Mr C's Suspicious Behaviour Puzzles The KAM team

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. We have seen a surge in sales for Maxxi’s tyres due to our competitive prices which are still much lower than our competitors.
This week we got a visit from Mr C whose car had endured a nasty accident and it was in dire need of repair. However Mr C was scarce with the details of the accident and was reluctant to give many details. He also talked with a great matter of urgency when enquiring the estimated time in which the car would be restored. The car in question was a green Jaguar X type which up until the accident had been in pristine shape. Now there was a scratch on the right front door, a dint in the bonnet and the back was in less than desirable condition. ‘So when can you have it done for Kev? Its just that I need it done in 2 weeks if that’s possible’ With no further explanation after taking Mr C’s details we dispatched him in one of our courtesy cars and got to work.
Now this is not one of our usual stories in which we have to find out the problem but
instead this was a case for our body repair work shop. Yet the mystery of Mr C’s shady behaviour remained. Why the urgency and reluctance for detail?
A week later the work on the Jaguar was complete and we called Mr C and he was thrilled. ‘Wow I wasn’t expecting it to be done so quickly I’ll be down as soon as possible’. After picking up his car Mr C still did not divulge any details but we had a satisfied customer and that’s what we aim for here at KAM.
A few weeks later we got a visit form an older gentleman and upon asking for his details it was revealed that he was the father of Mr C. He had recently seen expenses made on his wife’s credit card to KAM servicing and had come to investigate. ‘I just came to say what a great job you did on my car, when I returned from my holiday recently I found that the scratch on the side and dint on the front had been repaired’. The mystery was explained, the first Mr C being unfamiliar with an automatic accidentally reversed into the garage resulting in the disfigurement of his father’s beloved Jaguar. In a panic Mr C bought it to our reliable garage in the hope of getting it repaired before his parent’s return. Mrs C wanting to help her son, and gave him the payment details needed just so long as the car received a prompt recovery. Thankfully Mr C senior saw the funny side and was so happy with the work we had done he booked it in for an MOT and service.
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Heanor, Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley workshop and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.
Until next week faithful reader, drive safely and keep it shiny side up.

Mr D recieves winning service from KAM

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. You can leave your comments, questions and here or our twitter at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
This week’s diagnostic dilemma comes courtesy of Mr D who visited our Heanor depot for the first time. Mr D, a plumber had been experiencing some problems with his Vauxhall Vivaro and through a recommendation had landed on our doorstop. ‘Hi Dr Kev my neighbour said you can fix any problem and my van is of full of them’.
The problem at hand was an appearance from the EML (engine management light) and the car cutting out intermittently when Mr D was driving. ‘I don’t know what’s going on with it I have to travel to people’s houses and this is a major disruption’ said Mr D exasperated. Now before we could let Mr D drive off in our courtesy car we had to get all the details. The possible cause for the problem became instantly apparent when all the details were given. Mr D explained ‘well I took it to a garage recently for an oil and filter change, it was a very cheap price so I didn’t really think twice’. It so transpired that just minutes after driving away from the garage the EML had appeared and the cutting out began. Mr D further explained how after returning to the garage to explain the problem they offered no additional help. They were not fully equipped to check and fix the problem. ‘They were a tyre, exhaust and lubrication centre and they said that I would need to go to a garage to fix the problem. They were most unhelpful’ Mr D added.
Well there would be no such treatment from our dedicated KAM team and our Vauxhall expert Big Al got straight to work. Firstly hooking up the van to our state of the art diagnostic machines and awaiting the results. After just 10 minutes Big Al returned to the reception with a grin across his face. ‘Come on Kev that was just too easy’ he said. The machine showed that the EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) valve was stuck open causing a vacuum leak resulting in the stalling and cutting out of the van and appearance of the EML. The EGR valve helps the car to burn fuel efficiently by recirculating a portion of your exhaust and running it through the combustion process again. The open EGR floods the combustion chamber resulting in the car suffering a number of faults. This occurred as the previous centre had used a diesel flush to flush the cars system. Too much of the diesel treatment had caused the EGR valve to open and stay jammed allowing NOX gases to build up. So the mystery was solved. Big Al gave the EGR a clean and placed it in the right position. The EML needed a simple reset, after a road test and a clean from Dynamo Dhillan the van was back to perfect health.
Mr D returned but was rightfully sceptical as he had been mistreated before by a garage and we promised him that he id not have to pay if the problem was not fixed. After taking the car for a test drive to make sure all was well a smile adorned Mr D’s face. ‘Wow I can’t believe it; it drives like its brand new, I can’t believe it thank you so much Dr Kev.
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.

