Marshalls Automotive: Service Standards

What Redmond Automotive Service Consumers Should Know

There are some things Redmond car owners should know about Redmond car service and repair. First and foremost, Marshalls Automotive cares about you and your family’s safety. And we really appreciate your business. Marshalls Automotive in Redmond wants to build a trusting relationship that becomes the foundation for a mutually beneficial experience for years to come.

Building on that foundation, there are some things that would help you understand the auto service and repair business better. First, it can be really hard to fix cars. The days of shade tree mechanics are long gone. The majority of automotive systems are computerized. It takes a lot of training and very expensive equipment to diagnose and repair modern vehicles. The honest techs that work for Marshalls Automotive need extensive computer training – not just how to run the diagnostic systems, but also searching for the right parts, networking with other technicians to help them with a difficult problem and pulling together a job order that makes sure that each step of the process is addressed.

The threshold for getting started as a technician gets higher all the time in Oregon and there is a huge commitment to on-going training every year. This training takes time and money. It contributes to business overhead. Average Redmond or Prineville auto owners may not realize the business and environmental regulations Marshalls Automotive must comply with. Of course that costs money too. Like any Oregon business, overhead is a big factor.

When you go into your favorite Bend restaurant you don’t value the meal by what the food would cost at the grocery store. The restaurant has rent, wages, insurance, taxes, utilities, professional fees, equipment, supplies – you get the picture. The restaurant has to charge enough to not only pay for the ingredients, but for all these other things as well while making enough profit to remain in business. If you value the meal and are satisfied with your dining experience, you’ll come back and tell your friends.

It’s the same for Marshalls Automotive. The value of its service is not the cost of the parts they replace, but in your satisfaction with the results. If they deliver a good product at a fair price, Redmond customers are happy to see them succeed as a Oregon automotive business.

Contact Marshalls Automotive to learn more about our extensive auto service training.
You can find us at:
2110 S Highway 97
Redmond, Oregon 97756
Or call us at 541-548-5239

At Marshalls Automotive, we love to see our Redmond customers whenever they come in, but we would much rather see them three or four times a year for routine maintenance than once a year on a tow truck. We want to work together with you to avoid breakdowns. Tell your Bend area friends and family to come in for their essential scheduled maintenance too. That lowers our marketing costs and helps keep its labor rates down. That’s good for everyone in Redmond.

Marshalls Automotive appreciates this great review of automotive service from AutoNetTV.

Your Well Trained Technician At Marshalls Automotive

When your vehicle has a problem, or just needs some routine service, you might get a little nervous. Your car’s so important to your life in Redmond, you need to back on the road as soon as possible – with the problem fixed right the first time.

If you’ve ever checked into some of the technician training Marshalls Automotive professionals receive, you may be surprised at how much specialized knowledge and skill goes into diagnosing and repairing a modern car. For example: Today there are four cylinder engines that generate more power than the 1980s-era V-8’s. I mean a new V-6 Toyota Camry could beat Sonny Crocket’s Ferrari in a race to sixty.

Our engines are more and more powerful and at the same time their fuel economy keeps inching up – even with steep Prineville gas prices. They are also amazingly reliable: Kudos to the automotive engineers at the leading auto manufacturers. But the advances come at the price of simplicity. The modern cars Prineville motorists drive around Oregon highways are so much more complex from a mechanical standpoint that it makes your head spin – not to mention the electronics.

Some vehicles have several networked computers controlling most of the engine functions and many other vehicle operations as well. Prineville motorists take all of this sophistication for granted – but somebody has to fix it when it breaks. It’s a real challenge for Redmond Marshalls Automotive technicians to keep up, but we work hard to stay ahead of the technology. It requires a high level of commitment on the part of the technicians and the Prineville service centers as well.

Marshalls Automotive technicians receive training through a combination of formal classroom training, training provided at Marshalls Automotive by parts and equipment manufacturers, on-line courses and home study courses.

In addition to the expensive training, there’s the financial commitment for Marshalls Automotive to purchase the diagnostic and repair tools.

There are many independent certifications available at Marshalls Automotive all the way up to Master Technician. The ability to repair your vehicle requires a strong combination of training and resources. No one can know everything, so Prineville auto service centers subscribe to data services, technical libraries and even on-line communities that can help them when they run into a difficult problem.

