Tag Archives: garages in derby

Power Flex Suspension Bushes For This BMW Z4.

Suspension bushes on all cars go through tremendous stress on a daily basis, some manufactures have got the design right and the bushes can last the life of the car whilst other manufactures just didn’t quite get there!

One of the problems with BMW’s in general is the front suspension bushes. Most of the BMW range suffer with the front suspension arm bushes either failing or being so worn that it causes the car to wander on the road whilst driving and can feel unstable when braking.

Replacing the bushes with either after market bushes or genuine bushes does sort out the problem, but with the condition of the UK roads and the fact that most BMW’s come with low profile run flat tyres the new bushes can be worn out within a couple of years.

The solution on this BMW Z4 was to fit some Power Flex nylon bushes, these bushes are mainly used in Motorsport but can be fitted to road cars.

Watch this video to see just how much movement was in the old worn bushes compared to the new Power Flex nylon bushes.

On the Z4 replacing just the lower suspension arm rear bushes was enough to transform the steering from a loose discouraging feel to a nice tight direct feel that a sports car should have.

For more information on whether Power Flex bushes would suit your car or just for more information give us a call on 01332 205070

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Citroen Berlingo with ABS Wiring Fault.

A 2014 Citroen Berlingo came in to us with an ABS fault to be looked at.

First thing to do was carry out a diagnostic code read to see why the ABS light was on, the particular code for this Citroen Berlingo van related to an open circuit on the rear left wheel speed sensor.

We checked the actual wheel speed sensor for a fault but it checked out ok, next job was to check the wiring from the sensor back to the ABS pump.

Most of the wiring for the rear ABS sensors is hard to access as it runs inside the van. once we had determined that there was in fact a break in the wiring from the left rear sensor and the ABS pump (by checking continuity of the wires) it was time to start stripping the interior and physically check the wiring for a break.

After removing the passenger seats and lifting the carpets to access the wiring we noticed part of the raised carpet flooring had been trapping the ABS wiring loom between a raiser and the body and over time had rubbed through the wiring and caused it to short out against the body.

We repaired the wiring and and rechecked for continuity through the loom which we now had. Time to clear the stored fault codes and check for a wheel speed signal using the live data on our diagnostic scanner, perfect, the signal was good and the same as the rear right wheel, time to rebuild and road test.

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Audi S1 Quattro Water Pump and Thermostat Housing Replaced.

Audi’s little S1 Quattro rocket ship has had a few problems when it comes to its cooling system, this water pump – thermostat housing has had seven re-designs since its original design due to failing water pumps and leaking joints.

Water pump – thermostat housing buried under everything!

To replace the water pump – thermostat housing on the Audi S1 Quattro is a fairly big job, we have to:

Drain the cooling system
Disconnect fuel lines and cooling hoses
Remove inlet manifold stabiliser bars
Remove the complete inlet manifold
Unbolt water pump drive cover
Remove the water pump and housing
Clean all surface faces and hose joints
Rebuild using genuine parts and all new seals
Refill with anti freeze and bleed cooling system
Road test and re-check

The water pump is driven off a small drive belt running from an internal engine shaft and should be replaced along with the water pump – thermostat housing.

New pump fitted, just got to rebuild now!

Once all the work was carried out and all final tests done the car was handed back to a very happy customer.

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Citroen DS3 Cooling Fan module / Resistor Fault.

This little Citroen DS3 came into us to have a look at due to the engine cooling fan running at full speed.

Firstly we carried out a Diagnostic Code Read on the vehicle, this didn’t help as it had no codes for anything let alone for the cooling fan fault!

Secondly through our Diagnostic Scanner we can operate certain modules on the engine to help us fault find, one of the modules is the high and low speed cooling fans.

When we operated the cooling fans only the high speed fan would work, this gave us a place to start, we removed the cooling fan control module to find that the resistor for the low speed fan had burnt out and required replacing.

