Don’t get caught slipping…

The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting colder, and you are probably relying on your car more at the moment. When autumn hits and daylight savings end the roads seem to change overnight. Here’s what to keep in mind as the weather changes.

Ch..ch..ch..changes!

As the weather changes, all of those beautiful colour changes comes with it, and before you know it the roads are busier, slipperier, and more hazardous.

• The annual ‘Fall’ – Most of the beautiful trees that line streets change colour with the weather. It looks pretty but can be incredibly dangerous for drivers. As you brake (especially suddenly) this layer of slippery rotting leaves prevent your tyres from gripping the tarmac, causing you to skid rather than stop. Think of when a cartoon character steps on a banana peel, but faster! The only way to avoid a collision is to make sure you leave a little extra space to the car in front and brake a little earlier going into corners.
• Wet Weather – We know that wet roads provide less grip than dry roads, but the hazards aren’t limited to your tyres. Without good quality windscreen wipers, your visibility will be reduced by as much as 40%. If your windscreen wipers are skipping, screeching, or streaking it’s time to replace them.
• Driving Blind – With the increase of nighttime and evening driving we are relying on our lights even more – even during the daylight hours. If your car has an auto light setting it’s a smart move to use it, or better yet; make a point of having your lights on anytime you drive, not just for your benefit, but also to aid other drivers. (Be sure to make sure they turn off when you switch the engine off).

Staying safe behind the wheel in wet, dark conditions is as easy as giving yourself a little extra space, turning your lights on, and checking those wiper blades. And remember….

If You Have Been In An Accident We Are Still Here To Help You.
If you have been in an accident just take some photos, and give us a call. Just know that any scrape, dent, or bingle can be fixed in a jiffy by our wonderful team of panel beaters – we’re here to serve you – and your car.

Get in contact with us now for a FREE Quote

• Call us on (08) 8362 7395
• Email us at [email protected]
• Or use our online quoting service – Just Click HERE

Pack Up Your Car And Get Driving This Easter

With travel overseas and airline travel still restricted more and more South Australians are likely to be hitting the road this Easter. But no matter how experienced you are behind the wheel there are only so many things you can control when on a busy road. We’ve put together a list of the most common stresses and obstacles and how best to navigate them before you set off.

Here’s What You Can Control

If you are planning a trip which requires loading up the car and staying away from home it’s crucial to ensure that your car is up to the task. It’s important to make these checks before you set out.

• Tyre condition/pressure – Making sure your rubber is in tip top shape before you set of is crucial. With the increase in rain having tyres with deep tread can make a huge difference when in traffic. Being able to stop quickly and safely on congested roads is essential in avoiding accidents.
• Top up your fluids – Having plenty off (clean) oil, washer fluid, coolant, power steering fluid etc. could mean the difference between smooth motoring and being stuff on the side of the road as all the cars you worked hard to get passed whizz on by.
• Fatigue – Staying rested and sharing drive time makes for safer and less stressful travel. It also greatly reduces the likelihood of accidents late in the day/trip.

Here’s What You Can’t Control… And How Best To Deal With It

Even for the most skillful drivers on the road there are things that you just can’t control, but you can control how you’ll deal with them.

• Weather – this is super obvious, but we can’t control the weather (not yet anyway) and as such we can only be prepared for. Firstly; tyres need to be inflated to the right pressure, which for most cars will be 34-36 PSI. Equally as important is fresh, deep tread to maximise the contact in wet conditions. Secondly; Windscreen wipers – make sure they aren’t skipping or whining, this means they aren’t clearing water properly, and thus restricting you vision – not ideal on busy roads. It may be a good time to replace the wiper blades.
• Traffic conditions – if we could control this we’d have an open road and not a single other driver in our way. Bumper to bumper traffic can be infuriating, especially with bored passengers. To avoid boiling over make sure you keep the snacks light and healthy. This may sound odd, but high sugar or high caffeine snacks will spike the blood sugar and take the boring and make it MEGA boring. Keep the junk food to a minimum (at least until you reach your destination).
• Other Drivers – this is one that you probably wish you could control more than any other. All road users drive in slightly different ways, and at different speeds – this makes for very different experiences for everyone. Allowing extra time for travel and breaking frequently will not only help prevent fatigue, but also help you lower stress being behind the same cars for hours on end.

Other Helpful Hints

Whether you’re going to be on the road for 5 minutes or 5 hours there are things we can all do to help everything go more smoothly.