It’s like those medical diagnosis shows on TV. Here are the symptoms – what’s the diagnosis and treatment? Diagnosis is every bit as much an art as a science. At Marshalls Automotive, we want everything to be simple, straightforward and inexpensive – but sometimes it just isn’t.

The next time you bring us your vehicle, don’t worry. You’re in good hands at Marshalls Automotive.

On Board Diagnostics For Your vehicle

Make an appointment with Marshalls Automotive to have your on board diagnostics analyzed.
2110 S Highway 97
Redmond, Oregon 97756
541-548-5239

Today we’re going to talk about on-board diagnostics and the questions we hear from folks around Redmond Oregon who need answers about diagnostic services. They want to know what diagnostics are, what’s involved and what the benefits are. They really want to understand the value of diagnostic scans by a trained technician in Redmond Oregon.

These are valid concerns. If you don’t understand something it’s really hard to know its value. Let’s start with some history.

Since 1996, all cars and light trucks in Redmond Oregon have been required to use a standardized diagnostic system to help repair technicians determine what’s wrong with your vehicle. The diagnostic system works with the vehicle’s Engine Control Module – the computer that controls many engine functions.

The computer monitors dozens of components and processes. Depending on what the sensors read, the computer will make adjustments to compensate for conditions and minor problems. When there is a condition that it can’t adjust for, the computer will turn on the check engine light.

It is also called the ‘service engine soon’ light on some vehicles. The warning light signals you to get into your Redmond Oregon service center so that the trouble code can be read and the problem can be fixed. Your service center will have a scan tool and powerful software that will help the technician diagnose the problem.

If you’ve searched for check engine light on the internet, you may have seen that you can buy an inexpensive scanner or go to an auto parts store to have the trouble code read to tell you exactly what’s wrong.

That’s a common myth. The code itself doesn’t tell you what’s broken. It starts you looking in the right place. It tells you what engine parameter is out of range – but it won’t tell you what’s wrong or how to fix it.

Let’s say you think your daughter has a fever. You take her temperature and it reads one 102 degrees. You’ve confirmed a fever, but you don’t know what’s causing it. Is it a 24 hour flu, an infection, appendicitis or leukemia? A fever is a symptom of all of these medical problems, but it takes a skilled physician’s examination and additional diagnostic tests to find out what is actually causing the fever.

An example of a trouble code could be: P0133, which reads ‘Bank 1 sensor 1 circuit slow response’. This means that the front oxygen sensor has a slow response time to changes in the air-fuel mix. If that’s all you knew about cars, you would think your oxygen sensor was broken and would replace it. Now, it could be the oxygen sensor – but it could also be a bad or contaminated airflow sensor, exhaust leak, electrical problem, an intake manifold leak or any of a number of other things.

You can imagine a lot of oxygen sensors have been replaced because of that code. So the on-board diagnostics point the way to where the trouble lies, but it takes some skill and high-tech equipment to actually pinpoint the problem. The cheap scan tools that a consumer can buy do not have the ability to retrieve some of the operating history that’s stored in the engine control computer. That history’s very helpful in diagnosing the problem. Service centers like Marshalls Automotive invest a lot of money in high-end diagnostic tools to help solve the mystery and get you back on the road as soon as possible without replacing a lot of parts that don’t need replacing.

So, on-board diagnostics provide a powerful starting place for a highly-trained, well-equipped technician to get to the bottom of your problem. When your check engine light comes on, get it checked at Marshalls Automotive. If the light burns steady – don’t panic. Get in to Marshalls Automotive soon to have the engine scanned. A flashing check engine light means that there is a severe engine problem. Get in as soon as you can – waiting too long can lead to very expensive damage.

And try to not drive at high speed or tow or haul heavy loads with a flashing check engine light.

Arrive Alive In Redmond

We’ve all seen Oregon motorists do crazy things while driving to or from Bend. A guy shaving in the rear-view mirror, a woman applying makeup, people talking on their phones, texting or drinking from an enormous coffee mug. It’s a wonder we even dare drive on Oregon roads.

The truth is that all of us Redmond car owners are distracted when we drive. Unfortunately, traffic, road construction and other external factors are beyond our control. The distractions inside our car, however, are things we can often control.

