Air Conditioning Season is Upon Us

The main components of air conditioning system in your car are the compressor, condenser, expansion valve, evaporator and belts and hoses. A compressor circulates a liquid refrigerant often referred to as "Freon” The compressor moves the Freon from an evaporator, through a condenser and expansion valve, right back to the evaporator. The evaporator is right in front of a fan that pulls the hot, humid air out of the car's interior. The refrigerant makes the hot air's moisture condense into drops of water, removing the heat from the air. Once the water is removed, the "cool" air is sent back into the car's interior through hoses.

Signs that you may have a faulty air conditioning system

The most common symptoms for a fault in a car air conditioner are:

• Air conditioning system is blowing warm air

• Intermittent cooling performance

• Excess noise

• Foul odor

• Frequent recharging of A/C system

Lack of cold air is usually due to a lack of refrigerant. This implies there is a leak from the seals or hoses somewhere in the A/C system. Intermittent cooling is often attributable to an obstruction caused by moisture. The problem may also be triggered by an electrical failure that prevents the compressor clutch from engaging. Excess noise may indicate that the compressor is about to fail, and will need to be replaced. A musty odor coming from the vents indicates a mold has likely grown on the evaporator.

The heating and air conditioning system of your vehicle should operate without any problems for years. When problems do happen, however, the repairs are best left to a certified technician.

Did you know?

The most common cause of poor air conditioning performance is a low refrigerant level. Because refrigerant is a gas, it escapes easily through worn valve seals and o-rings as well as through deteriorated hoses and damaged components. A system running on low refrigerant will inevitably lead to major component failure. Repairing small leaks in advance could save on large, costly repairs in the future.

What Fluids Will Keep Your Vehicles Healthy?

Just like we need water to keep hydrated and healthy, high-tech fluids help to keep vehicles healthy. So lets review a few fluids that are important for your vehicle.

A vehicle requires effective vital fluids to keep its moving parts working efficiently, reliably and safely and ignoring them could cost you dearly.

The list of fluids for your vehicle include gasoline, motor oil, anti-freeze, windshield wiper fluid, brake fluid, automatic transmission fluid, specific lubricants for manual gearboxes, the transfer cases in four-wheel-drive vehicles and the differential in rear-drive vehicles, plus power steering fluid.

All are specially designed high-tech chemical cocktails, so the appropriate type and grade should be used and, because they will break down with time and usage, needing to be replaced at the intervals specified in a vehicle’s owner’s manual.

Most of us don’t think much about how our BMW or Mercedes runs, but the correct octane rating is key to engine operation and poor quality fuel may not contain the additives required to meet seasonal requirements and keep fuel injection systems functioning properly.

Motor oil is your engine’s lifeblood. It not only lubricates, reducing wear, but performs the task of keeping combustion contaminants, metal fragments and dirt etc. in suspension to be carried to the filter or removed when the oil is changed.

Another reason not to ignore oil changes is that its chemical structure and the ingredients added to it begin to break down with time, and it loses effectiveness.

Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s recommended oil change intervals. Transmission fluid performs a number of functions. It lubricates, transmits drive in the torque converter, acts as a hydraulic pressure medium and as a coolant.

Anti-freeze not only acts as a coolant, allowing today’s engines to run at higher temperatures than ever before, but it has lubricating and anti-corrosion properties that help water pumps and radiators live longer more productive lives. Because these additives can weaken with time anti-freeze should be replaced every two years.

Brake fluid is again something that most of us hardly think about, but transmits hydraulic pressure to and also lubricates brake components. It also has to deal with extremely high temperatures and resist contamination by moisture. It must be checked regularly.

Power steering fluid levels should also be looked at frequently and changed according to the manufacturers recommendations.

Windshield washer fluid needs to be of a good quality and meet temperature requirements for the location that you live. Keep the reservoir full so it’s always available when required.

Take good care of your car so that it can take care of you. If you have problems or just want someone to the fluids in your car for you, visit Metric Wrench Billings today to have a certified technician check it out for you. Visit Metric Wrench Billings today for all of your vehicle solutions today!

