The more you can be an active participant in your vehicular well-being, the more you’ll enjoy your overall automotive experience. That’s why we built this Information Archive- to give you the tools you need to take control of your transportation life.
Our Most Requested Auto Info Articles
There are some issues in the auto repair business that come up constantly, whether they’re mechanical problems or questions about the way the auto industry operates as a whole. We try to explain our take on these issues in our newsletter (see below) and blog posts. Some articles are pretty detailed, but they’re all written for a general audience of people without much automotive knowledge. Here’s specific information on some of the most common questions we have…
What’s wrong with a Quickie Lube?
Don’t Eat Off This Menu! (The drawbacks of menu-driven auto service)
“How Much Is THAT Gonna Cost?”- Estimates and Overlapping Work (with Timing Belt Example)
Where The Rubber Meets The Road- Tire Basics Boot Camp
Why Do We Charge For Diagnostic Time?
Hey, What’s That Chalk Mark On My Tire? Why proper torquing matters
Timing Belt Boot Camp
Used Car Buying Advice
Synthetic Oil vs. Conventional Oil
Salaried vs. Commission in the Auto Repair World
Flat-Rate Pay Affects Your Technician’s Work
How Can I Get The Most Value Out Of My Car?
“Free Check Engine Light Scan”- The Scan Scam!
Don’t Roll The Dice With Your Brakes
Cleaning Dirty Fuel Injectors
Who Are Those Guys Behind The Computers? Service Advisors Keep Us Running Smoothly
Reconstructed (Salvaged) Car Titles (From KGW-TV)
Tips On Finding a Quality Auto Shop
Our Shop Newsletter- Your Car Matters
One of our biggest resources is our shop newsletter, Your Car Matters. We’ve been writing our in-shop newsletter for many years, and it’s become a strong source of information on just about every phase of automotive ownership, repair, maintenance, and the auto service industry. There’s also a LOT of useful (and some not-so-useful) material you wouldn’t expect in a newsletter of any kind. You’ll find the complete collection of all our back issues here, but here are the general sections you might be interested in…
Feature Articles- Most of our main automotive articles, articles about big events, environmentalism, politics and such are listed by name in our archive, so you’ll probably want to search those by subject. We also have recurring columns as well, and you can search all the content for these by clicking any of the columns below…
Tom’s Tidbits- Tom writes all those KPOJ radio spots, so you may know he’s a little opinionated. Those opinions don’t stop at your radio, though. Tom’s Tidbits brings you the same no-holds-barred thoughts you’ve come to expect on a different issue in the news each month. Much of the subject matter finds its way into our radio spots, so watch this space for a glimpse of tomorrow.
Drew’s Kitchen- One of our Service Advisors, Drew Pearson, has a talent for cooking. Several years ago he started a monthly newsletter column sharing some of his favorite recipes from the simple to the exotic, from the everyday to the holiday. It quickly became the most popular section of our newsletter, and now all Drew’s culinary expertise is gathered together at your fingertips.
Department of Reality Studies– Science and education are too often devalued these days, but from the unimaginable expanse of the multiverse to the unique beauty of our tiny blue marble, science is an adventure. The way to grow understanding and appreciation of science is to show why the ride is so exciting, and Reality Studies lets us share our own excitement with you!
Shop Talk- We’re not your regular automotive shop, so there’s a lot of shop-specific issues we like to keep our clients posted on. What’s the easy way to make a left onto Tacoma when you’re heading home? Why don’t we have technicians working on Saturday? Are we going to pave the parking lot? Keep your fingers on the pulse of Tom Dwyer Automotive with Shop Talk.
Health Notes- Even your vehicle isn’t as important as your health. Our Health Notes section helps keep you operating at your best. You’ll find information to help keep you healthy without popping pills. We’re not doctors so don’t use this information in place of medical advice, but you’ll find some great conversation starters for the next time you see your doctor.
Book Spotlight- If you’re standing in our lobby waiting to pick up your car, chances are that you eyes will fall on one of the most popular features of our shop- our book, bumper sticker, and video library. In each newsletter we’ll shine the spotlight on a different book that you might be interested in covering topics from health to politics, economics to science, and much more.
The Funny Page– Taking over from our monthly Humorousness column is The Funny Page. You’ll find jokes, riddles, cartoons and pictures, pretty much anything to bring a giggle. We don’t do raunchy or obscene, but humor is very subjective and if we DO run something that offends you, please remember that we probably weren’t trying to.
Popcorn Shorts- This is our catch-all column for all the “short but important stuff we couldn’t fit anywhere else.” This is the place to go when you have time to kill and you want something different. We can’t guarantee that everything will be interesting to you, but it was all interesting to us and we thought you’d get a kick out of it as well.
External Links
Surprising as it may be, there are people other than us that are creating solid information that you can use. Here are links to some of the sites that we find the most useful. Got a suggestion for one we’re missing? Email us, and help us make this Archive more useful for everyone.