Here’s some things that’ll give you more control in your car, and help keep your attention on the roads around Bend, Oregon.

• Redmond drivers who are 16 to 20 years old tend to be more distracted by the radio, CD or MP3 player.
• Redmond auto owners who are 20 to 29 are more distracted by passengers in the car, including small children.
• Those over age 65 tend to be more distracted by objects or events that are outside of the vehicle.

Other factors like fatigue, stress and lack of sleep make it harder to pay attention to driving – no matter what age we are. It is always better to pull over and take a quick nap than risk falling asleep at the wheel. Redmond car owners are also distracted by thinking about relationships, family issues, money and bills. So what can we do to manage these distractions? Well, the first thing is to eliminate as many as we can.

When you get in your car, make sure you’re belted in; that the seats, steering wheel and mirrors are adjusted; and your radio or CD player is ready.

Secure any loose objects in the car that can fall on the floor and interfere with your driving.

If you have a drink, make sure it’s spill-proof and put in a cup holder. Pets should also be contained.

Oregon car owners with kids in the car should make sure they’re clipped in their seat belts or safety seats. You may want to give them some distractions to help keep them quiet and sitting in their seats. Don’t get involved in their arguments while you’re driving. Pull over if you need to find a toy or break up a fight.

If you eat while driving, choose simple finger foods that aren’t messy.

Learning your car’s controls before you drive is another way to improve your safety. Learn how to work the radio by touch. Controls located on the steering wheel can help you keep your eyes on the road.  The same goes for heating and air conditioning controls.

If you have to use a cell phone, a hands-free system is best. But remember, the biggest cell phone distraction isn’t the phone itself – it’s the conversation. Keep conversations brief and light, or pull over if you can. Your reaction time is much slower when talking and driving, so allow more space between you and the car ahead of you. Know your local Bend laws – it may be illegal to be on the phone. Never text while driving! This has already caused many deaths and injuries over the last few years.

And if you really think you have to shave, change your clothes or put on make-up while driving – you’re wrong. Just start getting ready earlier so you have enough time to finish those things before you drive around Bend.

Marshalls Automotive
2110 S Highway 97
Redmond, Oregon 97756
541-548-5239

Remember, driving is probably the most dangerous thing you’ll do all day – so don’t make it any worse. Use these tips to keep you and your loved ones safer behind the wheel.

Redmond Customer Detective Work

One might say the most challenging part of being an automotive service technician at Marshalls Automotive in Redmond Oregon is diagnosing a problem before it can be fixed.

Cars are made up of a bunch of complex systems. There usually could be a number of reasons for any given symptom. So it’s challenging to track down the actual cause of the problem. And it can be frustrating for the vehicle owner because it can take time and money to get to the bottom of a problem. If it’s not something obvious, it’s easy for the customer to focus on the fixing and not the diagnosing.

Let us introduce you to something we’ll call Customer Detective Work – that is helping your Redmond Oregon technician find clues to what’s wrong.

We start with the detective basics: What, Where and When. Play along with me. You come in to Marshalls Automotive and your car is making a funny sound.

• Q: Where’s the sound?
• A: Around the right front wheel.
• Q: What kind of sound?
• A: Kind of a clunk, clunk sound.
• Q: When do you hear the sound?
• A: When I turn and accelerate.
• Q: Right and left? Forwards and back?…

Do you see where we’re going? You’re gathering additional information to help your Redmond Oregon technician know where to start. Based on your car and the tech’s experience, he’ll know where to look and can start with the obvious suspects.

You can see how that would be more helpful than dropping the car off with a note that says “making a funny noise”.

When you think you need to bring a vehicle in, make some notes about the problem. Rather than just saying “it’s leaking”, tell the tech the color of the fluid, and approximately where under the car you see the puddle.

Things like ‘the car is stalling or sputtering’ are often very hard to diagnose because they’re intermittent. They may not happen every time you drive and usually aren’t happening when you actually bring the car in. So, it is a big help for you to describe what’s happening in as much detail as possible.

Your Redmond Oregon technician at Marshalls Automotive will need to be able to duplicate the problem if possible so he needs to know details, like ‘it stalls after it’s been driven for about 20 minutes and I go over 50 miles an hour’.

If the tech can experience the problem personally, he’s better able to make a diagnosis and repair. And, then test to see if the repair solved the problem.