Summer Audi Checkoff List Metric Wrench Billings MT

Spring is drizzling in this year and summer is close behind and you are prepared! Suntan lotion-check, giant cooler-check, books, movies on your ipad-check! You’re already for your summer road trip.

But wait before you get behind the wheel and start that summer road trip! Have you done your summer auto maintenance? You don’t want to end up broke down on a dry dusty road in the middle of nowhere, so here’s a checkoff list for your Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen or any vehicle for that matter.

Replace your air filters! Your air filters need to be replaced twice a year, so you should do it before your trip!

Check your tires! Do you know that you can actually save on gas by having the properly inflated tires? It’s true and check the tread on your tires before you head out, you don’t want any accidents because your tire tread is too worn.

Windshield Wipers! How many times did you rip your windshield wipers from your front windshield because they were frozen there? Now is a good time to replace them so they work well in the rain!

Brakes: Car safety should be your number 1 priority, have your brakes inspected to be sure that they are working properly. Have your brake fluid checked as well.

Battery: Inspect your battery posts and cables for corrosion and have them cleaned before you leave on your summer vacation!

Check your headlights: Take a few minutes to make sure your headlights and taillights for that matter are all working, replace any that are burnt out.

As always, car safety starts with you and if you are the one driving, taking your family on vacation, it is your responsibility to do the summer car checkoff list. So be safe and have fun this summer!

Take good care of your car so that it can take care of you. If you have problems or just want someone to do your summer checkoff list for you, visit Metric Wrench Billings today to have a certified technician check it out for you. Visit Metric Wrench Billings today for all of your vehicle solutions today!

Understanding your Battery and Charging System

To help you understand this better we will relate this to something that is understood by many, money and banking.

You could think of your car battery as a bank, only instead of storing your money it stores electrons and the flow of electrons is what does the things you direct it to do, start the engine. Similar to spending money to get the goods and services you want. Pay your rent or mortgage payment so you have a place to live.

Your income does the same thing that the charging system does, keeps money in the bank, puts electrons in the battery. The biggest expenditure made by the battery is starting the engine, you make your mortgage payment and that is for many the biggest drain on your bank account. You must use you income to gradually refill your account, the engine starts and the charging system refill the battery with the electron used to start the car. Keep in mind, most of us must take more than a couple of days to put back in the amount that was taken out by the house payment. The car must be driven more than a few minutes to refill the battery.

So now it should pretty easy to understand what can go wrong...the car won’t start. Your account is overdrawn. Unfortunately there are no credit cards, unless you consider a jumpstart, borrow some electrons and let some one else worry about replacing them.

How can this happen?

1. Not enough income, your charging system has a problem, you are spending more than you are making and your reserve is used up.

2. Some how money is being taken out of your account your not aware of (this doesn’t happen very often in banking but does happen often in cars) the key off draw, something is not shutting off.

3. You go on vacation longer than you should and have too good of time you leave your lights on.

4. The bank fails; you keep dumping money into your account, even borrow some, but there is nothing there. The battery is no good, charge it, jump it and after you drive the car there is nothing there. Hopefully this rarely happens to banks but it does occur about ever 4-6 year in cars. Have your bank examined once a year.

The Perfect Gift for the Man in Your Life This Valentine’s Day!

Okay ladies, we know that Valentine’s Day is HUGE in your book of GREAT days! We get it! We also get that you don’t want a frying pan or a vacuum cleaner! Guys really don’t want another tie or cologne either. So how about if we share our top 5 Valentine Gift ideas for the guy in your life from Metric Wrench Billings?

Valentine Gift Idea #1-the economy still isn’t doing all that great, how about paying for an oil change or a tune-up for his vehicle!

Valentine Gift Idea #2-new tires make an awesome gift or how about detailing his rig!

Valentine Gift Idea #3-hunting or fishing gear works. Outdoor gear is always a good hit with the guys.

Valentine Gift Idea #4-if he’s into electronics-a digital camera, ipad, new laptop or ipod! You may also want to consider accessories like car chargers, a blue tooth, hi-tech earphones. There are all kinds of really cool gadgets out there that he’ll go crazy over!

