High gas prices have hit most of our budgets in the Saint Louis area. If increased fuel costs are consuming a bigger portion of your budget, you may be tempted to skimp in some other areas – like scheduled maintenance at Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis.

According to news reports and industry studies, you’re not alone. Nine out of ten personal vehicles on the road have at least one maintenance or repair item that hasn’t been done. Some of these items are serious safety concerns. Others are just more likely to affect the cost of operating your vehicle in Saint Louis.

In this area, we can take a lesson from professional vehicle owners: fleet owners and operators like trucking companies and delivery services. Because their livelihood depends on it, they have gotten scheduled maintenance down to a science. And the last thing they skimp on is regular maintenance.

Why is that? Well, for one thing they know that routine maintenance prevents expensive repairs and costly breakdowns. They also know that a well-maintained vehicle uses less fuel.  For them, even a small decrease in fuel economy may mean not being profitable.

Here are some Lawler and Balthasar services that could potentially save you some gas in Saint Louis: Fuel system cleaning, transmission service, differential service, wheel alignment, oil change, tune-up.

Ring any bells? Is there at least one thing on the list that hasn’t been done for your truck?

Let’s suppose you chose to spend one hundred and fifty dollars and get caught up on some of these services and that they combine to improve your fuel economy by fifteen percent. What would that mean to your pocketbook?

Well, the average personal vehicle is driven about twelve thousand miles a year. If you get twenty miles per gallon in your truck, over the course of one year you would pay for the hundred and fifty dollars’ worth of service and save an additional hundred and sixty five dollars if gas is at three dollars and fifty cents. If gas is four fifty, you would save two hundred and fifty-five dollars. And you’d rack up savings of three hundred and forty five dollars with gas at five and a half bucks.

Gas Price   $3.50   $4.50   $5.50

20 MPG        165      265       345

From this you can see that the more fuel costs, the more it pays to take care of your truck. Some of us drive trucks for work or recreation – or want a large SUV for family needs. A fifteen percent improvement in fuel economy can generate huge savings – six hundred and sixty dollars a year if gas is four fifty a gallon. Take a look at this table to see where your savings could lie.

Gas Price   $3.50   $4.50    $5.50

10 MPG       480       660        840
20 MPG       165       255        345
30 MPG         60       120        180

So catch up on those services you’ve been neglecting. Talk with your friendly Lawler and Balthasar advisor about your truck’s needs. Get a couple done now and a couple next time. Chances are you’ll save a lot of money on fuel this year – and a lot more on repairs in years to come.

Give Mark Balthasar a call at Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis.

Lawler and Balthasar
314.371.2741
2741 Locust Street
Saint Louis, MO 63103

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Your truck cooling system’s job is to keep your engine cool. Coolant (also called antifreeze) mixed with water flows through your engine and absorbs heat. The mixture then flows out to the radiator where it’s cooled by air flowing over the radiator. From there the cooled mix circulates back through the truck engine to absorb more heat.

Coolant, or antifreeze, is specially formulated to keep your engine safe in a wide range of environmental and operating temperatures in Saint Louis.

Without coolant, the truck’s metal engine parts would expand so much that the engine would seize up and stop running.  Expensive parts could be broken or warp so badly they would have to be replaced at Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis. It could even be so bad that the whole engine is ruined and has to be replaced.

Also, if it’s freezing outside in Saint Louis, the water in your engine could freeze while your vehicle is sitting out in the MO cold. This is why you check coolant levels frequently and have your cooling system inspected for leaks. Also your manufacturer has a maintenance requirement for draining and replacing your coolant. These recommendations can vary widely, so check your Saint Louis owner’s manual or ask your service advisor at Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis.

The reason you need to change the coolant is that it has additives in it to protect the cooling system. As you can imagine, with all the heat, the cooling system’s a pretty harsh environment. The additives keep the fluid from becoming corrosive and damaging the radiator and other Saint Louis cooling system components. Over time, the additives are depleted and the coolant just has to be replaced. A simple pH test can measure the coolant’s acidity.

