If you’ve owned a vehicle long, particularly one with a few miles on it, you have probably encountered a peculiar smell that grabbed your attention. Scents that you encounter while driving (emanating from your vehicle, not the horse farm down the road) are indicators of your vehicle's health and often the first warning that something may be wrong. Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna has assembled this list to prepare for you for the next time you smell something odd, so you’ll know what’s going on next time you notice a funny smell.

Your brakes have a lot to do with how your car drives. Brakes are a frequently neglected item on a lot of people’s checklist, and many drivers on the road have subpar brakes and don’t even know it. A car that brakes well and brakes correctly are just as important as acceleration, handling, or any other aspect of a vehicle’s drivability. A car with brake issues has the potential to be a far more enjoyable ride when fixed.

Obviously, your brakes are essential. However, it’s easy to neglect or ignore brake issues, and even miss them altogether; as long as the car, truck, or SUV still stops, many people don’t see the need to have their brakes serviced. From Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, here are some common brake issues, and why you should fix them.

At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA, we enjoy providing you with useful knowledge that pertains to the ownership and maintenance of your car, truck, or SUV. You may have noticed more and more electric cars hitting our roadways over the past few years. With that in mind, here’s a brief, but interesting look at the history of electric cars.

Exhaust issues are extremely common, no matter what type of car, truck, or SUV you drive. At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA, we can get your exhaust back in shape in no time.

Exhaust issues tend to be neglected, and we get that; there are just other parts of your vehicle that you'd rather focus on. Besides a clogged catalytic converter, there isn’t much risk of damage from a bad exhaust system - it negatively affects your gas mileage, and the sound is annoying, but other than that, it’s an issue many people learn to live with. 

At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, we know how irritating an issue with your car, truck, or SUV can be, even if it doesn’t immediately affect your vehicle’s performance. One such problematic issue, the excessively loud radiator cooling fan, is a common plague many automobile owners will experience.

There are many parts and systems outside of the car’s transmission that is equally as important as the parts and systems inside the transmission. Without them, the transmission won’t do much. There’s no way to transfer power from the engine to the shafts, disengage it to shift the gears, or power the differential without them. Just in case you need us, at Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA, we can help keep your transmission in top shape, but here’s what you need to know.

At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, we know that some of the most elusive issues with any car, truck, or SUV are often caused by the simplest of malfunctions. While you might consider a gas cap fairly innocuous, it can actually malfunction too, prompting a check engine light on your dashboard.

If your car, truck or SUV is experiencing engine issues and you are concerned about having to purchase a new vehicle, our technicians at Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna have an answer that will save you money and help you maintain the value of your vehicle. Today's vehicles cost more than they ever did and you typically have a loan for a much longer time period - yet the warranty it seems stays relatively short!

Here, we believe in treating your vehicle as if it were ours and if your engine is not reliable we can replace it with a JASPER replacement engine with a nationwide parts and labor warranty! It is what we would do with our car, truck or SUV instead of trading it for a higher payment or a vehicle we didn't like as much as what we had!

Automotive windows are one of those things that you take for granted, until something goes wrong. One of the more irritating issues a window can develop, is dislocating from its track while attempting to roll it up or down. Why does this happen, and how do you fix it? At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA, we’ve got answers to your questions and solutions to your problems.

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 Fortuna 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 Ponci's Diesel Center, 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. 

Your drive belts are simple but integral components to the function of your car, truck, or SUV. At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, belts are one of the first things we assess when looking over a vehicle, as they alone are in charge of operating your AC, water pump, alternator, and power steering.

Manual transmissions are generally more reliable than automatic transmissions. They don’t have as many parts, aren’t as complex, and can take a lot more abuse. However, if an issue is allowed to persist, more and more damage to surrounding components on your manual transmission will occur. Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA can help you take care of your car as soon as you notice a problem.

If your car, truck or SUV is experiencing major engine issues, the technicians at Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, CA have you covered. You hear the engine knocking when it decides to start? Is there smoke pouring from your truck’s exhaust pipe? Whether you’re burning oil, your engine is on it’s last leg or has simply given up altogether, we can help. And if you’re not sure what you need, we can help with that too.

At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, we know that transmissions are one of the greatest technological marvels of the automotive world. How does a standard shift transmission work? Why should you care? Our expert technicians here at Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna have the answers.

When you get in your car, truck, SUV, or minivan to drive and the A/C does not work what could be wrong? Here at Ponci's Diesel Center, we have some simple answers to help you understand how your vehicle A/C system works. The first question we are asked is "Why isn't my air conditioner blowing cold air?" Let's talk about what could be happening. 

Your drive belts run everything - your AC, power steering, alternator, and water pump are all dependent on the belts that turn them. At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, our goal is to keep your truck maintained, so you’re never stuck out on the road. Drive belts are a critical part of that goal.

When driving around town, your vehicle's engine needs clean air to burn the fuel – and it needs a lot. In fact, a typical vehicle needs about 216,000 gallons of air for every tank of gas. All that air passes through a filter that catches the dust and dirt. Eventually, the filter gets completely full, and because the filter can only hold so much, dirt starts getting through. At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, we want to help you get the best air quality in your vehicle, but first, we want to explain the process of where this dirty air is going. 

You know how often to change your engine oil; but what about the gear oil in your standard shift transmission? Here’s a short guide, from Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna.

At Ponci's Diesel Center in Fortuna, efficiency is a concept that interests us. While your fuel economy is largely dependent on what kind of car, truck, or SUV you drive, there are a variety of tips and tricks to get the most bang for your buck. We’ve provided a few of our favorites here.