One of the biggest things you can do this Earth Day is pay a little attention to your vehicle. By changing a few habits and paying attention to maintenance, you can do your part in helping the environment. Here’s the Quality Automotive Servicing short list of things you can do to be a “Green Vehicle Owner”. Save gas, save on landfill material, save the planet. 1. Keep the engine running at peak performance. A misfiring spark plug can reduce fuel efficiency as much as 30 percent. Replace filters and fluids as recommended in the owner’s manual or by your Quality Automotive Servicing service technician. 2. Don’t ignore that ‘Service Engine’ light. Today’s vehicles have much cleaner tailpipe emissions than they did 30 years ago. But it's necessary to maintain that system. A poorly running engine or faulty exhaust system will pollute much more than one that is running clean. One indication of a ... read more

We’d like to introduce you to Truckee local, Ryden, who is probably the most excited about the $1000 donation to the Truckee Bike Park in the Quality Automotive Servicing Season of Giving. Ryden is an 8 year old bicycling powerhouse who started at the park as a strider when he was just 2-years-old. It didn’t take long for this little guy to discover the various tracks and eventually move on to jumps. He loves to ride at the Truckee Bike Park because it’s just fun - all day fun! Taking clinics from his favorite coaches Brooks, Greg, Cierra and Courtney has taught him not only to ride well, but also learn to respect the terrain, take care of the park and have respect for others using it. He has learned skills like how to push into the berms and claw your feet when you’re coming into a jump. His favorite features are the jumps and he hopes to master the Baby Tooth Gap with a future eye on Jaws. Ryden enjoys the park with his dad and sister and can’t say enoug ... read more

Winter weather can wreck havoc on your vehicle in many ways. For those who park their vehicle outside overnight, a frozen door in the morning can be a real annoyance. Heed our warning, don’t ever yank or pull on the door handle to open a frozen car door. If it breaks, you will be seeing us sooner than you planned and having a winter adventure you didn’t anticipate. An easy simple trick might be to give the door a hip check to loosen the ice and then lift and pull the door from the bottom. Use the handle only to unlatch the door while doing this. If you are still frozen out, try the passenger side door. Often the other side of the car has been less expose to wind and weather. You can also use warm water (never hot) to loosen the ice or a de-icing product. If you are lucky enough to have a remote starter, you can start the car and allow the interior warming to loosen the ice. Here is the important part. Never, and tell your kids and student drivers this too, ma ... read more

Winter has finally arrived and with the recent wet, snowy and icy weather, remember to turn off the wipers when you turn off your vehicle. Taking care of this simple task could help you avoid damage to your wiper blades and the internal motor that powers them. Most ofus don’t think about how that blade manages to move across our field of vision. That’s why one of the most common and preventable repairs for any mountain car, truck or SUV is replacing the wiper blade motor. Requiring a wiper blade to clear a snowy windshield or unstick itself after a wet, icy storm puts stress on the motor which can cause it turn burn out and fail. The result may be you driving down the road with your head out the window along with an unwanted repair expense. Avoid this by always turning off your wiper blades when you stop the vehicle. If possible, pull the blades away from the windshield to preventsticking. This simple action will allow your blades to last longer and save the wip ... read more

New cabin air filter vs old cabin filter Time to Change Your Cabin Air Filter With the pine pollen season behind us, now is a good time to change out your cabin air filter. Over time, the cabin air filter becomes less effective when it has done it's job filtering dust, debris, smoke and pollen from entering the cabin of your vehicle. “With our dusty roads and heavy particles in the air we suggest an annual change of the cabin air filter, “ says Bill Greeno, owner of Quality Automotive Servicing. Greeno also mentioned that anyone who drives dirt roads or who attends Burning Man should be especially diligent about the annual change. The cabin air filter began appearing in vehicles in 2002. It prevents dust, pollen, dirt and other pollutants from entering your car through your A/C and heat vents. With the driving conditions we experience everyday on our mountain roads, a clean cabin air filter will keep you breathing easier. Other Filter ... read more