Daytona Beach Auto Repair

Some Daytona Beach vehicle owners wonder why Honest-1 Auto Care and other Daytona Beach auto repair shops charge a fee for vehicle diagnostics. Receiving a diagnostic charge at Honest-1 Auto Care for a tricky automotive problem shouldn't be a surprise. In the Daytona Beach area, automotive diagnostics can cover quite a range. If you hear a noise in your vehicle brakes when you slow down in rush-hour traffic on a busy FL road, you pull off at the next off-ramp and take a quick visual check. That is usually enough to know what needs to be done. If you're having an intermittent problem with your vehicle engine, however, a Honest-1 Auto Care diagnosis may be much more involved.Much of the Daytona Beach driver's confusion comes when the problem involves the Check Engine light. The Check Engine light comes on when the engine management computer has sensed a problem. There's a common misconception among FL drivers that the trouble code tells the Honest-1 Auto Care technician exactly wha ... read more

When asked, most people think they are good at multi-tasking. Scientific studies, however, reveal that only around 2% of the population can truly demonstrate the capacity to effectively multi-task. For the rest of us who are not so biologically wired, no amount of practice can increase our effectiveness at multi-tasking. Turns out, multi-tasking is almost a superpower. Think of fighter pilots: capable of maintaining their orientation in three dimensional space and performing specific and highly complicated functions while accessing life threatening situations and coming up with an appropriate response. Admit it – you can’t do that. Yet when it comes to driving, we seem to think we are very capable of safely operating a motor vehicle with myriad distractions. 77% of young adults feel somewhat confident that they can safely text and drive while 55% claim it’s easy to text and drive. Can they possibly be right? Let’s look at some statistics. Nearly 23% of all accid ... read more

The timing belt in your engine controls the opening and closing of the intake and exhaust valves. Daytona Beach drivers need to replace it on a schedule to avoid failure.Timing belts are very difficult to get to, requiring quite a bit of labor to access. Timing belt replacement is one of the more expensive maintenance services, but the cost at Honest-1 Auto Care to correct an engine damaged by a broken timing belt is much, much more.The timing belt has a tensioner to help maintain proper belt tension. The tensioner should be replaced along with the timing belt and any idler pulleys at the vehicle manufacturer’s specified service interval. Your Honest-1 Auto Care service advisor can help you with the timing belt.Give us a call.Honest-1 Auto Care2325 S Ridgewood AveDaytona Beach, FL 3211938

The simple fact is that 70% of car batteries fail within 4 years. They just need to be replaced at Honest-1 Auto Care when they are no longer able to hold a full charge.Batteries are a big ticket item for most Daytona Beach drivers and it’s tempting to put off buying a new one as long as possible. But a battery that cannot hold a full charge requires the alternator to work extra hard, causing it to wear out prematurely.Your Honest-1 Auto Care service advisor can test your battery to see if it should be replaced. Testing is a good idea for FL drivers because a battery might still be good, but become dead because of a bad alternator or even a worn serpentine belt and tensioner. Honest-1 Auto Care2325 S Ridgewood AveDaytona Beach, FL 32119386.898.0774  

Most Daytona Beach drivers worry about a breakdown or a tire blowout on a busy FL highway, but don't worry too much about failure of their air conditioning system. A breakdown on the side of the road can be a miserable and dangerous affair during Daytona Beach rush hour, but so can a long ride in a hot vehicle.A lot of Daytona Beach drivers judge their vehicles' air conditioning systems as “non-essential” and so may neglect them in favor of repairs and maintenance that keep the vehicle running. But preventive maintenance of an air conditioning system is simple and inexpensive, while auto a/c repair can be very expensive.Daytona Beach drivers should have the refrigerant in their air conditioning system checked regularly to ensure it is adequate and clean. Air conditioning systems often fail because air and water have contaminated the refrigerant. Air reduces the effic ... read more

There are several important factors that go into how often Daytona Beach drivers should replace their wiper blades. Of course, the more you use your wipers, the faster the blades will wear out – especially if you use them on an icy windshield. Whether it’s a lot of bugs and road grime from FL freeway driving or lots of wet weather – your blades get a work out and start to wear. But your wiper blades break down even when they aren’t used frequently. They are damaged by sunlight and temperature changes as well. The rubber in the blades can dry out and crack and eventually fall apart. Check your wipers: If they’re not doing their important job, have them replaced at Honest-1 Auto Care in Daytona Beach. Talk to your Honest-1 Auto Care service advisor about how you drive - we can counsel you on the optimal blades for your needs.Honest-1 Auto Care2325 S Ridgewood AveDaytona Beach, FL 3211938

Hello FL! Today's vehicle care topic is: Synthetic Oil vs. Petroleum Based Oil. Synthetic motor oil is a substitute for petroleum based oil. If you aren't currently using it, why not? Synthetic motor oil maximizes engine power and fuel economy. To see why, we'd need a microscope, so we'll have to settle for using our imaginations. The molecules of conventional motor oil are long hydrocarbon chains. Synthetic motor oil, on the other hand, has uniform, round molecules. Which is slipperier, a pile of pencils or a pile of marbles?Synthetic motor oil lubricates better because there's less friction. This results in myriad benefits: better wear protection, cooler operating temperatures, more power and better fuel economy. And synthetic oil doesn't sludge up like conventional oil so it prevents those small oil passages from clogging up. (We see that too often at Honest-1 Auto Care in Daytona Beach.)Some manufacturers are extending oil ... read more

The last new American vehicles sold in Daytona Beach with a carburetor rolled out of the FL dealerships in 1990. Since then, all new vehicles here in Daytona Beach, and nationally, have had fuel injectors. In very simple terms, a fuel injector is a valve that squirts fuel into your engine. Your engine control computer tells the fuel injector how much gas to deliver as well as the precise time it should be delivered. Of course this happens thousands of times a minute. Fuel injectors deliver fuel far more precisely than carburetors. That translates into better fuel economy and more power for Daytona Beach drivers. Virtually all fuel injectors for gas engines are known as port fuel injectors because they deliver the fuel to a port just outside the cylinder. Port fuel injectors operate at about 40 to 80 pounds per square inch of pressure.A few vehicle manufacturers have introduced gas direct injection systems on some engines recently. These systems in ... read more

  Your vehicle alternator doesn't get enough credit. Though your battery gets your engine started, after that – it's all about the alternator.  Driving around Daytona Beach is a lot of work for your alternator, and as upgrades such as heated steering wheels, cooled seats, stability control and lane departure warning become more common, it will have to work even harder. Eventually this workhorse just wears out. When it does you have no choice but to order an alternator replacement because your vehicle won't run without one. Come see your friendly and professional service advisor at Honest-1 Auto Care to learn more. Honest-1 Auto Care2325 S Ridgewood AveDaytona Beach, FL 3211938

Today in our Honest-1 Auto Care blog, we're going to talk about following recommended service intervals. Your vehicle isn't the only aspect of your life in Daytona Beach with recommended intervals: Let's start with twice yearly dental check-ups and regular physical exams. How about laundry, watering the lawn and paying the bills?Now, what would happen if you didn't follow these intervals? Well, you'd get more cavities. You may not discover health conditions that could be more effectively treated with early detection. And you'd have to wear dirty clothes, be embarrassed by your brown lawn and have your utilities shut off.Clearly, there are some things in life that we have to take care of regularly. If we don't, there are negative consequences. Our quality of life in Daytona Beach takes a hit and it inevitably costs more money.So why is it so hard to remember to follow regular preventive maintenance on our vehicles?Probably a ... read more