Automotive News & Information - Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive

Our fleet truck customers do not need to spend valuable time in the shop with transmission issues due that could have been avoided by servicing their fleet vehicles based on their owner's manual recommendations! Especially if it is simply changing a clogged filter, changing fluids or clutch issues! Our transmission technicians here at Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive in Clarksville believe that service = saving high repair bills! Therefore, we believe in a proactive approach!

Failed engine mounts are an irritating issue to live with causing your car or truck to vibrate and you don't know why. At Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive in Clarksville, TN, we can help, no matter what type of car, truck, or SUV you drive and it is an easy issue to detect on a test drive.

There are a few indicators your engine mounts need to be replaced. For one, you can do a visual inspection, if they’re accessible enough - if they looked cracked, smashed, or dry-rotted, it’s probably time for new ones. If the engine visibly shakes while it’s running, engine mounts are also likely the culprit. However, if you are like most drivers you simply get in and drive on down the road until something is different or a light comes on! Then you call our shop for help!

Repairs are costly and we all want to avoid them including our team here at Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive! It's our job and we take it seriously. Here, it is all about keeping your car or truck serviced and looking for problems "before" they happen to avoid those high repair costs and ensuring you avoid any breakdowns when it's hot outside or cold outside as either is a problem for our Clarksville drivers! Nobody can forsee a flat tire or blowout due to running over a nail, but we can avoid some of the regular issues we see all the time such as....

When your light comes on, it is ALWAYS important to look at the issue to see if it is a problem. Especially if it is a light we all understand. Tire pressure is one we all can relate to and an easy one to look at. However, most drivers just assume the air is low in them and ignore it which is not a good idea especially when you are driving a 4x4 diesel truck off-roading and could have picked up anything and/or everything like this truck tire did.

He looked, and immediately headed over to see our technicians here at Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive.

Obviously, your brakes are pretty important. At Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive in Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive, we are here to make sure your car, truck, or SUV stops like it should.

Your brake system is made of many components that all have to work correctly for your brakes to operate seamlessly. If one thing needs to be repaired, the whole system is compromised. Brake pads, rotors, hoses, calipers, and metal lines all play a part in stopping your car. Our team is equipped to make sure all of those parts are in working order, so you can be safe on the road ahead.

When you are having trouble with your car or truck starting and you open the hood up to take a peek to see this....you'll see what an overly corroded battery looks like. This happens naturally over time on vehicle battery terminals. If you are like 99% of normal Clarksville drivers, you don't check your oil or your battery so you don't keep an eye on the amount of corrosion that's building up on your car or truck battery. Here at Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive, we do and there are solvents that we can use here in the shop during a battery maintenance service that will help slow the corrosion process but nothing that can prevent it 100%. Way before it gets to this point, we will be suggesting you consider replacing the battery.

It doesn't matter if you are driving a car or truck, jeep or SUV, a diesel 4x4 or a classic when those dash warning lights go off the first thing you do is think "how bad is it?" and "how much will it cost me?" followed quickly by "when was my last service visit?"!! Driving your vehicle longer safely is all about getting it serviced based on what your vehicle manual recommends and these warning lights are alerting you to a situation that requires your attention.

While not all warning lights are a sign that disaster is imminent, no warning indicator light should ever be ignored!

Here at Tony Kennedy's Crain's Automotive in Clarksville we often do diagnostics and sometimes the problem is obvious after hooking the car up to the computer and reading the codes. However, sometimes it isn't obvious during a test drive or after hooking it up to all those computer programs! You know there is a problem and a Check Engine Light is on with the fleet customer telling you the car has been having issues starting and the light has been going off and on depending on several factors. No pattern, no simple answer but the problem becomes obvious when you start following the "threads of the issue" thanks to all that ASE Technician training.