Mr G's Brake Teaser

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. You can leave your comments, questions and queries here or on our twitter at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
This week’s story comes courtesy of Mr G who visited our Heanor depot in his Ford Fiesta. ‘Kev help my car is losing major fluid, I don’t know where it’s going. You have to fix it’. It turned out that on weekly inspections of his car’s levels the hydraulic fluid level had continued to decrease. This had lead to Mr G having to top up once a week and going through a lot of hydraulic fluid along the way. He continued ‘the problem has persisted for over 6 months now; I thought it would go away but its still happening’. Mr G was losing money from all the hydraulic fluid he had bought over the last 6 months and now needed a solution to this costly problem.
Strong Arm Steve was elected to take on the mammoth mystery and got straight to work. The first task was to check the brake performance to see if they were affected by the loss of fluids. This involves checking the test metres and general use of the brakes. The tests were done and Freddy passed with flying colours, the brakes were working fine. So what was the cause of the leakage? We would need to investigate further. We then removed the wheels to visually inspect the breaks at the front and rear. Again we were surprised as the breaks looked brand new, so where to look now? It seemed as though we were never going to find the problem, the brake fluid was leaking but there was no problem with the brakes. This was a conundrum and the team were running out of ideas. We have never let a mystery go unsolved and this would not be a first. So it was time to bring in the big guns our very own ‘Ghostbusters’, the elite motor team- myself, Super Shaun and Diagnostic Dan. Dan who has been consistently unravelling mysteries since his arrival here at KAM was ready to take on the car gremlin. He attached the car to one of our state of the art machines and proceeded to do a pressure test on the breaking system. After half an hour he came back looking deflated and relayed the results ‘nothing, not so much as drip. There is no leaking’. ‘Oh no Dan have you failed to find the problem. That is a surprise’ said Shaun jokingly.
So another dead end and we were no nearer to finding out the actual problem. Now here at KAM we do refrain from doing a road test if the brakes are faulty. This is for the safety of us and others on the road in case of possible accidents. However the brakes were in good working condition and so a road test could be done. Dan, still eager to find the problem was first behind the wheel and off he went. He returned in 10 minutes hoisted the car up on the ramp and proclaimed ‘I’ve found it Kev, I know what the problem is’. We were slightly sceptical after hours of inconclusive testing had he really found the problem in 10 minutes? ‘It turned out that the brake problem was actually a clutch problem’ said Dan. Just to get technical for a moment the break and clutch share the same hydraulic fluid reservoir. This means that there was a leak but it was not due to the brake, but the clutch. The leak was coming between the gear box and the engine and the fluid was being lost through the clutch. We removed the gear box and we found the clutch slave cylinder to be leaking. So all along the problem had been the clutch which Dan had recognised as not being in good working order on the road test. The clutch was replaced and then after a wash from Dynamo Dhillan, Freddy was ready for collection. Yet it was till a mystery how Mr G had not noticed the clutch to be awkward when driving. ‘I suppose I had just gotten used it. I don’t drive very much. I’m so glad you’ve fixed it and saved me so much money. Thanks Dr Kev’
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.