When we rang the dealer they had six on the shelf! Always a good sign as common problem parts are always well stocked at dealerships.

Once we had replaced the cooling fan control module (resistor) we carried out another module test using our Diagnostic Scanner and it worked perfectly on low speed and high speed.

After a quick road test to make sure the fans worked with the air conditioning and when the DS3 was up to temperature it was time to hand it back to a very happy customer.

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Humbled by our customers response.

This was our first week back to work after having to close the business and furlough all the staff on the 31st March due to the Corona Virus and what a crazy week it has been.

In the middle of May I made the decision to re-open the garage on the 1st June and put this information on our website and social media platforms.

My initial plan was to only bring out a couple of members of the team from furlough until we had enough work to get everyone back at full pace.

The general response from our customers was amazing, we managed to fully book the first week of June within a couple of days by just using social media and e-mail, at this point I decided we would need the whole team back at work to cope with this work load so we started back on the 1st at 100%.

This was slightly worrying as in the back of my mind I thought we may just be busy for one week and then it would go quiet again and I would have to start furloughing staff again which I really didn’t want to do, how wrong was I.

Monday 1st June was our first day back and by the end of the day we had almost fully booked the following week! Once our customers had realised we were back they were booking in thick and fast, a few customers had been to other garages whilst we had been closed due to necessary repairs or break downs but then rebooked with us and wanted the work checking as they trusted our opinion implicitly.

I hope all businesses manage to return in the same way we have and start to get back to some kind of normality and hopefully get the economy rolling so we can start enjoying life again once this is all over

I would like to say a massive thank you to all of our customers new and old for sticking with us through these very hard and testing times, without whom this Covid19 pandemic may of finished Aarons Autos.

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

How has the Corona Virus affected your business?

Covid19 aka the Corona Virus has affected businesses worldwide from small self employed cleaners to large multi million pound corporate companies, but how has it affected you so far?

Well here at Aarons Autos it has affected us massively!

When the lock down was announced at the beginning of March we made the decision to stay open, firstly to offer our services to key workers to help them stay on the road and do their jobs and secondly to try and help Aarons Autos ride out the possible rough times ahead.

We managed to do this quite successfully till around the 25th March but once the government announced the MOT extension scheme we lost between 30-40 booking over night! Causing us to question whether it was feasible to stay open.

In the last week of March it became apparent that it would not be feasible to stay open as we struggled to make the business pay, understandably customers were very hesitant to leave their homes to come to the garage if they didn’t have to.

The decision was made that I would keep the garage open on my own to offer our services to those important key workers and Furlough the rest of our team, but unfortunately after only doing three jobs in the first week of April this too was an unsustainable choice and I decided to Furlough myself too.

This was weird! Aarons Autos was established in 2004 and had never closed its doors for more than a week since then, so to close them now not knowing when or even if they would open again was a very strange and slightly disturbing feeling.

Once off work my concerns seemed to grow as I had nothing to do! Being furloughed as a Director of a Limited company is not easy, I was not allowed to do any work which could be seen to be promoting my business, I could only carry out basic Directors roles for example paying wages and paying VAT, this felt strange.

I applied for the Government grant offered to help small businesses cover their running costs whilst they were closed which I was accepted for and received promptly into my business bank account, this gave me a glimmer of hope as it would allow me to keep the garage closed for up to two months before it would start affecting me personally.

Sat at home for two months.

Once I felt the business was as safe, as it could be, we start a life unlike anything we have ever known. I have always worked, yes I have had holidays but nothing like this, Lock Down – you can’t go out, you can’t see your family, you can’t see your friends, you have to queue two metres apart to get essential food – this was strange.

Have I had the virus?

In early February I was very ill, I had a fever, a cough, struggled to breath and food had no taste. When I went to the Doctors they told me I had a mild case of Pneumonia, they gave me some antibiotics and sent me on my way. Once I had finished my course of antibiotics I felt no better, in fact I felt worse! I couldn’t sleep, every time I moved I would cough until I felt sick.

