Author: 1A Auto Team

How do I know that my Car is Overheating?

Temperature Gauge:

You’ll notice the needle on your dashboard engine temperature gauge (that’s the one marked with H for hot and C for cold) creeping up.

Plastic or Rubber Smell:

Plastic parts and rubber hoses in your engine bay may give off smells under intense heat.

Bubbling Sound:

A Bubbling sound coming from the engine bay might be a sign of hot, expanding coolant overflowing from the radiator to the coolant tank.

Ticking Sound:

A ticking sound from the engine could indicate that your oil is low, but can also be a sign that your oil is thinned out from overheating.

Steam:

If steam is starting to come out from under your hood, you most likely have an overheating problem.

What Should I do?

Read More

You go out to your car in the morning or at the end of the work day, and there are drops of liquid, or worse yet, a big puddle, underneath it.  You wonder what’s leaking and how bad is it? You don’t necessarily need to call a mechanic or have the car towed off the bat. With a little knowledge and some testing you can figure out what the fluid is what to do about it.

First you’ll want to capture the leaks. It will be hard to get a good look at them on dark pavement, so put down a piece of butcher paper, newspaper, cardboard or aluminum foil underneath your car to catch the leaks. Park the car somewhere flat and level, and weigh down your drip catcher so it doesn’t get blown away by the wind. Once you’ve caught some of the fluid, it’s time to identify it. To do this, you’ll have to use your senses of sight, touch, and maybe even smell.

Identify where the leak is coming from

The first clue you’re going to use to identify your leak is where it’s coming from. If you have a rear wheel drive vehicle (common for pickup trucks, some sports cars, and most classics), a leak coming from the rear of the car is most likely differential fluid. A leak in the rear could also be coming from the gas tank.

Read More

It’s almost time for 1A Auto’s annual charity car show in Pepperell, MA. We started doing this car show back in 2009 to raise money for the Multiple Sclerosis Society of America and the North Middlesex Athletic Boosters.

We wanted to give back to our local community and a great national cause. The North Middlesex Athletic Boosters award scholarships to our local high school students and support athletic programs. The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America connects people with multiple sclerosis with products and services that help improve their lives. Multiple sclerosis affects about 400,000 people in the US and 2.5 million people worldwide.

With our love of all things automotive, we thought, what better way to raise funds – and have a little fun – than a car show. The show’s been growing ever since. Last year, was our biggest year yet, with over 225 cars. We plan to build the event into New England’s biggest car show.

Join Us!

When: Sunday, July 23^rd at 9:00 am – 1:00 pm

Where: Pepperell Town Field, 4 Hollis Street, Pepperell Massachusetts

Price:  $10 per vehicle
$20 for Vendors
Free For Spectators

Rain or Shine.

Pets are welcome

Check out Facebook for full details and see what people are saying!

Last year we spotted a lot of awesome cars like this GTO Judge:

These Beetles:

This GTR:

And this crazy contraption:

If you’ve got a sweet ride to show off, we’d love to have you join us.  All makes and models are welcome. And if you just want to check out the show, kids are welcome and entrance is free. It’s sure to be a great time.

General Motors uses letter codes to signify which chassis layout, or body type, the vehicle has. This is useful since GM consists of many different makes such as Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Buick, and Cadillac. Many of these brands share platform types with each other. It isn’t some secret, alphabetic code that GM fans are privileged to. It is really quite simple. Each platform has changed somewhat over the years, so we’ll walk through them in more or less chronological order.