At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we understand that maintenance is the difference between a truck that makes it to the million-mile mark and a truck that doesn’t come close. Here are some tips to keep your truck in shape for many miles to come.

The operation of your transmission depends on your hydraulics. Even if that sounds like a foreign language to you, at Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we speak the automotive language. We want you to understand what we're talking about, so here are the basics of the hydraulic functions behind your transmission.

If you drive a vehicle with more than a few miles on it, there’s a good chance you’ve noticed an occasional drip underneath it that leaves spots wherever you park. Identifying what is leaking from your car will help you determine whether or not it’s a cause for concern, and what to do about it.

There are seven liquids a car can possibly drip: oil, gas, brake fluid, transmission fluid, gear oil, water, and coolant. How do you tell the difference? This article aims to help your know-how.

Repairs are costly and we all want to avoid them including our team here at Hipps 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 Simpsonville 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....

Something will go wrong with your car, truck, or SUV eventually. The important thing is knowing what to do, and how to deal with it. Just knowing what to do in a situation often means the difference between a quick repair and thousands of dollars worth of work. If you see steam coming from under the hood, it’s important to deal with it appropriately and quickly. Here’s what’s going on, and what to do, from Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC.

Exhaust systems are one of the most neglected aspects of most vehicles. Exhaust pipes, catalytic converters, and mufflers are exposed to heat, emissions, and road damage. While your exhaust system is fairly simple and straightforward, these conditions mean it is inherently prone to rust and damage. As a result, this system is often one of the first systems you will have trouble within your car.

We know you’re busy. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we also know that while there are certain issues with your car, truck, or SUV you can ignore for a while, some of them shouldn’t wait. While serious issues are often obvious, sometimes they aren’t - ball joints are one such case.

Does your steering wheel feel like it’s fighting you when trying to drive in a straight line? Does your truck turn too aggressively when you try to go one direction, and poorly when you try to go another? There are a few possibilities as to what it means if your truck resists going in a straight line. Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville has the answers for you.

Once your transmission has been replaced and you’re shifting smoothly once more, you’ll probably want to keep it running smoothly. Here are some tips from Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC to help keep you reliably on the road.

Trucks aren’t like cars...your average personal vehicle usually holds about 5 quarts of oil, and you are supposed to change it every 3-5k miles. However, the same logic doesn’t apply to large trucks. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we know how important proper oil changes and diagnostics are to keep your truck on the road, for hundreds of thousands of miles. Here’s what you need to know:

Trucks aren’t like cars...your average personal vehicle usually holds about 5 quarts of oil, and you are supposed to change it every 3-5k miles. However, the same logic doesn’t apply to large trucks. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we know how important proper oil changes and diagnostics are to keep your truck on the road, for hundreds of thousands of miles. Here’s what you need to know:

Sometimes it is EASY to see if your car or truck needs to come into our shop for professional repairs! 
1.  You see steam rising from the engine!
2.  The Check Engine Light is on!
3.  The engine starts, but there is an odor that is not right.
4.  You hear grinding or thumping noises.

Ride quality is an essential part of your driving experience. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we strive to keep your truck as smooth and comfortable to drive as the day it came off the lot. Your shock absorbers play a huge role in ride quality; here’s what you should know.

Coolant flushes are an important maintenance procedure, necessary for keeping your truck reliably on the road. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, we know that coolant flushes are a key aspect of preventative maintenance that goes a long way.

Nothing works if your transmission doesn't work!  Simply put you are going nowhere without it and it is the one thing that both car and truck drivers alike never think twice about until it really acts up or they have no power or simply don't move forward.  Most of us have a newer car or truck with an automatic transmission in it vs. a standard transmission so do not notice that it is slipping gears until the problem is really serious so the question is how do you get the most out of your transmission?  The obvious answer is to take care of your transmission with scheduled service per your owner's manual recommendation but we have put together a simple checklist for our Simpsonville drivers to help them become "transmission aware" as it were.

At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we know the key to making your vehicle last; good maintenance. An overwhelming percentage of the problems we see, especially the really catastrophic ones, are a result of poor maintenance. While properly maintaining a vehicle can seem like a bit of a hassle, it is absolutely worth the payoff. Good maintenance is the only difference between a car that lasts 80,000 miles and a car that lasts 400,000 miles. Preventative maintenance and repair when a problem occurs are your two concerns, and both will keep your car on the road far longer if observed properly.

Don’t you hate it when potholes sneak up on you? There is a lot of money being spent on vehicle damage due to potholes. Do you know what parts of your car could receive the most damage? Hipps Automotive is the leader in Simpsonville, SC for the service and repair of automotive tires. We know the kind of damage that can be done, so if you suspect something is wrong with your car or truck, it’s always a good idea to stop by so we can take a quick look.

Your car’s radio and headlights, plus a slew of other important functions, are powered by an electrical current generated by your vehicle’s engine. A vital part of generating electricity is having a place to store it while it’s not being used. This is where your car battery comes into play. The battery of your vehicle holds electrical energy while the car is off in order to help the engine turn over and create a spark to start internal combustion. Without a working battery, your car will not be able to start. If you allow our team here at Hipps Automotive to perform proper maintenance, an average car battery can start your car reliably for roughly four years.

At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we see our fair share of warning lights and dashboard notifications. If your ABS light is illuminated, here’s what you need to know.

Once you know what's in your transmission, and what’s connected to it, it’s much easier to understand how it works. Let's take a look at how it all comes together. At Hipps Automotive in Simpsonville, SC, we want to make sure you know how your car works so you can keep it in great condition.