Valentine Gift Idea #5-tickets to his favorite sporting events, if he’s into golf- a new golf club or a sports channel cable subscription or a sports hat, t-shirt, jacket with the logo of his favorite team!

No matter, what gift idea you come up with he will love it. You have showed your love to this man by choosing a gift that is from your heart. Enjoy this day and remember to let this man know just how much you appreciate his love for you. And come visit us at Metric Wrench Billings for all of your BMW, Mercedes, Audi and Volkswagen needs!

Why Choose Metric Wrench

Simple

Experience - Specialization - Equipment - Education - Technical Resources

How is it we able to solve a problem that several other repair shops have mis-diagnosed or unable to solve and do it quickly and make it appear simple?

Experience - We’ve been in the import repair business for over 30 years and often the problems we see are problems that we’ve seen before and this leads us to a solution very quickly.

Specialization - We decided about 15 years ago to specialize. The 2 car lines we chose were BMW and Mercedes Benz. “You can know a little bit about repairing a large number of different makes of automobiles, maybe enough to get you in trouble” or “Know a lot about a couple lines of automobiles.” We have since added the Audi line.

Equipment - Early in 2004 we purchased a GT1, diagnostic tool for BMW. This is the factory tool, the same exact tool used at the dealers. After using this tool and seeing the advantage to having the “real thing” we purchased the Mercedes equivalent a year later. We are constantly updating and have added the Audi/VW factory tool.

Education - Having the equipment is one thing, knowing how to use it is another. Shortly after the purchase of the GT1, I joined IAIBMWSP, international association of independent BMW service professionals, later re-named to BIMRS. See www.bimrs.org. I attended the annual meeting in Memphis Tn in the fall of ’04. What an eye opener. These guys are true professionals in the auto service industry. There were 2 representatives from BMWNA at the meeting. Three days of training, very well organized. At that meeting I got the name of a similar group for Mercedes Benz and attended my first meeting of that group in Jan ’05. See www.livindmercedes.com. Since this time I attend their meetings yearly, plus training offered by my main parts supplier World Pac. We are always learning.

Technical Resources - The first e-mail tech group I joined was iATN, international automotive technicians network. I have been a business sponsor in this group since ’96. If we get a car with an unusual problem we search the iATN archives, no solution found we post the problem and receive suggestion from other members all over the world. When the car is fixed we post the solution. The same resource is available from BIMRS, LMVMercedes and newly formed LMVBMW. We also subscribe to All-data online which is a technical resource for repair information.

All of this; equipment, education and technical resources is very expensive, but we feel it is necessary to repair your car efficiently.

Brrr Baby It’s Cold Outside!

Winter, snow, ice and cold have arrived! Are you and your vehicle prepared? It seems that we all wait until the last minute, but this year it kind of crept in there leaving several people stranded and cold.

If you are having problems with your thermostat or getting your vehicle to start, now is the time to bring it in to have it checked and/or fixed before the next cold spell hits Billings! A few other things you may want to have checked are brake system, tires, wipers and blades.

Check the Brake System

Brakes are the car’s most important safety system. Brakes are a normal wear item for any car, and brake linings, drums and rotors and brake fluid should be checked. Some symptoms of a faulty brake system are:

• The car pulls to one side during braking
• The brake pedal pulsates when you apply the brakes
• The brake pedal feels “mushy”
• You hear noise when you step on the brake pedal
• You repeatedly need to add brake fluid to the master cylinder

Check Your Tires

Tires can affect the car’s ride, handling, traction and safety, and are a critical connection between the car and the road in all types of driving conditions. To maximize tire life and safety, check the inflation pressure and the tread depth, and inspect the sidewalls for cracks or punctures. As a general rule, tires should be rotated every 6,000 miles and balanced.

Replace Wipers and Blades

Wipers and blades should be replaced every six months or when cracked, cut, torn, streaking or chattering. Windshield wiper fluid should be checked monthly and only washer fluid should be used.