You may have noticed that there are different colors of antifreeze at Lawler and Balthasar: it is very important that you use the correct type.  The different coolant types are different colors so you don’t mix them up.  Manufacturers use different materials to make the cooling system, and they require different types of antifreeze to protect them.

So check with your friendly Lawler and Balthasar service advisor or owner’s manual for the right kind because using the wrong coolant can void the warranty for your truck cooling system.

Ask us about battery service, cabin air filter and alignment.

Give us a call

Lawler and Balthasar
314.371.2741
2741 Locust Street
Saint Louis, MO 63103

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

A lot of people in the Lovejoy area want custom wheels. When you do this yourself (over the internet . . .) you could run into trouble if you’re not careful. Sometimes they just don’t fit right: The tires rub in turns or over bumps. Consulting a tire professional at Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis can ensure you get the right fit for your truck. First he’ll ask you a series of questions about your driving needs and what you want in your new wheels.

Now, not every wheel can go on every vehicle. Care must be taken so that tires and wheels are not too large or that the wheel is centered too far towards the outside or the inside. If you don’t want to make any modifications to your truck, you would need to focus on a wheel and tire combination that would fit. With trucks, some Saint Louis people like much bigger tires so they need a suspension lift.

Also, most Saint Louis people don’t realize that you need to keep the rolling diameter of your new tires – that’s the overall height of the tire – very close to what came from the factory in order for your anti-lock brakes and stability control systems to work properly.

The truck computers that control these systems are calibrated to a certain size tire. When you go bigger or smaller, the computer doesn’t know what changes you made so it can’t tell how fast you’re going. This, of course, means it sends commands to the brakes and traction control that are based on the wrong sensor information. If you go with a different rolling diameter, your truck vehicle control computer can be reprogrammed for the new tire size. At Lawler and Balthasar, we can give you information about control computer reprogramming.

Either way, there are hundreds of wheel and tire choices to choose from in Saint Louis. You can pick the style of wheel you want and then talk with your Saint Louis tire professional about how big the wheel should be – and select the right tire to meet your style, performance, ride and handling needs – and the best way to do all this is to have your friendly Lawler and Balthasar tire specialist see your truck in person so mistakes are not made.

At Lawler and Balthasar, we also offer air conditioning service and cabin air filter.

Give us a call

Lawler and Balthasar
314.371.2741
2741 Locust Street
Saint Louis, MO 63103

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

When all of a vehicle’s wheels are lined up exactly with each other, your wheels are in alignment. Hitting a road hazard in Saint Louis or even just the normal bumps and bounces of everyday MO driving can cause your truck wheels to be out of alignment. This can lead to expensive premature tire and suspension wear.

Here are some alignment basics from Lawler and Balthasar:
The first angle is called toe: do the wheels point in towards each other or away from each other at the front of the tire.
The next angle is called camber: do the wheels tip in or out at the top.
And finally, there is castor. Castor measures the angle where the front axles attach to the vehicle.

The ideal alignment for your truck was designed by its engineers. Lawler and Balthasar alignment service starts with an inspection of the steering and suspension – so see if anything’s bent, broken or worn out. Then the Lawler and Balthasar technician will look at tire condition. From there, the truck is put on an alignment rack and an initial alignment reading is taken. The wheels are then aligned to manufacturer’s specifications.

Your owner’s manual probably has a recommendation for how often your truck alignment should be checked – usually every couple of years. If you suspect an alignment problem with your truck, get it checked at Lawler and Balthasar before you suffer expensive tire or suspension damage.

Give us a call

Lawler and Balthasar
314.371.2741
2741 Locust Street
Saint Louis, MO 63103

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

The Check Engine Light strikes fear into the hearts of some Saint Louis drivers and is totally ignored by just as many. Just what it means is a mystery to most of us in MO.

