Automotive Industry News & Information - Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair

In the diesel world, "blow-by" is a term you're bound to run across at some point if your line of work involves diesel-powered vehicles of any kind. What is blow-by, what causes it, and how concerned should you be? At Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, MO, our fleet maintenance and diesel technicians see it on a regular basis. Here we'll take a quick look at blow-by, correcting it, and preventing it.

What is Blow-By? - Diesel blow-by is a term that describes an event of lost compression into the crankcase. Blow-by occurs whenever a burnt or unburnt fuel and air mixture escape from the cylinder and past the piston rings and into the crankcase. In a perfect world, the piston would be sealed tightly in the cylinder, able to move up and down but keeping all the air and fuel and exhaust that enters or exits the cylinder during the combustion process out of the crankcase. As you'll see, this perfect world doesn't exist, but it is important to minimize the amount of blow-by in a diesel engine.

Changing the oil in big trucks and commercial vehicles is an expensive, but necessary, part of keeping your vehicles going. You don’t want to wait until it’s too late to change your oil, but changing it too early can be a waste of time and money. Having your oil tested regularly helps us to hone in on exactly how often your oil needs to be changed, to optimize reliability and efficiency.

If you drive a car with a manual transmission, you’ve undoubtedly been told that you’re supposed to downshift to slow down, instead of relying completely on the brakes. But what is the science behind that, and does it matter? Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City explains.

Diesel engines are known for their reliability - that’s probably at least partially why you bought one. However, like all things, diesels and their components wear out eventually. Fortunately, the technicians at Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, MO have you covered. Here are some fuel system issues to watch out for.

Transmissions are one of the more mysterious and unknown aspects of automotive engineering, to most people. In the modern world, this is more true than ever, making technicians with expertise in transmission maintenance and repair more of a necessity than a convenience. At Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, our technicians have the skill, knowledge, and equipment necessary to diagnose and repair any sort of transmission issue you may be experiencing with your Dodge, Chevrolet, or Ford diesel pickup.

The differentials on your Ford, Chevrolet, or Dodge diesel pickup are some of the hardest working components on your truck. At Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, our technicians are experts in maintaining, repairing, and replacing differentials, keeping your truck working reliable just as much as you do.

Your brake master cylinder is an integral part of your brake system. When one fails, some odd symptoms may arise, and it may be difficult to diagnose. Here’s some information to help you decide if yours has gone bad. At Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, MO we want you to know what to look out for so that you can be safely on the road.

Flat tires are a huge inconvenience. The only thing worse than having a flat on your way home from work is having to wait on a tow truck to come to get you. Donnie Braun & Sons Auto Repair in Jefferson City, MO wants to give you some tips on how to change your own tire so that you can keep money in your pocket and get your car back on the road.