timsautomotivecolumbiamissouri

Tire Safety & Maintenance

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 10:54:55 GMT

Tire Safety & Maintenance

Tires are an important safety feature on your car. Your tires are the only points where your vehicle maintains contact with the road and they are one of the two things make your car stop (along with your brakes). The age, quality and condition of your tires directly impact stopping distance for your vehicle, especially in an emergency stopping situation.

Here are some good tire safety pointers for maintaining your tires:

Perform regular visual inspections to look for tire wear.

Tire professionals recommend air checks at least once each month (many shops perform this service free of charge.) Some owner’s manuals even recommend checking the air in your tires once a week.

Rotate your tires according to manufacturer’s recommendations. Rotations are extremely important to extend the life of your tires.

Have a professional check your tires for proper alignment to prevent uneven wear on your tires.

Replace tires once they are worn down to 4/32” of tread or have reached 6 years old.

When buying tires be aware of tire age. Even a “brand new” tire may have been sitting around the store for a few years. Don’t buy a tire that is six years old or older.

Don’t forget your spare! Be sure to inspect your spare tire when you check your other tires. Make sure it is less than 10 years old, and is properly inflated. Your spare tire should be the best tire on your car since it is part of your “emergency” equipment.

Use this helpful list to check your own tires and remember to inspect the tires on your teenage driver’s car or your elderly parent’s car, too. Keep yourself and your family safe on the road.

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Does My A/C Need To Be Serviced?

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 10:49:44 GMT

Does My A/C Need To Be Serviced?

In the winter you don’t need it, but depending on where you live, starting in the spring, you can’t live without it. Air conditioning can be considered more a necessity than a luxury for most car owners today.

Anyone who’s entered a car that has been baking in the sun has experienced first-hand the powerful “greenhouse effect” caused by the sun’s radiation becoming trapped by the car’s windows. Spring is the ideal time to get your car’s air conditioning maintained.

Problems you may notice such as reduced cooling capacity or complete malfunction could be caused by any number of reasons, but perhaps the most typical cause are leaks in the system. Another common cause is the refrigerant, which carries away the heat, and could need topping off or a complete recharge (replacement).

The compressor draws in the refrigerant, compresses it and then moves it along, but if the serpentine belt, which powers the compressor isn’t working your air conditioner won’t work either. More extensive repairs may be necessary if the condenser needs to be replaced, which expels the heat just like a car’s radiator.

The last fail points could be expansion valves, which regulate flow or vent/drier/evaporator failures, which would prevent the hot interior air from circulating through the system to be cooled down by all the components above. Save yourself further troubles, by checking your air conditioning today.

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Change Your Oil Or Rely On The Experts?

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 10:36:47 GMT

Change Your Oil Or Rely On The Experts?

With our technicians you don’t ever need to change your oil or repair your car on your own. Our friendly and knowledgeable staff can fix almost any problem and perform regular maintenance, so why change your own oil?

Much debate has always gone on about whether or not it’s beneficial to change your own oil. We took the liberty to do a little research of our own to see if we could settle this little quarrel. Maybe the most controversial issue involved is the cost of doing it yourself versus bringing your vehicle to the shop. We’ve found that the savings of doing it your self isn’t so great. When you factor in all of the costs of supplies and equipment that you pay for:

A New filter
New oil
A drip pan
The disposal of your used oil

and not to mention the valuable time you could be wasting! When all is considered the savings come out to be little to none. Plus many auto repair shops like us will offer incentives and specials to decrease the cost of your oil change service.

Taking all of these factors into consideration, the balance in this argument begins to shift towards the repair shop or oil change center. We guarantee the job will always be done quickly and correctly every time. Our conclusion is that unless you like just getting your hands dirty, there really isn’t any reason not to bring your vehicle to us to provide the oil change service for you. So bring your vehicle to us for your next oil change and we will provide you with a convenient and efficient experience!

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Things You Should Know When Selling A Used Car By Owner

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 14:15:51 GMT

Things You Should Know When Selling A Used Car By Owner

Do's and Don'ts for Selling A Used Car as By Owner

Selling your used car yourself can be more profitable than trading it in at the dealership, but you need to do your research to make sure you get the best price and avoid the problems that can arise in used car transactions. Here is a quick list of do’s and don'ts to help your car selling experience go smoothly.

Do: Research online sites like Kelly Blue Book www.kbb.com , Auto Trader www.autotrader.com and Craigslist www.craigslist.com to help you determine a price for your car based on comparisons with other similar vehicles.

Do: Gather all paperwork associated with your vehicle including title, repair receipts and any other documentation that will be helpful to a potential buyer.

Do: Give your car a thorough cleaning inside and out . Take as many of your personal belongings out of your car as possible and make sure the crumbs are vacuumed up, windows are sparkling and the exterior shines! Let the car feel as "new" to the buyer as possible.

Do: Have your own mechanic perform an inspection so that you are aware of any issues that a potential buyer may find when his mechanic inspects the vehicle. This will save you embarrassment and surprise that may affect your selling price if the buyer uses this information to try to bargain you down.

Don’t: Run an ad without good clear photos preferably taken on a sunny day. Buyers are looking for “what you see is what you get” and “a picture is worth a thousand words” so be sure to include them in your ad.

Don't : Embellish your vehicle’s attributes in the ads you place. Misrepresenting the condition, age, or miles may get you many phone calls and “lookers” but you’ll waste your time and theirs if you mislead them by making the vehicle seem like something it’s not.

Don't: Fall for scams. Advertising your car on the internet is a great way to find interested buyers but it also opens you up to potential scams. Use your common sense; only sell your car to a local buyer who comes in person with cash. Requests to ship cars and have money wired are fraudulent. Be aware, if something feels fishy, walk away.

If you employ these helpful tips, you’ll soon have a buyer for a no-hassle, private-seller deal and in no time you’ll be rid of that old car and banking the money you made in extra profits!

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