Tangent and Albany Auto Repair

Why is my diesel engine losing power? Your diesel may be losing power due to a plugged fuel filter. Your fuel filter filters out dirt and debris that is in your fuel tank. It is also a water separator. The debris can come from the filler nozzle when filling your tank. The water in your tank comes from condensation from moisture in the air. Both debris and water are damaging to your fuel system components. This can cause a lack of power, damage to your fuel injectors and your high-pressure fuel pump. It is best practice to change your fuel filter every 15,000 miles. Give us a call and let us take care of you. Happy Adventures, Heather   Check us out at https://www.facebook.com/JHAutomotiveInchttps://www.pinterest.com/jhautoincJ & H Automotive (@jhautoinc) • Instagram photos and videos ... read more

Why does my diesel have a long crank when starting? Your long crank while starting your diesel could be from a couple of different reasons. If your diesel has glow plugs, then this could be the issue. Your glow plugs over time will wear out and stop working properly. Glow plugs unlike spark plugs do not have a maintenance interval. They do not have a maintenance interval because they are only used when starting the vehicle. When they start to fail you will have a longer than normal crank or your check engine light may come on. When you have a long crank, it is hard on your batteries and your starter. Over time it will shorten the life span of your batteries and starter. This will cause them to need to be replaced.  Give us a call and let us take care of you. Happy Adventures, Heather   Check us out at https://www.facebook.com/JHAutomotiveInchttps://www ... read more

Why does my diesel need special coolant? Your diesel engine does not need a special coolant, but it does need to have a special additive added to the coolant to protect your engine.  This additive may already be built into your coolant, you need to check the label. This additive protects your engine from cavitation. The short answer is cavitation is when bubbles get forced against the cylinder wall and over time while it is minor can cause a hole in your cylinder wall. The additive helps to prevent cavitation and adheres to your cylinder walls to protect them. All diesel engines have this in common. Some are more prone to the issue than others. One of the best ways to protect your engine is by having the cooling system serviced regularly. Give us a call and let us take care of you. Happy Adventures, Heather

We get a lot of questions on if we work on diesel engines. The quick answer is yes we do. We do not specialize in any one make or model or engine. Jason has always insisted on working on the vehicles in the community. Whether it be a diesel, gas, hybrid or electric. Taking care of the people in our community is why we are here. Give us a call and let us take care of you.  Happy Adventures,  Heather

This could be due to an issue with your valve cover gasket harness. The harness has clips that are made of hard plastic. Over time this can become brittle from heat and age. When the clip come undone it can cause your pickup to have a misfire on an injector, or a starting issue with your glow plugs. This is due to a lack of connection. The fix is to replace the valve cover gasket and harness. This should solve the misfire and your pickup will run as it should. Give us a call and let us take care of you.  Happy Adventures,  Heather

First off did you start the pickup after you realized it had gas in the fuel tank? If not then the fix is typically pretty easy, we will drain and clean the tank, replace the fuel filters, refill it with diesel and it should be good to go. If you were unaware of the gas in the fuel tank and started it then we have a different route that we need to go down. The fuel tank needs to be dropped, cleaned and then refilled with diesel, the fuel filters will need to be replaced, then the fuel system bled to get the other fuel out of the system. At this point the fuel filters may need to be replaced again. At this point we will start testing each component for damage and then we will have a conversation about where to go depending on our findings. Worst case senario the engine will need to be replaced. Not the answer you wanted and it doesn't typically happen, but depending on the damage it could.  Give us a call and let us take care of you.  Happy Adventures,  Heather

We hope you're well. We are open and accepting appointments.  If your diesel is misfiring then something has gone wrong with your injectors. They could have failed due to an issue with an o-ring or the injector could be plugged. Either way it will need to be inspected, and diagnosed properly to know exactly what steps are next.  Give us a call and let us take care of you. 541-791-2886 Happy Adventures,  Heather

Your diesel engine could be blowing black smoke due to unburnt fuel. This could be due to a number of reasons including oil leaks and clogged filters. There is nothing more than a diesel engine loves more than a clean air filter. Your air filter is a simple yet vital component in your vehicle. It filters the air that goes into your engine and keep your engine clean and running smoothly.  Give us a call and let us take care of you. 541-791-2886 Happy Adventures,  Heather

Your fuel filter should be changed every 15,000 miles. This is due to the fact that in Oregon we don't always get the best fuel and many times it has contaminates in it that will cause your engine to run poorly. If you know that you've gotten bad fuel then you should have your fuel filter changed to make sure that all of that contamination is caught before it reaches your engine. Depending on the type of contamination in the fuel it could damage your injectors, pumps and other components in your fuel system.     Give us a call and let us take care of you.  Happy Adventures, Heather

We've had a lot of questions recently about what maintenance should be performed on diesel engines and diesel engines. We will be doing a weekly series specifically for diesels to address concerns and questions. If you have a questions that you would like us to answer please give a call at 541-791-2886 or email me and we will do our best to answer your questions.  Today we are going to talk about your oil change and why it's so important. I know it sounds simple and something that can be "put off" but really so important. When you go to long between oil changes then your oil gets dirty and that oil is what goes through your injectors. Dirty oil can clog your injector making it not work properly and even damage it beyond repair. We recommend that you change your engines oil every 5,000 miles to prevent this from occurring. With proper maintenance your engine will last for as long as you want it to.  Give us a call and let us take care of you.  Happy A ... read more