Mr G's Astra Attack

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. You can leave your comments, questions on our twitter at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
This week we received a visit from Mr G who as a long time customer here at KAM came straight to our Heanor depot with his mechanical conundrum. As he burst through the door a startled Supreme Sunny was first to ask what problems beseeched Mr G’s Vauxhall Astra. He had been in for a service just 6 months ago, what could be the problem? Had our team failed to notice something? ‘It’s using a lot more fuel recently, much more than usual and I am making the same amount of journeys. I don’t understand’ said Mr G looking puzzled. After further enquiry Mr G also revealed that a roaring noise had also been resonating from the car recently and maybe these two problems could be connected. When all the details were taken we dispatched Mr G off in one of our courtesy cars and got to work.
Tasmanian Trev was on hand to fix this week’s problem and hoisted the car up onto our state of the art ramps and began to take a gander. First the Vauxhall Astra was hooked up to our state of the art diagnostic machines and the mystery started to unravel. This week there was no Diagnostic Dan as he was off on a breakdown call and so we would have to solve this one without him. A short while passed and Tasmanian Trev had a familiar look upon his face as he announced ‘this is easy Kev, the exhaust is blown. I’ll get right to fixing it’. After another look round a look of disbelief adorned Trev’s face, as another car dilemma presented itself. The exhaust catalyst which is held into place by 3 bolts was holding on by a thread with 2 bolts missing. Now I must bestow some cautionary words for all drivers as there has been an increase in exhaust catalyst thefts. This is due to there worth which can be very high and their valuable metal components which can be very lucrative to a wannabe thief. So this is just a warning to be careful about where to park your car and to keep an eye on it if possible. The tell tale signs were there on Mr G’s car and it became obvious that someone had tried to take the catalyst converter, but luckily had been interrupted. Super Shaun got to work first by welding the exhaust to the exhaust catalyst, which was in need of refitting and bolting back up. We did this to save Mr G money as other garages would have simply replaced the components we at KAM think about the customers needs first.
The exhaust catalyst is used to control the emissions that are released from the car and due to a faulty wire leading to the O2 sensor the fuel problem could be explained. As the O2 sensor was faulty and so the ECU was using more fuel than usual. The roaring noise was explained by the loose exhaust catalyst. With all the work done and a clean from Dynamo Dhillan we were ready to see if we had succeeded. As Supreme Sunny turned the key a gentle purring resounded from the engine and the boys look on relieved.
When Mr G came to pick up the car he was thrilled to see the car in good working order and thanked the KAM team for their unflinching dedication to the job. ‘Thanks so much Dr Kev, I’m so glad you fixed it so quickly’. We also explained the threat of thieves and that if he saw anything suspicious then to report it to the police. ‘Wow you really are my heroes’ he laughed and with that he was off.
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.

Your Dedicated KAM team

I have been on the Good Garage Scheme website recently and would just like to thank all of our faithful customers for the plethora of wonderful comments made. They have praised our hard working staff, our low prices and our efficient and thorough service. Remember we are here to cater to all your motoring needs whether that be a cam belt catastrophe or a simple service KAM is here to do it all. We are also armed with a team of specialist just waiting to attack those car gremlins and make your cars road worthy once gain. So if you are looking for low prices, a dedicated team that will solve any diagnostic dilemma look no further than KAM. A garage for all ages that won't take advantage of our ever growing customer base. For all of our great comments from all of our depots on the good garage scheme visit the site here at:
http://www.goodgaragescheme.co.uk/search_detail.php?recordID=4230

