Castro Valley Auto Repair

Adams Autoworx offers a wide range of Bridgestone tires. This popular brand is designed to meet a variety of driving requirements and to tackle specific road conditions. Having the right set of Bridgestone tires makes it easy to navigate local roads or mountain highways. When you come to Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley, our friendly service advisors will first strive to understand your driving needs and patterns. We will first consider your driving style and the conditions you often encounter – daily commute, hills, frequent Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe trips? You might prioritize comfort and silence if you generally drive in cities. Bridgestone touring tires are a great option for city drivers since they provide good traction and durability and a smooth and quiet ride. For people who regularly drive on highways, fuel economy and durability are the main concerns. Designed to lower rolling resistance, Bridgestone Ecopia fuel-efficient tires can help your car run more economicall ... read more

Have you ever wondered where to keep your Chevrolet Silverado 1500 in peak condition? Look no further than Adams Autoworx. We are the premier Chevrolet service and repair facility in Castro Valley, and we can keep your Chevy in top shape for as long as you want to own it. We specialize in ensuring your Silverado performs at its best, whether you're tackling rough terrain or cruising through town. Our friendly team is here to make sure your Silverado provides you with reliable service – so whether your Chevy needs new brake pads, oil change, check engine light diagnostics, transmission service, or major engine repairs, our nationally ASE certified technicians will get your Chevy back in top shop. If you own multiple Chevrolet Silverado 1500 vehicles, we offer priority fleet service. Our technicians have decades of Chevrolet repair experience, and can diagnose and repair engine misfires, ignition coil problems, rough idling, can perform spark plugs replaceme ... read more

Oxygen sensors are used in modern vehicles to provide engine control module (ECM) information about the gases coming out of the combustion chamber, as well as the catalytic converters. When the oxygen sensor goes bad, ECM gets incorrect information and cannot properly adjust air-fuel mixture going into the combustion chamber. As a result, you may notice following symptoms: Check engine light comes “on” Engine accelerating in spurts Reduction in gas mileage And yes, black smoke coming out of the tail pipe due to excess fuel entering the combustion chamber. So if you see black smoke coming out of the tail pipe of your vehicle, there is a good chance that an oxygen sensor is the culprit. It is important to get this condition repaired, before excess carbon in the exhaust causes catalytic converter problems. Call Adams Autoworx to make an appointment, or make an appointment on our website. Your vehicle will need professional help to get back in top shape.  

Yet another (annual) study from CarMD.com provides a glimpse of the 2023 car repairs – specifically top 10 check engine light–related repairs. CarMD.com has been providing us with check engine light repair insights for over a decade. CarMD.com analyzed over 15 million failures reported in 2023 and recommended repairs. At Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley we see our share of check engine light-related repairs so we are always eager to study the results reported by CarMD.com. Sadly, catalytic converter replacement took the first spot on the list – with precious metals at or close to all time high prices, stealing catalytic converters (which contain platinum / rhodium) is still a lucrative activity. As for vehicle age, 2007 vehicles were found to be the most likely to need check engine light diagnostics and repairs. So here are the top 10 check engine light repairs as rep ... read more

Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley offers comprehensive automotive maintenance, factory recommended services, diagnostics and repairs. As we write this blog post, various surveys reveal that more and more vehicle owners are keeping their vehicles longer. As vehicles age, more and more parts can fail, and so everybody should be cognizant of the need to inspect engine mounts. As your vehicle ages, engine mounts can break. Usually it starts with just one, but then the remaining mounts are forced to work harder, and deal with greater range of motion because the engine is no longer fully secured to the body of the vehicle. As a result, more engine mounts can fail. Engine mounts not only keep the engine attached to the body of the car, they are also tasked with minimizing vibrations. When an engine mount fails, you may feel increased vibration and increased noise. As more engine mounts fail, these symptoms will become even more pronounced including unusual noises such as rattling or clunking ... read more

