Grand Rapids Auto Repair

This is what I found when I was searching for a quote for the sign in front of our business. I found two other quotes that I thought would be good and they are now up, and hopefully a little inspiring. But the “Page 1 of 365” stuck with me. I'm a list maker and goal setter. I have the plan laid out for the year. And I’m old enough to know that most items won't go according to plan, but yet, I still have a guideline and goals. Every year right about now, we start evaluating what we can do to improve as a business in the upcoming year. We have discussions with our technicians about training. We send our technicians to classes both in Grand Rapids and also out-of-state. That requires planning so we look at what we need to accomplish in the upcoming year. We also look at tools and equipment. What do we need? Customer service. How can we improve? We constantly evaluate, but the beginning of the new year causes you to take a look and set some goals. Realistically, long range ... read more

This time of year is all about change. The leaves are changing and night comes a little bit sooner. We're doing more driving in the dark. There are kids outside waiting for the bus before the sun comes up. And then there's Halloween. Loads of kids running around from house to house in search of candy while dressed in fun costumes. It seems like Michigan’s tradition for it to be cold and possibly even rainy that night. Not always the best conditions for watching out for little ghosts and goblins in the road. The holidays will also be here before we know it and there’s a lot of driving from place to place and road trips to visit relatives. It's easy to put off minor repairs or maintenance to our vehicles at such a busy time during the year. Plan ahead, and just like replacing the filter in your furnace in the fall before you have to use it, have the technician that performs your oil change check several things. Most reputable repair facilities do this as part of the oil chang ... read more

My nephew is three and likes to stop and see Aunt Debbie at work, mainly because I carry him out to the bays and he looks at the ‘cars in the air.’ Last time he was in, one of the technicians was performing an oil change on a vehicle, and Jack asked me what he was doing. I told him, but he wanted to know what oil was. I explained to him that it was essentially car blood – not the most technical description but pretty accurate. I explained how oil lubricates the engine and becomes dirty, so the oil and filter need to be changed regularly. Similarly, your body uses the kidney, liver and spleen to filter your blood, but your body “cleans” them automatically. Your car is dependent on you for this necessary function. Car manufacturers have many specifications and recommendations so it’s important to follow these. Although using synthetic oil for an oil change is more expensive, deciding to use conventional oil to save some money is not usually a good decision. Down the road, the ... read more