Diesel Engine Repair & Diagnostics

Regular maintenance is absolutely imperative if you want a diesel engine to last, and every diesel owner will probably encounter some pitfalls and problems. Although diesel engines require no ignition tune-ups and tend to last longer without major repairs than gasoline engines, they do require regular low-cost maintenance, mostly in the form of frequent oil and filter changes. The urea injection systems that reduce nitrogen oxide emissions also need refilling, which is usually done as part of regularly scheduled maintenance.

As a rule, you shouldn't try to clean or adjust a diesel's fuel injectors yourself, but if you maintain your vehicle, they can last 100,000 miles or more. After all, truckers have always preferred diesels because they find them to be tough, reliable, and cheap to run and maintain.

Typical maintenance tasks include:

• Changing the lubricating oil
• Changing the air filter
• Changing the fuel filter

Diesel engines are built more ruggedly to withstand the rigors of higher compression. Consequently, they usually go much longer than gas-powered vehicles before they require major repairs.

I am often asked to diagnose vehicle problems over the phone, if only it was that easy. Computer generated fault codes only go a certain distance to point in the direction of the problem. The innovation of the computer generated fault diagnosis has led to a generation of mechanics that have often lost sight of the basic operating principles of the diesel engine. Unfortunately the fault codes don't always pin point the problem but rather bring up an array of codes that could be either this or that. That's where Everything Auto & Trucks experience comes in. Being told: "we have tried this and it has not helped" or the best one, "sorry there are no fault codes so we can't find anything", is extremely frustrating and can be costly.

Diesel engines are extremely sophisticated and difficult to diagnose. At Everything Auto & Truck, we have the most sophisticated tools and equipment to get your diesel pick-up truck running well. Our experienced mechanics love a challenge. We will do everything in our power to get you back on the road as soon as we can, with updates on progress along the way. Don't trust just any mechanic with your diesel engine, it will end up costing more in the long run. We have built our business on great customer service and quality. We pride ourselves on doing whatever it takes to make the customer happy.