Mrs Y's Fabia Fiasco

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. You can leave your comments, questions and queries at http://drkev-kamsurgery.blogspot.com or on our twitter at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
This week we received a visit from Mrs Y who as a long standing devoted customer to the KAM team had called in with her Skoda Fabia which was suffering from steering problems. ‘The steering is light one minute, and then heavy the next and the power steering has gone completely. You have to help me Dr Kev’. Those infamous words uttered yet again and our team would step up to the challenge. However after taking Mrs Y’s details one problem remained as on that very day the KAM garage was absent of all courtesy cars. Due to our busy schedule all had been loaned out and Mrs Y was in dire need as she had a compulsory hospital appointment. The Skoda would have to wait as we needed to get Mrs Y an alternative means of travel. Now other garages would simply suggest taking the bus or maybe even a taxi but here at KAM the customer is our main priority. As we scanned the workshop everyone’s eyes fell on Super Shaun as Mrs Y’s saviour. Shaun’s car was fully insured and safe for Mrs Y to drive and so being the gentleman he is he kindly offered. With Mrs Y happy at her day not being disrupted we dispatched her off in Shaun’s car and got straight to work.
Diagnostic Dan our very own German car specialist (Skoda is now part of the VW family) had been lurking in the background with a knowing look adorning his face. ‘Let me guess Dan you know what it is, you know you should use your powers to fight crime’ joked Shaun. ‘Well Shaun electronic diagnostics is about the art of following eliminating procedures’ he proclaimed while rifling in his tool box for his multimetre. With the all knowing Dan accompanied by Dynamo Dhillan this was sure to be a quick diagnostics mission. As the two got to work testing the car’s electric pump and the sensors the problem became quickly apparent. While undertaking the electric test which is carried out to test the resistance of the sensors it turned out to be a faulty angle sensor.
We were able to source a new angle sensor from our wonderful suppliers and the power steering was returned to normal. Dynamo Dhillan who is becoming our very own protégé finished the car off with a car wash and it was ready for collection. Mrs Y who had herself been given a clean bill of health returned to pick up her prized possession and was delighted at the swiftness of our team. ‘Wow Kev you really have helped me, my day has been disruption free and its all thanks to you and your team’. ‘Would it be awfully rude of me to ask one more thing Dr Kev’ she probed. ‘Ask away Mrs Y’ I responded curious as to what she was going to ask. It so transpired that Mrs Y’s petrol lawn mower had been giving her some problems and now she needed her dedicated KAM team to help. Super Shaun got behind the wheel of ‘da twuck with da fwashing lights’ and followed Mrs Y home to fix her faulty lawn mower. She returned later on to thank the KAM team for being so helpful and promised to leave us some favourable comments on the Good Garage Scheme website. Another day and another customer satisfied by your enthusiastic KAM team who is your one stop shop for all your motoring needs.
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.

Mr D's Brain Problem

Hello faithful readers and welcome to this week’s adventures from the KAM team. With more and more of you gifting us with your car gremlins we have been as busy as ever as we strive to be your number 1-car repair specialists. You can leave your comments, questions and queries on our blog at www.drkev-kam.blogspot.com and our twitter account at www.twitter.com/dr_kev
This week we received a visit from Mr D at our Long Eaton branch. He came into complain of a possible flat battery in his Jaguar X type and said he had just about managed to make it to the garage. ‘The car wouldn’t start this morning, I had to get my neighbour to jump start it for me’ said Mr D. We explained to Mr D that we offer a free pick up service but he was just eager for the problem to be fixed. Another problem followed as Mr D explained that straight after the jump start, a light had appeared on the dashboard. So we had two problems to fix and after taking Mr D’s details we sent him off in one of our courtesy cars.
The battery task was assigned to Superman Sundeep who did a battery check and the battery was in fact defective. This was simple to fix as a new battery was all that was needed. Now to the second problem, the light that had appeared had been the EML (Engine Management Light). We connected our state of the art diagnostic machines to the car and I suspected that some of the electrical components had blown out from the jump start. Modern cars should not be jump started without a serge protector as there are so many electrical components connected to the ECU (engine control unit). The ECU acts like the brain to the car and controls a lot of the car’s parameters. ‘We need to test the brain’ I told the boys. ‘Oh there is no need to talk about Steve like that’ replied Shaun laughing. We have our own unique ECU testing equipment which allows for better, faster results and keeps prices low. Sundeep undertook the testing and it was soon uncovered that the ECU was damaged. The extra surges of electricity from the jump start had blown the ECU beyond repair. The car was in ‘limp’ mode which is the emergency mode for cars just before they are about to break down. Mr D had come just in time if he had left any longer the car most certainly would have broken down and caused MR D even more inconvenience. After a call to our fantastic suppliers we were able to source a reconditioned ECU at a fraction of the price of our competitors.
Sundeep Sunny was the mystery solver this week and as he started to assemble the new ECU along came diagnostic Dan. ‘Are you sure you don’t want a second opinion?’ he questioned. ‘We are fine, you just stick to your German cars and will stick to the right diagnosis’ Sundeep replied with confidence. Is there some in- house rivalry brewing? The ECU was assembled, and the codes were reset to within the correct parameters. All that remained was to turn on the engine and hopefully witness the disappearance of the EML. We waited as Shaun turned the key ‘it’s off’ he bellowed from the car. The car was repaired and after a clean from Dynamo Dhillan was back to its previous vigour. Mr D pulled up to the garage and saw his shiny Jaguar sitting on the forecourt and a smile adorned his face. ‘Wow thanks Dr Kev’ beamed Mr D. ‘That car is my pride and joy and now it’s back to its best thanks to you’
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.