Did you know?

Braking causes the weight of the vehicle to shift forward, therefore most of the works is done by the front brakes and as a result the front brakes wear out faster than the rear brakes.

Got a car problem? For more information about Audi, Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes repair in Billings, Montana, please contact the professionals at Metric Wrench today!

Winter Comes Fast!

Did you know that your Mercedes tires are high-quality products; they require owner maintenance to perform at their best. Operational damage such as incorrect inflation, punctures, cuts and impact damage may cause tire failure and result in personal injury and/or property damage. The simple precautions listed below can reduce the chance of problems, and help achieve the expected life of your tires.

SPECIFIC PRECAUTIONS ON WINTER TIRES

In order to maintain the design handling balance of your BMW, in all driving conditions, you MUST install winter tires in sets of four. As a tire wears out, traction and control are reduced, particularly on snow, slush and ice. Most tire manufactures recommend that you replace your winter tires when the tread depth reaches 4 mm (5/32 inch).

Tire Inspection: Visually inspect your tires frequently for any abnormal conditions such as scrapes, bulges, cuts, nails, uneven wear, etc. resulting from operation. This must be done immediately after any suspected contact with an object on the road, a pothole, road irregularity or after severe braking. Immediately refer any of these conditions to your nearest Audi Tire dealer for a thorough tire inspection.

Speed Limits: Regardless of the performance or speed capabilities of your Volkswagen tires always obey all laws and never exceed speed limits dictated by driving conditions.

Hazards: Objects on the road that threaten a tire should be safely avoided. These objects include: potholes, glass, metal, rocks, wood, debris and the like. Unavoidable contact should prompt a thorough tire inspection.

Air Pressure: Air pressure maintenance is critical to tire life. Tire pressures must be checked frequently when tires are cold (before operation, when cool to the touch), and no less than once per month and before extended operation. Use a tire gauge to check air pressure, and maintain it according to vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations as listed on the BMW placard or in the owner’s manual. Do not reduce pressure when a tire is hot, and do not inflate a tire higher than the limits molded on the tire’s sidewall. Do not overlook spare tire inflation pressure or maintenance.

Tire Tread: Tires must be replaced when the depth of the tread reaches 1.6 mm (2/32 inch). Yokohama tires are manufactured with tread wear indicators, molded into the tire grooves, which indicate tread wear. As a tire wears out, the tread becomes more vulnerable to the effects of road hazards. Visual inspection therefore becomes more crucial as a tire wears out.

Spinning: If the Audi becomes stuck, do not allow the tires to spin at speeds greater than 50 km/hr., and do not stand behind a spinning wheel while attempting to push a vehicle. Speed and force can cause a tire to disintegrate and explode, causing property damage and personal injury.

Tire Rotation:To ensure even tread wear and long tread life, scheduled tire rotations are required and are a necessary part of Mercedes maintenance. As front and rear tires perform differently, and front- and rear-wheeldrive vehicle tires wear differently, they require unique rotation schedules. For front-wheel-drive and ALL high performance vehicles, rotate the tires at minimum every 8,000 km. For rear-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive vehicles, rotate the tires at minimum every 12,000 km. However, if your driving style or vehicle usage results in uneven tread wear or reduced tread life, rotate the tires more often.

Got a car problem? For more information about Audi, Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes repair in Billings, Montana, please contact the professionals at Metric Wrench today!

Is Volkswagen’s “Lifetime” Automatic Transmission System an Urban Legend?

Is Volkswagen’s “Lifetime” Automatic Transmission System an Urban Legend? Truth or Fiction? Lets take a look at it and see. We’ll begin with the definition of “lifetime”, the lifetime of the owner, the lifetime of the vehicle, the lifetime of the transmission or the lifetime of the manufactures warranty.

Urban legend? Perhaps, the truth is that at Metric Wrench it has been our experience that life of these fluids (which are very good) is directly related to how the vehicle is driven. While modern synthetic fluid protects better and lasts longer than competing oils, unfortunately it does not last forever. In researching out the facts we’ve learned that legally, the term 'lifetime fluid' refers only to the duration of the VW Powertrain Warranty. So when the warranty expires, you're out of luck.