First, if your truck check engine light is flashing, that means that something is wrong that could cause severe damage to the catalytic converter or other components. Get that taken care of right away. If your check engine light is flashing, you shouldn’t drive at Saint Louis highway speeds, tow or haul heavy loads. Take it easy all the way to Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis.

If the light is glowing steadily, you should keep an eye on it for a day or two. If the light doesn’t go off, schedule an appointment with your Saint Louis service advisor to get it checked out.

Some more information from Lawler and Balthasar on how the Check Engine Light works may be informative. Most of your truck engine functions are controlled by a computer, not surprisingly, called an engine control computer. The computer is able to adjust many engine parameters for environmental conditions, engine condition and even the way you drive in Saint Louis.

In order to make these adjustments, the truck computer relies on a network of sensors to provide data. The computer knows the proper operating range for each sensor. When a sensor reading is out of range the computer runs some tests and may turn on the Check Engine Light.

The truck computer will also try to make adjustments to compensate for some readings. If it can do so, it’ll then turn off the Check Engine Light.

If the problem can’t be resolved then the light will remain on and you should get your truck looked at at Lawler and Balthasar. Your friendly service technician will plug a scanner into the on-board diagnostic port and read the trouble code stored in the computer. The trouble code will give your Lawler and Balthasar technician a starting place as he diagnoses the cause of the problem.

At Lawler and Balthasar, we also offer air conditioning service and cabin air filter.

Give us a call

Lawler and Balthasar
314.371.2741
2741 Locust Street
Saint Louis, MO 63103

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

In addition to just wearing out, Lawler and Balthasar customers need to know that suspension components can be damaged in an accident or by a hard impact – like a pothole, hitting a curb or a rock in the road.

Because the life span of shocks can vary so widely, your truck manufacturer and Lawler and Balthasar recommend periodic inspections. During an inspection, your Venice service technician will check for worn, broken or missing parts.

Signs that shocks or struts are wearing out: The tires may have a cupped wear pattern. This is from the shocks bouncing unevenly as you drive around Venice. You may notice a floaty or drifting sensation when cornering. If the front of your truck dives excessively when stopping, or rocks back and forth after you stopped, your shocks may be worn out. And if they are leaking fluid, it’s definitely time to replace them.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, come into Lawler and Balthasar for a suspension inspection. Same if you’ve been in an accident that involved one of your wheels. Worn or broken shocks can cause premature wear or failure on other truck suspension parts such as ball joints and other steering components as well. If your suspension actually fails, it could lead to a serious accident, so let us take care of your suspension components at Lawler and Balthasar.

When you replace your shocks, it’s usually a good idea to replace all four at the same time. That’ll give you more even handling. Talk with your service advisor at Lawler and Balthasar because you don’t want a big difference between the performance of your shocks from wheel to wheel, and replacing all may be the safest bet.

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Now when you hear “severe service”, you may think it doesn’t apply to you because you don’t feel your driving conditions are severe or extreme – it’s just normal everyday driving around Lovejoy. At Lawler and Balthasar, we discuss the conditions that manufacturers classify as severe so that you can make the judgment on your own driving.

• Most trips are less than four miles
• Most trips are less than ten miles and outside temperatures are below freezing in Lovejoy
• You drive in very hot MO weather
• Driving at low speed most of the time (under 55 mph)
• Stop and go driving
• Operating your vehicle in dusty, polluted or muddy conditions
• You tow a trailer, regularly carry heavy loads or carry a car-top carrier on your truck

Most Lovejoy drivers operate under severe driving conditions at least some of the time. How do you know which schedule to follow for your truck?

Carefully think about your driving conditions and decide if you should do your preventive maintenance closer to the severe service recommendation or the regular recommendation. Of course, your Lawler and Balthasar advisor can help you with your decision.

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Let’s focus on stopping in wet Saint Louis conditions. In order for a tire to have good contact with the road, it has to move the water out of the way. If it can’t move the water, the tire will actually ride on top of a thin film of water.

That’s called hydroplaning. At Lawler and Balthasar we want our customers to know that if it’s really bad, you can actually spin out of control. At best, you won’t stop as fast.

