Albert Lea Auto Repair

Sometimes we hear Albert Lea auto owners say, "What's up with all this maintenance stuff? Modern cars just don't break down." While it is true that today's cars and trucks are extremely reliable, they are also becoming increasingly complicated and use more exotic materials than ever before. All that complexity demands higher tolerances for everything. For example, most Albert Lea motorists don't realize how high tech automotive fluids have become. Fluids like, engine oil, transmission fluid, coolant and brake fluid. Did you know that a modern engine would not run for more than a few months using motor oil formulas from 30 years ago? Today's automotive fluids contain a much higher percentage of additives to protect your vehicle's components from premature wear and corrosion. Time and miles march on for all of our cars. Please don't think we're using scare tactics to get you to take care of your maintenance - but here are some personal stories from AutoNetTV staf ... read more

Hey Albert Lea! Let's talk about one of our MN summertime must-haves: your car A/C. It's real easy for Albert Lea auto owners to take their car's air conditioner for granted. Just push the right buttons and out comes cool, dry, clean air. But your air conditioning system needs attention from time to time to help it keep its cool. Do you hear loud noises under the hood when you turn on your air conditioner? Do you only get cool air sporadically? If so, it is time to get your air conditioner checked at Sanderson Auto in Albert Lea.  When most Albert Lea folks hear the words "air conditioning problems", it sends a shiver up their spine. That is because the air conditioning system is fairly complex. It has a lot of parts and when it's broken, it's costly to repair. What things can Albert Lea and Clarks Grove auto owners do to prevent air conditioning breakdowns? A common cause of a ... read more

Richard Petty once told AutoNetTV, “You’ve gotta have good brakes. If you’ve got good brakes you can keep yourself out of a lotta trouble.” That’s why a regular brake inspection is on every Albert Lea driver's maintenance schedule. An inspection at Sanderson Auto will check your brake system and let you know if there are any problems. Of course, if you’re having trouble with your brakes, get your car into Sanderson Auto in Albert Lea right away. Here are some important symptoms for Albert Lea car owners to watch for: If you are experiencing any of these, it’s time to get your brakes checked. To to your cheerful Sanderson Auto service specialist. There are two types of brakes: disc and drum. Disc brakes have a rotor that’s attached to the axle. Calipers straddle the rotor, kind of like the brakes on a bicycle. Drum brakes are most common on back wheels. Both types have pads or shoes that ... read more

A lot of Albert Lea drivers have asked whether or not they should use their severe service maintenance schedule, which is listed in their car owners' manual. It can be somewhat confusing, so we decided to consult an expert. Cricket Killingsworth is from QMI/Heartland, a manufacturer of automotive products and fluids. She's been in the automotive business for 24 years and is a speaker, a trainer, and a writer. Cricket says there's so much confusion on this topic because, "Most owners' manuals actually have two maintenance schedules. Sometimes these are called 'regular service' and 'severe service'. Sometimes they're simply called Schedule 1 and Schedule 2. A severe service schedule recommends that things like an oil change, air filter replacement, and transmission service be done more often: either in fewer miles or in less time." Foreign and domestic auto makers create a specific schedule for each vehicle they manufacture. So there isn't one generic sc ... read more

The coolant system is a vital part of your vehicle. It is also the second most common cause for vehicle failures. Even though coolant system failure is fairly common in Albert Lea, it is easy to prevent. Sanderson Auto 131 West College Street Albert Lea, MN 56007 507.377.3320    507.377.3320 The most recognizable part of the coolant system to Albert Lea car owners is the radiator. It is connected to the engine with hoses and is filled with coolant. The coolant draws heat off the engine and then passes into the radiator. Air passes through cooling fins to reduce the temperature of the coolant and then it's back to the engine again. There are several ways for the cooling system failure. Most common is with the coolant itself. Coolant is comprised of water and antifreeze. The proper ratio keeps the coolant from either boiling away or freezing. Understan ... read more

Most Albert Lea motorists are too young to remember life before power steering - cranking those great big steering wheels! It was a pretty good workout. Now power steering is standard. Let's look at how it works. The heart of any power steering system is its pump. The pump pressurizes the power steering fluid that provides assist for steering. Most pumps are driven by a belt that is run by the engine - a few are electrically powered. A high-pressure hose passes fluid from the pump to the steering gear. A low pressure hose returns the fluid back to the pump. These hoses can develop leaks, so it is a good idea fir Albert Lea motorists to have them inspected at every oil change. Low fluid can damage the power steering pump. That is why fluid level is on the checklist for a full-service oil change. The fluid needs to be compatible with the hoses and seals, so check your owners ... read more

Here at AutoNetTV, we have national viewers, like your neighbors in Albert Lea, who write to us with questions or feedback. One common question we're asked is: "What is a differential and what does it do?" You may have been told by your Sanderson Auto service advisor that your differential needs service, or seen it as an option up on the service menu. Differential service at Sanderson Auto covers a lot of things, so let's first talk about what a differential does. As you drive through a turn, your outside wheels and inside wheels turn at different speeds. Kind of like the cars going around a race track - the ones driving in the outside lanes have a greater distance to travel than the cars in the inside lanes. The differential is what allows the outside and inside drive wheels to rotate at slightly different speeds so that the tires don't hop or skip while taking ... read more

The last new American cars sold in Albert Lea with a carburetor rolled out of the MN dealerships in 1990. Since then, all new vehicles here in Albert Lea and nationally have had fuel injectors. In very simple terms, a fuel injector is a valve that squirts fuel into your engine. Your engine control computer tells the fuel injector how much gas to deliver as well as the precise time it should be delivered. Of course this happens thousands of times a minute. Fuel injectors deliver fuel far more precisely than carburetors. That translates into better gas mileage and more power for Albert Lea motorists. Virtually all fuel injectors for gas engines are known as port fuel injectors because they deliver the fuel to a port just outside the cylinder. Port fuel injectors operate at about 40 to 80 pounds per square inch of pressure. A few car makers have introduced gas direct injection systems on some engines recently. These systems inject the gas directl ... read more

The automotive professionals at Sanderson Auto would like to give Albert Lea car owners an update on some of the things happening in automotive fluids. You know, cars are becoming more sophisticated everyday - and fluids such as, oil, coolant and transmission fluid are becoming more specialized at about the same pace. The Albert Lea do-it-yourselfer has to be pretty careful so that they do not actually harm their pickup with the wrong type of fluid. That is why so many MN car owners rely on the advice of their cheerful Sanderson Auto service specialist to not only get the correct family of fluids, but to suggest the formulation that is best for their car and their driving habits in the Albert Lea area. Let's start with engine oil. Clarks Grove car owners who have been paying attention, will have noticed a number of new oil weights on the MN scene in the last several years. Modern engines are built to much tighter tolerances a ... read more

Here is a questions for smart Albert Lea auto owners What is a cabin air filter? Is it: A filter for a house in the middle of the woods? A fresh, piney scent? A filter for the passenger compartment of your car? Clever you, it's 3. A cabin air filter cleans the outside air before it comes into the passenger compartment. It filters out dust, pollen, spores, bacteria, pollutants, sparrows, harmful exhaust gas and odors. These high tech filters can block particles larger than 3 microns. By contrast, a grain of sand is about 200 microns. Now not all vehicles in the Albert Lea area have cabin filters. They are fairly new on the scene in MN. About forty percent of new vehicles come with cabin air filters, but the number is growing every year. Cabin air filters can make for a very nice driving environment for Albert Lea auto owners. Your car can be a haven during ... read more