My Auto Shop Info Hub

Your timing belt doesn’t run the clock in your car. It runs a way more important part – your engine. Like many other engine components, it wears out. When your car is running, it’s spinning at extremely high speeds, in a very hot place. I don’t really like running in a very mild place, imagine […]

The manual is a sacred thing among car people. More of an annoyance to everyone else. Fair enough, anyone who’s been stuck in rush hour for an hour in a manual will also be question the reason for its existence. Connecting car and driver, in such a raw and engaged way however, is the main […]

In your car you’ll either have a manual transmission, or an automatic transmission. Each of these takes the revolution per minute of the engine, and transfers it to the wheels via the drivetrain. As your engine needs different gears to move the car at different speeds, your transmission determines at what speed the engine moves […]

We’ve all seen the signs telling us not to leave valuables in our cars, but we sometimes assume it’s more probable that something will be taken if we take it to the beach, amusement parks, or on a hike through the woods. There will be occasions when you forget something in the car before leaving, […]

Lane merging might be viewed as a pain in the neck, and not to be too reductive, but sometimes it literally is a pain in the neck having to twist your head to see what’s happening around you. That said, it’s an excellent way to exercise your patience muscle, one of those challenges that leads […]

Ah, the ol’ battery change – it sounds so simple doesn’t it? When it comes to getting a new battery in your vehicle, you’re probably focused on two things. The first being the obvious, is this going to mean my car actually starts up? And secondly, how long is it going to last? For a […]

With the abundance of car modification options that are available today, and their relative affordability (depending on what you’re looking at!), it can get pretty tempting to start making personalised upgrades to your vehicle. When it comes to vehicle performance and safety, cosmetic alterations are generally harmless and aren’t anything to worry about. When engines […]

Giving your car’s paintwork a wash is one of the easiest ways to take care of your vehicle. With most of the My Auto Shop team’s cars being covered with dirt dust from summer road trips, we’ve put together our tips on keeping your car’s paintwork at its best. Start by cleaning your wheels Before […]

There was a time in my life when driving around with the fuel light on with fairly common practice. Looking back now, I feel it was probably more an indication of my priorities at the time, of which keeping my car in good nick was pretty low on the list in those student days. There’s […]

If you’re towing a trailer or caravan, one of the worst things that can happen is for your trailer to wobble precariously back and forth, eventually falling on one side and dragging your vehicle down with it. Trailer sway can be a major problem for many trailer owners, especially with New Zealand’s winding roads, and […]