Weather

Now we all know how bad the weather has become. What started as a nice addition to christmas and added to the spirit and all round ambience of the winter months has quickly become a nuisance. With icy roads and freezing temperatures the car gremlins are out in force attacking your cars. But never fear your dediacted KAM team is here to solve all your motoring needs and our dediacted team of specialists will work tirelessly to keep your cars on the road. The ice is no match for us here at KAM. However please be advised to drive carefully and to be safe. Our team can fix your cars but you'll need a proper Dr if you get into an accident. So be careful faithful readers and call into your nearest depot if you experience any problems with your car. Our new look website will also be running soon so visit it at www.kamservicing.com. Our twitter is aslo up and running so to find out about the day to day actions of our heroic team visit us at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
Till next time faithful readers
Dr Kev

Mr H's Double Dillema

Hello faithful readers and welcome to another week of adventures from the KAM team. We have been very busy this week as you continue to heed the call and more and more of your cars are being restored to perfect health. We have seen a surge in sales for Maxxi’s tyres due to our competitive prices which are still much lower than our competitors. You can leave your comments, questions and queries at our twitter at www.twitter.com/dr_kev.
This week we received a visit from Mr H who came to our Heanor depot early Sunday morning. Mr H has been a loyal customer to the KAM team gifting us with all his car gremlins. As he pulled up in Renault Megane Scenic he appeared to be driving very tentatively and let out a sigh of relief as his car came to a standstill. He rushed to the reception ‘Hi Dr Kev I think I’m the latest victim of the dreaded cam belt, I keep reading about them and from that awful noise I think mine is about to break’. We took Mr H’s details and quickly dispatched him off in one of our courtesy cars so he could get back to work as car salesman.
Our first task was to take the car for a road test and this job was delegated to Big Al who heard the knocking noise Mr H complained about. Mr H’s admission of a possible cam belt fault was strange as his car was only 3 years old and had done less then 3000 miles and so this diagnosis was doubtful. After the test drive he returned with a look of confusion adorning his face. He explained to ‘His Royal Highness Raj’ how on the test drive another noise had presented itself. Now as well as the knocking sound, a squealing noise had also surfaced. We now had two mysteries to solve. Noises in a car can be quite deceptive as sound travels along the metal and so a noise that may sound like its coming from the front could actually be coming from the back.
We hoisted the car onto our ramp and the car appeared to be brand new, everything under the bonnet was in good working order and not suffering from any visible faults. The cam belt was in perfect working condition. So where was the noise coming from? After further inspection by Big Al one mystery was solved as it tuned out the squealing noise was the result of a loose power steering belt. After tightening the belt the squealing noise was gone. Now the boys were left bewildered by the remaining noise and just when I though I might have to intervene, someone piped up. I would just like to take this opportunity to introduce a new member of the KAM team ‘Beam me up Scotty’ who is our very own Japanese and French car specialist. Back to the story, while the others had been trying to figure out the location of the noise, ‘Beam me up Scotty’ had been observing the car attentively. So we gave the new boy the floor, would he be able to find the fault on his first go? - ‘If you lift out the shock absorber you’ll find it to be broken’ he said with an air of confidence. As Big Al removed the shock absorber we were all stunned as it was revealed to be broken. So are the powers of your dedicated KAM team.
Both shock absorbers were replaced as it is advised that they are replaced as a pair. Big Al seated behind the wheel, then turned the key to ignite the car, gone were the noises that had previously troubled the car and in its place was a gentle hum. Followed by the customary car wash from Dynamo Dhillan the car was ready for collection. So no dreaded cam belt this time but Mr H was delighted with the result and promised to praise us on the Good Garage Scheme. With our experienced staff of car specialists KAM aim to be your one stop shop for all your motoring needs.
Remember faithful reader, our team of dedicated and hard working staff at the branches in Sutton and Long Eaton, along with our bodywork shop are open ever day of the week, EXCLUDING Sunday’s, while the lads at our Sawley and Heanor workshops and Sutton car sales are at your service seven days a week, keeping your car where it belongs. ON THE ROAD.