• Keeping yourself, your family, and your car hydrated. Make sure you have plenty of water available. It’ll help you avoid headaches and fatigue common when travelling.
• Giving clearance to long vehicles. Trailers and caravans don’t stop as quickly or maneuver as someone in just a car. Avoid tailgating, and be sure to overtake when you have a long bit of clear road where you can do it safely.
• Using the right lane on roads where speed limits are 80km/h or higher is only for those overtaking. A HUGE proportion of our repairs at this time of year are due to people travelling along in the right lane and not moving over after they have overtaken someone to their left. Remember – it’s not a “fast lane” it’s an overtaking lane. Make sure you move over once you’ve overtaken, otherwise you risk a high speed rear end accident. And regardless of whose fault it is it WILL ruin your holiday.

If You Have Been In An Accident We Are Still Here To Help You.
If you have been in an accident just take some photos, and give us a call. Just know that any scrape, dent, or bingle can be fixed in a jiffy by our wonderful team of panel beaters – we’re here to serve you – and your car.

Get in contact with us now for a FREE Quote

• Call us on (08) 8362 7395
• Email us at [email protected]
• Or use our online quoting service – Just Click HERE

How the upcoming hot weather could leave you and your car high and dry!

Hot weather affects our cars in so many ways; cosmetically by damaging the paintwork, internally by overworking the engine, and even on the ground by popping your tyres. Here are some of the most common, and most overlooked problems you MUST avoid for the rest of this summer.

Imagine this; you’re driving along the freeway, it’s 40 degrees outside, the air conditioner is on, you feel like you’re in your own little fridge on wheels then you hear “POP!”

You Have a Puncture.

“How did pop my tyre?” you think, “they are still in good shape.” As the air inside the tyre heats up it expands, causing the pressure to build up inside. Couple this with the fact that if you park in the sun, or drive along hot roads the air stays hot and can cause the wall of the tyre to burst. Not to mention the softening of the tyres from the hot road.

This can be particularly troublesome when the outside temperature then drops – like the weird summer weather we’ve been having.
Solution – Check your tyre pressure regularly, especially after driving for long periods of time in the sun. Each make of car and type of tyre requires a different pressure, so be sure to follow the manufacturer’s recommendation.
Let’s assume you safely pull over to change your tyre. Keep in mind, it’s 40 degrees in the shade, and you’re in the hot sun losing buckets of sweat changing this tyre, but you get it fixed and you’re on your way.
But your car won’t start…
Batteries can be under a lot of stress when the mercury rises, and it’s hardly a surprise with how hot it gets in the car. It’s not only the extra work that drains the battery, but the heat can also hinder the chemical process of the battery, and it will struggle to hold charge. This often results in a car unwilling to start. Be sure to have your mechanic check this every service, and to be on the safe side it pays to carry a set of jumper leads with you.
Everyday Prevention
Keeping your car cool is the simplest, cheapest, and overall most effective way to prevent damage to the inside and outside it. Try the following.
PARK IN THE SHADE
This one is a complete no-brainer. By parking your car you are (obviously) preventing the interior to heat up as rapidly as it would in direct sunlight. Not only that, but constant intense sunlight can devastate your cars paintwork – which looks terrible and can be costly to fix.

IMPORTANT NOTE – if your paintwork is already damaged make sure you check out the link at the bottom of this email
WIND DOWN WINDOWS
Again, this one seems pretty obvious, but I don’t mean leave them down while your car is unattended, but winding them down and then using your cars Air Conditioner to cool the ambient temperature a lot faster, and with less effort from the A/C. Think of it this way. On a hot day the interior of your car is WAY hotter than the outside temperature, and using the A/C with the windows up is inefficient because that hot air has nowhere to go, by opening the windows you may lose some cool air, but you’ll get rid of ALL of the hot air.
FRESH AIR IS THE BEST AIR

This seems to be the most common mistake made, recirculating the hot air inside the car rather than getting the fresh air from outside. As mentioned above the interior air of your car is way hotter than the moving air outside. So, forget trying to cool down the hot air on the inside and cool down the slightly less hot air from outside. You’ll cool down quicker, and help your car out by getting the same result with a lot less effort, saving fuel, and extending the life of your A/C.

Paintwork Already Fading?

If your car’s paintwork has already started to fade, then what you do now could save you MEGABUCKS down the road. Paint fading and blistering can mean a major depreciation in car value, and in some cases lead to bodywork damage due to the lack of protection given by the outer layers (Think RUST!) – if you’ve noticed fading or peeling send us some pictures and we’ll let you know the fastest, easiest, and BEST way to get it fixed. Just give us a call or click the link below for a free quote.

Get in contact with us now for a FREE Quote

• Call us on (08) 8362 7395
• Email us at [email protected]
• Or use our online quoting service – Just Click HERE

Your car could have tetanus, or at least its own version. Tetanus in people or animals can cause huge damage from just a teeny tiny scratch. In the same way a tiny scratch can cause thousands of dollars of damage to your panel work.

