand your car just a little bit better. If you need muffler repairs, or most any other auto service, in Lombard, IL, J1 Auto Repair can help you. For more information, drop by our location or give us a call at (630) 932-4427.

America has got the need for speed. Even if we can’t drive fast ourselves, we love to see and hear about people who do. No wonder cars keep getting produced that go well over 3 times any legal speed limit in the country; we love it. To help fuel that fire, we’ve listed the top 3 fastest street legal cars available:

Hennessey Venom GT:

This car breaks the current record (as of February 2014) for the fastest street legal car, clocking in at 270 miles per hour top speed. It goes from 0-60 in 2.5 seconds. Also, compared to the other cars on this list, it has a relatively low cost of $1,000,000.

Bugatti Veyron Super Sport:

This car held the world record for an impressive 3 whole years. It tops out at 268 miles per hour, going from 0-60 in 2.4 seconds. For the (not so) low price of $2,400,000, it could be yours.

Koenigsegg Agera R:

This car has been considered an up and coming rival of the Bugatti. No wonder – with a top speed of 260 miles per hour, it goes from 0-60 in 2.9 seconds. Also, this car features some “cool” add-on features, such as snow tires and a ski box.

While we appreciate the love of speed as much as they next person, we want to remind you to always drive safely. Here at J1 Auto Repair, we offer a host of repair services for your convenience. For more information, please drop by our location or give us a ring at (630) 932-4427.

The alternator is an integral part of the power sources of your engine. Without it, your car couldn’t run. It and the battery work together to power your vehicle. While most of us like to leave the specific knowledge to the mechanics, it’s a good idea to inform yourself on the basics of the components of your engine. At the very least, it may help you spot or isolate a small problem before it becomes a big one. To help you out, here’s an overview of how the alternator works and what it does:

The alternator’s job is to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy as alternating current (A/C being invented by Nikola Tesla). Nowadays, most alternators do this with a magnetic field, using what is called a rotor and a stator. This current powers up the battery and all the electronic devices in the car.

That’s the gist of it. The specifics are much, much more complicated, but now you’ve got the basics. If you have any questions about the health of your alternator, we here at J1 Auto Repair offer alternator repairs alongside a host of other auto-related services. For more information, please give us a call at (630) 932-4427.

A muffler is an important component of your car; it’s responsible for safely removing all of the exhaust gases from your vehicle and reducing noise pollution. Although regular checkups are advised, it helps to know signs that your muffler might need repairs yourself. Here are a few of them:

Holes in your muffler:

This can be extremely dangerous, as it allows carbon monoxide to leak from the vehicle. Continual exposure to carbon monoxide can lead to fainting or death.

Bumping/thumping or increased volume:

Either of these signs emanating from the back of your vehicle indicate that something is wrong. Don’t wait to get them checked out, even if the overall health of your vehicle otherwise seems fine.

Rust:

If you can see rust on the outside of your muffler, chances are the inside is much worse. This will cause problems with the exhaust system.

Smoke:

If thick, billowy smoke is coming out of your muffler in large amounts, something is wrong. Your car shouldn’t look like a factory.

Water:

Condensation build-up is normal. Some mufflers have a drain built in to get it out. However, if there is a lot of water dripping from multiple places in your muffler, you need to get it checked out.

Overheating:

One of the causes of your car overheating is a dysfunctional exhaust system.

These are the basic things to keep an eye out for to preserve the health of your muffler. Here at J1 Auto Repair, we can repair mufflers and also offer a host of other auto-services. For more information, please give us a call at (630) 932-4427.

Nobody likes to do it, but regular oil changes are an important part of vehicle maintenance. A host of problems can arise if you take too long to bring your car in. Here are some reasons to always remember to get your oil changed:

It lubricates the engine:

Motor oil keeps the pistons from hitting the piston walls to alleviate friction. The heat from the constant firing of the pistons eventually makes the oil useless at its job. When this happens, severe damage to the engine isn’t far behind.

It prevents contaminant buildup:

Water and debris from the air starts to dilute the supply of oil over time. These contaminants begin to coagulate after a while, which will start to wear out the engine. 

They will change your filter:

Oil filters are meant to prevent the buildup of contaminates in the oil. Getting them replaced during each oil change will ensure that they are kept at a minimum, as the more contaminants that build up in the filter the less effective it is.

It ensures the proper oil level:

Generally, most people don’t remember to check their vehicle’s oil level despite the ease of doing so. When the level gets below a certain amount, irreparable damage to the engine isn’t far behind. Experts recommend an oil change every 3,000 miles. They are just one of the many auto-related services we offer here at J1 Auto Repair. Give us a call at (630) 932-4427.

Are you doing everything you can to extend the life of your vehicle? According to AutoMD.com, many people aren’t. At all. They’ve come up with a helpful list of expensive auto service and repair mistakes to avoid. Among them:

• Driving on fumes. Unlike the vehicles of yesteryear, most of the ones on the road today have fuel-injected engines with pumps that don’t take kindly to running on fumes. A pump repair could cost hundreds of dollars.
• Neglecting your belts and hoses. They should be inspected every 30,000 miles, or every two years.
• Failing to properly communicate your repair issue. Keep a log of your vehicle’s symptoms and share them with your mechanic.This could prevent the auto shop from having to spend extra time diagnosing the problem.
• Not asking for your parts back. If a part needs replacing, always ask for your old one to be returned to you in the box.
• Ignoring noises. Sqealing, grinding, clicking, knocking: These sounds won’t just go away on their own. Ignoring them could lead to expensive damage.