Volkswagen, along with many other auto-manufacturers, knows that most owners don't keep their vehicles past 100,000 miles. The so-called 'lifetime' fluid is simply a marketing twist used to help sell cars that require 'minimal maintenance.' But after the 100,000 mile mark (when vehicles need real attention) most Volkswagen repair guarantees are null and void. That's why VW schedules a 105,000 mile timing belt change on 1.8T engines, and why most 'lifetime' guarantees are considered urban legends!

If you intend to keep your car for a while, the cost of never-replaced ATF can give you nightmares. Left untouched for an entire 'lifetime' this fluid can cause serious damage to your transmission. Deposits of metallic shavings will build up on your filter and oil pan, and ultimately damage the transmission. And the repair costs can be enormous! So do yourself a favor, for City driving, the technicians at Metric Wrench recommend transmission service at 75-100k. Constant highway use, it will last a long time. A side note, it's hard to tell the condition of the fluid until it is being drained. You should also know that this type of fluid is also used in Mercedes, Audi and BMW.

Air Mass Sensor on VW 2000 Passat, How to Test

First, different names for the same component, Air mass meter (AMM), Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF). MAF is the accepted name.

The purpose of this device is as its name suggests, measure the amount of air going into the engine. The units used to measure this are Grams(mass) per second (g/sec). This is one of the main inputs the engine computer uses to determine the amount of fuel to inject into the cylinder.

So the check engine light (CEL) is on, on your VW and your car is not running right. VW has a history of problems with MAFs and you check online and everyone suggests cleaning or replacing it. You do that and the car is not fixed...so now what!

Proper diagnostics of a MAF fault involves the use and understanding of a good scan tool. The primary values to look at are: g/sec of the MAF under different engine loads, long term and short term fuel trim values. Using the values you can determine if the problem is the MAF, poor connection to the MAF, a vacuum leak, exhaust leak, injector or fuel pressure problem. The other advantage of using a scan tool is after the repair is done and after a short test drive you can verified the problem is solved.

Throw parts at it for common known failures; makes you look like a genius when you guess right, but can be expensive when you guess is incorrect. At Metric Wrench we are equipped and trained to solve problems and eliminate the guess work.

How To Correctly Install Your Car Stereo

I wanted to share a few tips on installing a new radio or CD player in your car correctly. I don’t know how many cars come into Metric Wrench Billings because someone has incorrectly installed their car stereo and we have to fix the wiring and all of the issues that arise because it was installed wrong. (BANG HEAD HERE)

When you purchase your new stereo, the very first thing that you should do is make sure that it’s going to fit correctly into the slot where your old one is. Make sure that if you purchase a wiring harness that it is the correct one for your car’s make and model as well as for the stereo that you purchased. Purchasing a wiring harness will eliminate a few headaches when you’re installing your new car stereo.

Make sure that you have all of the correct tools and material for installation! Some standard tools and material include: screwdrivers, write strippers, wire cutters and electrical tape.

Before you go any further, check your owner’s manual for specific instructions on how to remove the dash panel and how to CORRECTLY remove your old radio.


Removing Your Old Car Stereo

After you’ve reviewed your owner’s manual and you’re ready to go, the next thing to do is to disconnect the ground cable or the negative cable from your battery. DO NOT EVER work on the electrical system of any vehicle if this is connected!

Now you’re ready to remove the dash panel that covers your stereo! Unscrew and slide out the old head unit. At this point, you’re going to have one of two choices-a single plug with a ton of wires that connects to the back of your unit or a lot of individual wires. This next tip is KEY! If you see several single wires going into the back of your stereo unit, DO NOT detach them all at once. You’re not going to remember what goes where!

If you purchased a wiring harness, now is the time to plug the connector into your new wiring harness. This will then plug into the back of your new stereo and you can skip the next section, because you don’t need it. If you didn’t purchase a wiring harness, then keep reading!