I spoke to the Doctors again and they told me it could take six to eight weeks for this to clear if it was Pneumonia, so i waited and it did, after seven weeks all I had left was a slight cough.

My question is, was this the Corona Virus? At no point was I told too quarantine or get a test done? If I had those symptoms now what would happen?

Anyway back to how the Conona Virus has affected my business. After two months of painting, gardening and sun bathing (my favourite bit) it was time to plan when to re-open Aarons Autos, even though some garages re-opened mid way through May I decided to hold till the 1st June. I didn’t want to re-open, have a busy week and then it goes quiet, and then have to contemplate furloughing my team again.

After deciding when to re-open we shared it on our website and our social media platforms and the response was quite overwhelming, our customers started to rebook work instantly allowing us start filling our diary and plan our return.

We have taken all the necessary safety precautions including installing a perspex barrier between customers and staff, supplying hand sanitizer and latex gloves and will be operating a 2 metre distancing rule where possible.

I know not everyone has had an easy ride, this virus has taken loved ones from us and affected us mentally and financially but we have to look forward, look to the future control what you can control and we should all get through this, this next year is uncertain but I plan to get through it and I hope you do to.

Re-opening on 1st June 2020 to the General Public.

We hope everyone is taking care and doing their best in this strange and worrying time. Trying to fight this Corona Virus is a bigger job than most of us initially thought but we do seem to be getting there and some of those business’s that were affected by Covid19 are starting to re-open.

Aarons Autos will be re-opening its doors as of the 1st June 2020 and once again be offering its excellent ‘Services’ to the general public and local business’s.

We are putting several measures in place to keep our customers and staff safe from the Corona Virus;

We are fitting a Perspex screen across the whole office counter which will have a small cut out for customers to pass keys through and for them to make payments (card payments are preferred but we will accept cash)
We will be enforcing a one customer in reception at a time rule and customers will not be able to wait in the reception area whilst large repairs are being carried out.
All customers vehicles will be wiped down with anti bacterial wipes pre and post work being carried out, technicians will wear gloves whenever possible.
We will be supplying small hand sanitiser bottles for customers and technicians to use after any transactions.
We ask that customers will leave out their ‘Locking Wheel Nut Keys‘ and ‘Service Books‘ where required so we do not have to search around the car trying to find them (reducing contact inside the car).

If you have any other worries or queries please don’t hesitate to contact us.

MOT’s have been extended, but we are urging customers to have their MOT’s carried out as soon as they possibly can (or feel safe enough to do so).

There are several reasons we are suggesting getting your MOT done sooner rather than later;

18 months is a long time for your car to go un-checked, if you had not had your car Serviced just before the ‘Lock Down’ and your MOT was due how do you know if your tyres, brakes or suspension are safe!
Garages are going to be inundated with MOT’s that are actually due on the date you want yours doing (12 month MOT’s) so imagine the difficulty for the garage to deal with double the amount of MOT’s, this is why we suggest contacting us early so we can spread out the work load.
Think of your local Garage. If NO MOT’s are carried out in April or May what will happen next year? Garages will have less work in those months and possibly struggle.

If you would like to book in for the first week of June please contact us by email info@aaronsautos.co.uk or our Facebook page ‘Aarons Autos Derby Ltd‘ if you would like to contact us after the 1st June just call us as normal between 8.30 – 5.00 and we will be happy to help.

Finally, stay safe and take care.

Top Again for Aarons Autos by Three Best Rated.

Dear Aarons Autos,
Congratulations! You are now listed as one of the Top 3 Car garages in Derby. We would like to Thank You for providing consistent high-quality service in your area of business. Our review team either approved or updated your business listing using our rigorous 50-Point Inspection which includes everything from checking reputation, history, complaints, ratings, satisfaction, nearness, trust, cost, and general excellence.

Three Best Rated® was created with a simple goal to find you the top 3 local businesses, professionals, restaurants, health care providers, etc., in your city. We display only businesses that are verified by our team since customers deserve only the best.