When you have a little scratch that goes through the paintwork it is easy, quick, and cheap. Fixing an entire panel that has started to rust can be difficult, time-consuming, and expensive.

Nothing looks better than your car, sparkling clean, with not a single dent, scratch or scrape, and the fact that the teeny tiny scratch you picked up because some inconsiderate so and so didn’t put their shopping trolley away.

When you have those little scratches and dents repaired before they spread rust through your car you give it the best chance to stay looking its absolute best.

Minor dent repair is quick – you can bring your car in on your lunch break, or send us the photos and we’ll let you know how quickly we can have them done.

1. It’s cheap – compared to the cost of replacing an entire panel it’s spare change. We take enormous pride in all of our work, and if you need full car surgery we’ll get all hands on deck to breathe new life into your car. But… if we can fix up the scratch before it becomes an infection then we can do it in a fraction of the time, and save you a whole bunch of money.

2. It’s quick – Paintless dent removal and minor touch-ups and paint repair can often happen in an afternoon, and in many cases the span of a lunch break. When you come in with your car we’ll have an expert take a look right away and give you an accurate, relevant estimate on just how long your repair will take.

3. It’s so easy anyone can do it – Just come in (with your car) or send us photos of the damage and in a matter of minutes you’ll know exactly what needs to happen to get your car looking brand new.

All you have to do is give us a call and one of our experts will guide you through. Give us a call right now on 8362 7395 and book a time to have your car looking brand new again.

PS. You can call anytime and we can guide you through the insurance claim process, or give you a quote. Call us on 8362 7395 

PPS. If you want (or need) to know anything else at all (where to find us, online quotes, free car care advice) CLICK HERE or give us a call – 8362 7395

Insurance companies only think about one thing… and it’s not your safety!

Insurance companies are typically motivated by one thing – how much it will cost them to fix your car. They don’t care about your peace of mind (unless they are selling you that before you make a claim), or about the safety of your car. They care about eliminating their costs and improving their bottom line. Why else would the car insurance industry be worth $21 Billion in Australia – it’s not from being overly generous to policy holders.

Of course to bunch all insurance companies in together is unfair. Some do have restrictions on who they’d like to send you too, but even then your car belongs to you, not to them and thus it’s YOUR CALL.

Recently we had a customer who, as he put it, was “Held hostage” by his insurance company and told us “it was like dealing with a bunch of bullies”

After damage to the sunroof of his BMW X5, Peter – a loyal customer of ours called his insurance company. He had changed insurance companies about three years prior, but hadn’t yet made a claim. He’d signed up with a “trusted” insurer under the impression that he had freedom of choice with his insurer “That’s what they said when I got my policy.”

“But that wasn’t what they told me on the phone”

After spending nearly an hour on the phone to an insurance representative he was given a resounding “NO!” when he insisted that he take it to his own repairer. He was told “it would either go to Brighton or Victor Harbour, and I’d have to pick it up when it was fixed,” yet when inspecting the policy he noticed that he had been told an outright lie.

“I reread it and it clearly states that I can use my own repairer if the one they chose is impractical… having to pick my car up from Victor Harbour isn’t exactly practical… They just lied to me to save themselves money!”

These bullying tactics are incredibly common among insurance companies. Often they use scare tactics when drivers are at their most vulnerable – when they’ve just had an accident. Insurance companies know that you can be stressed, worried, and just want to know that everything will be ok – and that’s when they hold your car hostage!

As a car repairer that has dealt with insurance company demands we know exactly how much pressure companies put on repairers to make the repairs as quickly as possible and as cheaply as possible. These sorts of companies are only interested in limiting the amount of money they’ll have to shell out to get your car back on the road.

They care about their wallets, not the safety of your car (or anyone in it).

WHAT YOU CAN DO

The best thing you can do is be aware that you are entitled to choose your repairer to fix your car. There are very few insurers that don’t offer an option to choose your own repairer. For example, AAMI do not offer a choose your own repairer option, this can translate into big trouble this Sydney Driver found out. Click Here for the Full Story

Insurers such as APIA do offer a choose your own repairer option, if you are unhappy with their chosen repairer, or decide that the repairer they have chosen is not a practical solution for you – however insurers like this often disguise this and pressure you into going to their repairers instead. In these cases, it’s especially important to be insistent on your chosen repairer.

Look for an insurer that has an easy to understand “choose your own repairer” option. RAA insurance offers a great choose your own repairer policy, and come with a list of premium repairers that put quality first.