Connecting the Wiring Manually

If you didn’t purchase a wiring harness, you are going to have to connect each wire yourself in order to install your new car stereo. So connect the positive wire from each speaker to the positive connector on the back of your new stereo. Next you would connect the negative wire. Note: If there is only one wire coming from your speakers, your speakers are grounded at the chassis, which basically means that you need to install new speaker wiring.

Next, you will connect the ground (-/black) wire of the stereo to a screw or bolt close to where the radio is mounted on the dash. The must be attached to metal! NOT fiberglass or plastic!

Whew! You’re almost done! (SMILE) Connect the 12 constant and ignition power wires (both +/red) to the new stereo. Go back and check your stereo’s installation manual to be sure that these get to the correct places.

Putting in the Car Stereo

Last process-you’re almost there! Take a look; you should have a single connector that connects all of the wiring in your car-either from the wiring harness or the one that came with your stereo that you have just finished connecting.

Now it’s time to ease your new stereo in the mounting bracket that came with it. If you didn’t measure correctly, you have to use the bracket from your old car stereo.

Plug the harness connector in the back of your new stereo; make sure that there is only one wire left from your old stereo now. This is the antenna which you can plug directly into your new unit. You may have a power antenna wire as well and you will need to connect that too!

Now it’s time to slide your new stereo into the slot in the dash, but don’t jump the gun here and screw it in, you need to test it out first! So go and reconnect the negative cable of your car to the battery. Turn your car on as well as your new stereo. Is there music coming out? Listen to ALL of your speakers to be sure that they are ALL working properly!

If everything is working properly, you can now tighten the screws so that your new car stereo stays in place and put the dash cover back on.


FYI: The number one reason that most newly installed stereos do not work is because of a bad ground wire. If you are experiencing this issue, look for another piece of metal to attach your ground wire too and try it again. Another suggestion is to get a piece of sandpaper and sand the surface of the metal before screwing the ground wire down to make a better connection.

For Volkswagen’s there is a wire that goes to the existing radio, if this wire goes to ground as it does in some of the aftermarket harness adaptors, it will cause no communication with the diagnostic scan tool. This is the most common problem that we see at Metric Wrench Billings.

And just a friendly reminder, don’t EVER work on the electrical system of your car when the ground wire is still attached to the battery! You can severely damage yourself as well as your car!

Volkswagen Auto Repair, Do Your Brakes Need Repairs on your VW?

Don't Take Chances With Your Brakes - Repair Them Now!
Brake repairs - critical?
Of course! Your brakes keep your family safe.
Brake repairs and parts for Volkswagens - expensive? You bet! Brake rotors for import cars, unlike domestics, are built with minimal thicknesses to save weight - meaning they can't be "turned"; they must be replaced.
Brake rotors for imports are also more sensitive to warping from heat, and overheated brakes are the second most common cause of failure (first is wear-and-tear).

Save money on Volkswagen brake repairs and parts with these tips:
Use Your Eyes & Ears to Inspect Your Volkswagen's Brakes
Visually inspect your brakes' condition at least every six months.

When installing a new fuel pump to avoid fuel system problems in your Volkswagen:
Tip #1: Whether a fuel pump is mounted inside a fuel tank or externally, the inside of the tank should always be inspected and cleaned if rust or debris is found in the pump or filter. Replacing a pump without cleaning a dirty tank will doom the new pump to premature failure.
Tip #2: If you're replacing an in-tank fuel pump, always disconnect the battery to prevent any unwanted sparks. Then drain the tank before removing the tank straps and opening the pump's retaining collar. Keep all flames and sparks away!
Tip #3: When installing the new fuel pump, always replace the filter screen and use a new O-ring or gasket for the sealing collar.
Tip #4: Do not "test" a new pump before it has been installed by jumping it. Running a pump in a dry condition with no fuel to lubricate it risks damaging it. Do not run the pump until fuel has been added to the tank. Also, replace any braided or rubber fuel lines that are flaking or cracked with the correct type of EFI hose.

Got a car problem? For more information about Audi, Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes repair in Billings, Montana, please contact the professionals at Metric Wrench today!