That’s not all… Businesses do not pay us to list them ever. You do not pay us for the listing at any time. We believe that local businesses provide better and personal services locally. Local businesses know your city better since they live there too. Our policy is free to list because if you can pay to list, then is it really the best business?

It has been an honour and a pleasure to work with you. Share this exciting news!

Cheers,
Melinda Crawford,
ThreeBestRated®

These are the emails we love to receive, and the best bit is we have no input what so ever, all the information comes from YOU! our customers. Click the Award to see the results.

We would like to say a massive thank you to all our customers new and old without your trust, feedback and reviews we would not be able to get the ratings we have.

“Thank You”

Aarons Autos car service garage.

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Scared Drivers Avoiding Annual Servicing.

Number of misguided motorists that avoid servicing over cost fears is “alarming”

Half of UK drivers worry about unexpected car bills, survey finds

Millions of motorists are avoiding car maintenance over fears of unexpected problems, with many admitting that they avoid getting their car serviced in case vehicle faults are found.

Around half of UK drivers (47 per cent) worry about having to pay for unexpected car repairs.

The survey of 2,000 motorists also found that a quarter (24 per cent) of those who worry about unexpected problems say this uncertainty is putting them off getting their car serviced.

The research suggests that drivers are paying hundreds of pounds to pass an MOT, with five per cent paying £1,000 or more to get their vehicle through the test.

Further MOT analysis reveals that around 40 per cent of cars fail their MOT at the first attempt.

Lauren French, product manager at RAC MOT Assist, the company behind the research, said: “Clearly, taking a car in for a service or MOT can be a nerve-wracking experience with many drivers concerned about what might be uncovered, and the unpleasant financial consequences that can result.

“But it’s even more alarming that this experience is enough to put some people off getting their car serviced in the future.

“Just how many people are driving vehicles on the UK’s roads that they know have problems?

“The best advice to any driver is to keep on top of servicing and maintenance work – the quicker problems are identified, often the cheaper they are to remedy.”

“Spread your Servicing and MOT costs.”

Here at Aarons Autos we advise our customers to spread their servicing and MOT if cost is an issue, this way they can plan for the up-coming months.

If the car has any advisories on the MOT they can save money and have those carried out with a ‘Service’ six months later, and also if we find anything on the service they can save and have the work done when there MOT is due.

Aarons Autos is the best car servicing garage in the world

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info.

Range Rover Rear Hub Bushes.

Range Rover Vogue Rear Hub Spherical Bushes.

This Range Rover came into us after failing its MOT on the rear hub lower spherical bushes having excessive movement.

Once we had removed the wheels and disconnected the lower suspension arms we could get a good look at the bushes and what we had to deal with.

The cir-clip that holds the bushes in place had completely rotted into the hub not allowing us to remove it in the conventional way, which meant we had to improvise!

range rover hub bearing — Cir-Clip rusted into the bush and hub.

As you can see from the above picture we had to grind into the bush until we reached what was left of the Cir-Clip to be able to remove it.

range rover swivel joint — Weaken the bush.

After grinding enough of the bush away to access and remove the Cir-Clip we cut into the side wall of the bush to make pressing it out easier.

Voila, bush pressed out using our bearing and bush pulling tool, hole cleaned up and greased ready for the new bush to be pressed into place.

Here you can see the bearing and bush pulling tool being used to press in the new bush, once the new bush is pressed in we just need to fit the new Cir-Clip and then begin the rebuild.

RANGE ROVER BUSH FITTED — New bush and Cir-Clip fitted.

New bush fitted and a new Cir-Clip fitted, after a quick rebuild the car was ready to go back to the customer for its MOT retest.

At Aarons Autos no job is to big or to small, we will en-devour to repair any car that comes through our doors.

Aarons Autos is the best car servicing garage in the world

Your friendly car garage in Derby

Give us a call at Aarons Autos for more info