National Automotive Repair Blog

 SHOCKTOBER is HERE... Randy, Jake and Lori had a great time making a quick video to explain... How to Know When You Need New Shocks or Struts! Share with your friends who are not yet a part of the National Automotive Repair Family!

 PRESCOTT And that would be "Preskitt" if you are a local! Prescott is just 1.5 hours north of Phoenix and has a western, cowboy feel to it. It was the state Capital of the Arizona Territory twice. We love heading " up the hill" to our sister town in Yavapai County, to cooler weather and fun times. There is always something to do in this small...

 Downtown Flagstaff is a place we love to visit, especially during the hot summer months! Downtown is the best place to people watch, grab a drink, a bite to eat and listen to outdoor musicians. The variety of places to enjoy are vast. My favorite boutique is Shoes and Such; for obvious reasons! There is a way cool thrift/costume store called ...

 Thanks to everyone who helped National Automotive Repair Celebrate 20 Years of Serving the Community and Launching the "Vintage Division"…………  Randy McLaughlin and staff would like to extend their deep appreciation to all who came out to celebrate the 20th anniversary of National Automotive Repair. On Saturday May 13th, Randy and son Jak...

 Imagine: you pour a tablespoon of water in your hand and throw it as hard as you can. Now, suppose you suck up a tablespoon of water into a syringe, push the plunger and squirt it out. Which would go further? Of course it's the water squirting out of the syringe. That's because you pressurized the water. Your power brake system is kind of the...

A MUST DO IN ARIZONA...Tucson is an amazing smaller city about 2.5 hours south of Phoenix. Its natural beauty reminds me of Black Canyon City as it is surrounded by four mountain ranges; The Tucson Mountains are a minor mountain range west of Tucson, the Santa Catalina Mountains lie to the northeast, the Rincon Mountains are to the east of Tucson, ...

Are you driving around with your light on? All of today's cars have an onboard computer that monitors several systems on your vehicle and gathers information from several sensors such as the engine and then processes this information and controls several engine functions and components, such as fuel mixture, ignition timing, etc. When one of these ...

National Automotive Repair would like to congratulate Jessica D who won our "World's Best Mom" contest for 2016! Jessica won a beautiful Harveys tote as our grand prize winner. Thank you to all who participated in our contest!Here is a picture of Jessica, her son and her mother.Jessica wrote the following heartfelt tribute about her mother."I love ...

Brakes are one of the most important safety features in your vehicle, and making sure they're working well is critical. There are a few key indicators of potential brake trouble that you should know.An early warning sound is intentionally built into your brakes. If you hear a squeaking noise, that's an indicator that you should bring your car in to...

Has your Mom stood by you when you needed her most?How has she shown her love to you?Surprise her by nominating her NOW for our WORLD'S BEST MOM contest! Mother's Day is Sunday, May 8.  Share your story with us to win one of three prizes: 1st Place – Harvey's Red, White and Blue Seatbelt Tote 2nd Place – $75 gift card to National Automotive3rd...

f you've ever been around a friend or family member who has had too much to drink and wants to drive home, you know it can be an awkward situation. Those people often minimize the effects of alcohol. You know the ol' 'I'm fine!'According to advocates for safe driving at Mothers Against Drunk Driving, this is not the time to be politically correct. ...

It's no surprise that your vehicle will drive better if all the wheels are pointed in the same direction. That's called wheel alignment. If your wheels are out of alignment you may notice that your vehicle pulls to one side or the other.Something that you won't notice right away, but you will if you keep driving when you're out of alignment, is tha...

I'd like to give you a quick overview of the fuel system. It starts with the fuel tank. The fuel pump is located inside the tank and pumps fuel out to the engine. Somewhere along the way is a fuel filter whose job is to filter out dirt before it hits the engine. Then there's the fuel intake system and the fuel injectors that deliver the fuel to be ...

​Most vehicles, just not bananas!

How do you know you need a new transmission? How much are they? And, how do you keep the one you have in great working condition?Let's talk transmissions. Transmissions are heavy duty pieces of equipment that are designed to last a long time. But like any other machine, they'll eventually wear out and need repair. So let's focus on what you can do ...

 Maybe you never really learned how. Or, maybe you have a new, teenage driver in the house? Either way, these are great tips to follow when checking the oil on your car or truck. Under normal driving conditions, you should change your oil every 3,000 to 5,000 miles. Consult your owner's manual for your vehicle's specific needs.Step 1: Par...

We're going to talk about windshield wiper blades. Now that may seem like a pretty mundane topic, but think about how important your vision is: We protect our eyes. If we need contacts or glasses, we taken care of them too. And, well, wiper blades are critical to our vision when we drive.We really ought to think about wipers as part of an important...

When you buy a used car, it's brand new to you. However, people sell cars for different reasons. Maybe they just wanted something new or maybe they just couldn't wait to get rid of it. Maybe it was a little bit of both. So how do you know what you're getting?Used cars with lower mileage are often lease returns, corporate program cars or former rent...

We're in the final days for this worthy program! Have you scheduled your appointment to help those in need?Phoenix, AZ – Please join us in achieving our 2014 goal of raising $100,000 for the Cleveland clinic breast cancer vaccine.$66,499.29 Raised by 66 independent Auto Repair Shops across 27 states in 2013$32,848.84 Raised by 27 Independent Auto R...

When your check engine lights comes on, you may be torn between utter panic and just wanting to ignore it and hope it goes away. That's perfectly understandable. That same check engine light could come on for anything from a serious engine or transmission problem all the way down to a loose gas cap.There's a very common misconception that the troub...