The Auto Skills Center has helped the Redstone community save money on simple car repairs and maintenance for years. With some new equipment and their professional expertise, they are ready to save people even more.
"We've got a lot of great new equipment to help us do what we've already done better," Bill Woosley, Auto Skills Center business manager, said. "We're also getting equipment to offer services Redstone has never had before."
New equipment is arriving almost daily at the center's Entac Circle location. Some of the new additions are already up and running. A new alignment machine had its first customer two weeks ago. As word has spread, the calls from people wanting to use it have been pouring in.
"People saw the photo in the Rocket of the first customer to use the alignment machine," Woosley said. "We've had lots of calls. We had three or four alignments done yesterday afternoon alone."
They have a new semi-downdraft paint booth. Each service bay will soon have new air hoses, lights, power cords and fully stocked Snap On toolboxes. A new tire changer and balancing machine are on the way.
"The balancer has road testing where it will perfectly place your tire on your wheel so that you need less weights and the tire will run better," Woosley said. "It uses a laser to position the weights."
Tubing benders for exhaust work are scheduled to arrive within the next few weeks.
During the heat of summer, their air-conditioner service is very popular. For $35, the professionals at the Auto Skills Center will inspect a car's air-conditioning system for leaks. Their specialized equipment will check the refrigerant levels in the vehicle as well. The only way to truly measure the coolant level, Woosley said, is for the machine to remove the coolant from the vehicle. If it needs more coolant, they can then return the original coolant to the vehicle before adding more. This is where using the Auto Skills Center can save patrons a lot of money over outside providers.
"We only charge for the coolant we add above what you already had," Woosley explained. "A lot of places charge for a complete recharge, including what was already yours."
Regardless of how many bells and whistles a car has, there is one light that makes every driver shake in their boots - the check engine light. It can signify something as simple as an improperly replaced gas cap all the way up to severe engine damage. For $15, less than a third of what an outside provider charges, the center can provide a computer diagnostic report in minutes.
"We have the top of the line, state-of-the-art diagnostic machine. It will test any vehicle whether it's European, Japanese, American or even Russian. It will test your transmission, computer and body sensors, too. We'll tell you what it is," Woosley said. "A lot of the time it's something simple."
Perhaps one of the most valuable and money-saving services the center offers is for the car you don't own yet. Woosley encourages anyone considering buying a car to bring it to the center beforehand for an inspection. Center technicians go over each vehicle carefully, checking for possible problems. Popping the hood and kicking the tires is no substitute for putting a car on a lift so that professionals can get nose-to-nose with a vehicle's major systems.
Summer intern April Smith learned that lesson firsthand last week. She brought in a used car she had purchased just two days before. Its glossy, clean appearance and low mileage made it look like a good buy. However, the professional scrutiny of the center's experts found enough things the average consumer would never think to check or recognize.
"There is serious dry rot damage to the tires," the center's Mark Nation told her. "The tread could come loose at any moment. It's really not safe."
Damage to multiple systems on the vehicle's underside made them wonder about the car's history. Drainage holes and other factors made them suspicious that the vehicle may have been submerged or flooded in the past.
"Without a Carfax report I can't confirm it though," the center's Dennis Fitzgibbons said.
Woosley encourages anyone shopping for a vehicle to ask for such a report before signing anything. If the seller is hesitant to provide one, it should raise a red flag.
"If they won't give you one, just walk away," Woosley said.
Since the purchase was still within state lemon law time limits, Smith was headed back to where she bought her car with the center's official report in hand. Grateful for their thoroughness, she planned to return the vehicle and get her money back.
"My family is in Virginia," she said. "I took someone with me, but we didn't see any of this. I just wish I had brought it here sooner."
The Auto Skills Center is open Wednesday through Friday from 1:30 to 10 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. They are closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and all federal holidays. For more information on their services, call 955-7727 or visit redstonemwr.com.
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