Ford ended Mercury production in 2011, but there are still plenty of Mercury vehicles on the roads. At Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley we continue to support Mercury owners, whether you own a Mercury Grand Marquis, or the Mercury Sable, or the last Mercury model – Milan. Our nationally ASE certified technicians will diagnose, and repair any problem your Mercury might present. As your Mercury ages, regular oil changes and regular service grow in importance. Oil change not only prolongs engine life, but also gives us an opportunity to find developing problems – we perform a free digital vehicle inspection with every service or repair. You will receive an electronic copy of the result – so you are always up-to-date on the overall condition of your Mercury. Whether you drive a Mercury Montego or a Mercury Mountaineer SUV, our technicians will provide your vehicle with everything it needs to serve  you faithfully for many years. Any repairs we perform on your vehicl ... read more

When your Acura is ready for a bit of TLC, onboard computer will display a service code. The “A” in the code means that your vehicle needs and oil change and oil filter change. The numbers that follow letter A indicate additional maintenance items. For example “1” stands for “rotate tires”, so if your Acura display A1 code, it means oil change and tire rotation. “A5” code means oil change and coolant flush and replacement. Below is a list of the codes you might see at some point: 1 – check tire pressure, and rotate tires 2 – replace dust and pollen filters, and check the drive belt 3 – replace transfer fluid and transmission fluid, where applicable. 4 –  replace spark plugs, replace timing belt ( if applicable ), inspect valve clearance and water pump ( if we are replacing the timing belt, we recommend water pump replacement as well since the majority of the labor cost is already covered because of the t ... read more

We are big fans of Subaru vehicles, but they occasionally come with an issue or two. The 2011 Subaru Forester has two engine oil issues that owners need to be aware of:   first and foremost, the engine can consume too much engine oil while operating, the other issue is oil leaks. Excessive oil consumption is a known problem for a number of vehicles, and unfortunately, 2011 Forester is one of them. It can be 1 - 2 quarts between oil changes, but sometimes as many as 3-4 quarts. If you own a 2011 Subaru Forester, we highly recommend checking engine oil levels every 1000 miles and topping it off if necessary. This will keep your vehicle from depleting the engine oil. Oil leaks are always a concern, and unfortunately older Subaru vehicles are oil leak prone. An oil leak can be particularly dangerous if your Subaru also has a tendency to excessive oil consumption. If the two are combined, and the owner does not monitor engine oil level, the vehicle may run out of engine oil &nda ... read more

Mini Cooper is manufactured by BMW and just as some BMW models have oil leak issues, so do some Minis. At Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley we are Mini Cooper fans, and can get your Mini repaired and ready to serve you well. We have extensive Mini Cooper repair experience, and our nationally ASE certified technicians are equipped with the latest digital diagnostic tools that allow them to get to the root cause of any problem your Mini may exhibit. When you suspect that your Mini is leaking engine oil – because of the oil spots in the driveway, strange smells coming from the engine when it’s hot, or if you notice oil level dropping significantly between oil changes, or worse, if you need to top off engine oil between oil changes – give us a call and have your Mini checked out by a professional mechanic. We can confirm if your Mini indeed has an oil leak, and find its location so we can give you an accurate estimate of the repair costs.     There are some ... read more

Seeing a telltale sign of something dripping on the garage floor or in the driveway is not a happy occasion. Fortunately, most of the time it's merely water condensation from your vehicle's air conditioning system. So if the fluid you see is colorless, odorless and not oily, it may not be a problem. However, there are some brake fluids that are clear as well, so to be 100% sure, have your vehicle checked out at Adams Autoworx in Castro Valley and we can tell you with 100% accuracy the nature of the fluid – better safe than sorry. What Else Could be Leaking? Typical vehicle has a surprising number of fluids, here are some that might be dripping on the floor of your garage:     Coolant leaks: Depending on the vehicle make, the engine coolant color will vary, but any of these colors can indicate engine coolant: green, orange, yellow, turquoise, pink, blue or purple     Transmission fluid leaks will results in following colors on the floor o ... read more