So how does a tire move water? It has channels for water to flow through. Look at a tire and you’ll see channels: channels that run around the tire and channels that flow across the tire. They’re designed to direct water away from the tire so it can contact the road better.

And the deeper the channel, the more water it can move. A brand new tire has very deep channels and can easily move a lot of water. As the tire wears down, the channels become shallower and can move less water. When it wears down enough, it can seriously affect your ability to stop on wet Saint Louis roads.

So that’s why it’s so important for Saint Louis drivers to replace the tires on their trucks when they get worn. Consumer Reports and other advocate groups call for a standard of 3/32 of an inch and they have the studies to prove it.

By comparison, you’ve probably seen the wear indicator that’s molded into tires. When tires are worn 3/32 of an inch, the tread wear bar is visible. So the recommended standard has twice the tread depth as a completely worn out tire.

And that little bit of additional tread makes a big difference. Stopping distances are cut dramatically on wet roads. A safe stop from MO freeway speeds with 4/32 of an inch of tread would result in a crash with worn out tires.

There’s an easy way to tell when a tire’s worn to 4/32 of an inch. Just insert a quarter into the tread. Put it in upside down. If the tread doesn’t cover George Washington’s hairline, it’s time to replace your tires. With a Canadian quarter, the tread should cover the numbers in the year stamp.

You’ve probably heard of this technique using a penny and Abe Lincoln’s head. That measure gives you 2/32 of an inch – half the suggested amount.

Of course, tires are a big ticket item for Saint Louis car owners. Most of us want to get as many miles out of them as we can. But there’s a real safety trade-off. It’s your choice.

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

The crankcase is the bottom area of the engine that holds the oil. When the truck engine’s running, fuel is burned to generate power. Most of the exhaust from combustion goes out through the exhaust system. But some exhaust blows by the pistons and goes into the lower engine, or crankcase.

These hot gases are about seventy percent unburned fuel. This can dilute and contaminate the oil, leading to damaging engine oil sludge. It can also cause engine corrosion in your truck. At high speeds, the pressure can build up to the point that gaskets and seals start to leak.

Madison car owners need to know that over time, the vented gases will gum up the PCV valve and it won’t work well. That can lead to all of the problems I’ve already described, oil leaks, excessive oil consumption and wasted gas.

Fortunately, it’s very easy to test the PCV valve and quick and inexpensive to replace it at Lawler and Balthasar. Even so, it’s often overlooked because many Madison drivers don’t know about it.

Check your truck owner’s manual or ask your Lawler and Balthasar advisor. If this is the first time you’ve heard of a PCV valve, you might be in line for a PCV valve replacement.

Please ask us about your PCV valve. For the price of a couple of burger combo meals, you can avoid some very expensive deep engine repairs.

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

First, the serpentine belt drives your air conditioning system. Next, the belt powers the alternator.

The serpentine belt may also run the pumps for both the power steering and power brakes. In some trucks, power steering may have an electric drive and power brakes can be vacuum driven.

And, on many vehicles, the serpentine belt powers the water pump (on some cars, the water pump is powered by the timing belt).

Your Lawler and Balthasar service technician can perform a visual inspection of the belt to see if it has any cracks that signal the belt could fail soon and will measure the amount of belt material to make sure there is enough.

Saint Louis drivers should be aware that there’s a special, spring loaded pulley attached to the engine called the tensioner pulley and sometimes an extra pulley call the idler pulley. Their job is to make sure there’s a constant tension on the serpentine belt so that it doesn’t slip. The spring can become worn and no longer provide the necessary pressure to keep the belt tight. That’s why it’s often recommended that the tensioner, and the idler pulley if so equipped, be replaced at the same time as the serpentine belt.

All in all, the serpentine belt’s an important part for the function of your truck. And it’s not that expensive to replace at Lawler and Balthasar – so it’s good to do so before it fails.

At Lawler and Balthasar in Saint Louis MO (63103) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 314.371.2741. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.