Manteo Auto Repair

Imagine waking up one morning with a stomachache.  You pick up the phone, call the doctor’s office and say, “I’ve got a really bad tummy ache.  How much will it cost to make me feel better?”  Of course, you wouldn’t do that.  You know that there could be a lot of reasons for your symptoms and that the doctor will have to examine you, ask some questions, and probably run some tests before she can tell you what’s wrong and give you treatment options. This same scenario plays every day at auto repair facilities.  When the cause of the concern isn’t obvious, the vehicle will need to undergo a diagnostic process.  The typical vehicle has about 30,000 parts, including several networked computers and miles of wiring.  Finding exactly what is wrong can be very complicated and take some time.  The most experienced technicians at the shop are the ones that tackle the difficult diagnostic jobs.  Once they have ... read more

After many years and tens of thousands of miles Wanchese vehicles' suspension system components do wear out, but how long that takes depends a lot on how you drive in Wanchese. As you can imagine, if most of your driving is on smooth NC highways, your shock absorbers will last a lot longer than if you do most of your driving on bumpy roads or hauling heavy loads in NC. In addition to just wearing out, vehicle suspension components can be damaged in an accident or by a hard impact like a pothole, hitting a curb or a rock in a bumpy Wanchese road. Because the life span of shocks can vary so widely, your vehicle's manufacturer recommends periodic inspections. During an inspection, your friendly and knowledgeable Lighthouse Automotive Inc service advisor will check for worn, broken or missing parts. Signs for Wanchese residents that shocks or struts are wearing out: the vehicle tires may have a cupped wear pattern. This is from the shocks bouncing ... read more

Clean air quality is something that helps all of us thrive here on Planet Earth.  And considering that motor vehicles are a contributor to air pollution, emissions tests in the U.S. and Canada are in place to keep vehicles from needlessly spewing dangerous gases into the air.  While laws vary from place to place, the goal of an emissions test is the same: to make sure toxic gases are kept at a minimum. They often measure nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oxygen, and hydrocarbons.  Fail the test, and you may not be allowed to drive that vehicle on the road until it's rectified. Keeping your vehicle maintained is the best way to make sure you can pass an emissions test.  Here are a few things that could be wrong with your vehicle that might result in it failing that emissions test. The mixture of fuel and air in your engine is heavy on the fuel.  That can cause issues with the catalytic converter that is intended to keep emissions to a minim ... read more