Orinda Auto Repair

At Orinda Motors, we work with customers to develop a maintenance schedule that’s specific to the make and model of their cars. This begs the question: What are the 10 most common auto repairs? Here is our list of common auto repairs:   A faulty or damaged oxygen sensor is one of the most common repairs we deal with. We replace oxygen sensors quite often. These devices monitor the amount of oxygen we have in our engine. One of the biggest reasons the check engine light turns on, is because your gas caps are loose or missing. It is estimated that 147 millions gallons of gas evaporate each year because of a faulty gas cap. We see a lot of cars with a damaged mass air flow sensor. This sensor measures the the amount of air that is being supplied to the engine. When the mass flow sensor is damaged, it is typically due to a lack of preventive maintenance. This problem is easily avoided by bringing your car to our shop for regular tune-ups. One of the most expensive repair ... read more

Not only is driving a car an honor and a privilege, but knowing how to drive and take care of your vehicle is a survival skill. In a perfect world, we believe that every teenager who wants to get behind the wheel should know the following things about cars and car maintenance by heart before hitting the road.   How to drive a manual transmission. If a teenager or adult is in a situation where the only car available to you has a manual transmission, it could save your life when you know how to drive it. Otherwise, you could be stuck in an unfortunate position to where you could not drive yourself to safety. We recommend learning how to drive a stick shift, and here’s a helpful video that provides instruction:     How to change a tire. If you get a flat tire and you don’t know how to change it, you could be stranded. Changing a tire is easier than many teenagers and adults think. Here is a helpful video that will show you how to change a tire, assuming you ... read more

In 2015, Orinda Motors decided to do something new and special at the Orinda Fourth of July Parade. We sponsored a Grandstand at the end of the parade route, invited our customers to reserve seats in our 80-person Grandstand, and enjoyed a warm holiday together in the shade.   The feedback we received from everyone who joined us was outstanding! Our Grandstand was booked solid, but everyone shared the space with ease. There was a feeling of camaraderie. New friends were made and old friends reunited. We danced. We cheered. We all felt lucky to be in this space, watching the parade go by on this special holiday.   We love our customers and we love giving back to the community. So this year, Orinda Motors decided to do it again! Earlier this month, Orinda Motors sent out an email to all Orinda Motors and Orinda Auto Detail customers, inviting them to reserve Grandstand seats at the Orinda Fourth of July Parade. Within a short week, all 80 seats in our Grandstand were reserv ... read more

At Orinda Motors, we are proud to use auto parts made by ACDelco. On May 11, ACDelco is celebrating 100 years of being in business.   For those of you unfamiliar with the ACDelco brand, here’s some of their history: If you prefer auto technicians that are honest, use quality parts, locally-owned, and involved with the communities of Orinda, Moraga, and Lafayette, come see us at Orinda Motors. You’ll be glad you did!  :-)  

Some of us love checklists, and some don’t. Same goes with road trips. If you’re lucky enough to be one of those people who loves both checklists AND road trips, this blog article is for YOU! :-)   Admittedly, we got a little help from Bellhop, which offers a bunch of helpful travel info. We recommend the following checklist for road trip essentials: Full tank of gas Bottled water / Drinks Snacks Cooler Gum Paper towels / Tissues GPS / Maps Mobile phone with Bluetooth for hands-free driving iPod / Music player Charger Car battery charger Spare tire Additional electronics First-Aid Kit / Medications Travel documents Driver license Credit cards / Currency Female items Male items Trash container​   Of course, the most essential item is not on the road trip checklist at all. The most essential item is a safe and fully-operational vehicle. If your vehicle requires an oil change ... read more

Spring is here, and you know what that means….  It’s time to wash and detail your car!   Truthfully, springtime is a fine time to clean your vehicle. It’s the perfect time to get rid of that thin coat of yellow pollen, dead bugs on your windshield, and the grime accumulated from your daily commute.   However, did you know that if you Opti-Coat your vehicle, you can wash it less and still protect it better? Here’s a comparison of basic car wash services versus Opti-Coat detailing services so you can compare apples to apples.   Basic car wash found in the East Bay region: A typical basic car wash may include an interior vacuum, soft cloth wash, wheel clean, and dry. Prices range between $5 - $20.   Average time the car stays clean:  1 week   Mini Detail at Orinda Auto Detail: A mini detail includes exterior hand wash, rims cleaned, chamois dry, interior vacuum, cupholders cleaned, tires dressed.   Prices start ... read more

Orinda Auto Detail is currently looking for new hires. If you or someone you know is looking for a hands-on position with a great company, here is our snapshot of a great candidate. You are a detail oriented individual that has at least 1 - 2 years experience with car washing and auto detailing. You love all types of automobiles, and you enjoy making them look clean and beautiful again. You appreciate working for a highly-respected, family-owned, team-operated company that has built a good reputation in the East Bay. You are friendly, reliable, accountable, eager to learn, and work well with others. You'll get bonus points if you have experience with coatings like Opti-Coat Pro and enjoy the idea of making cars look like they just rolled off the showroom floor. If you or someone you know is a match for Orinda Auto Detail, please send a resume to ... read more

Orinda Motors takes pride in restoring classic cars. Heck, that’s putting it lightly. We LOVE classic cars and we are deeply passionate about restoring them. To illustrate what we mean, here are the six reasons we go bananas -- in a good way -- when a client asks us to repair, restore, or maintain their old car.   1.   We appreciate the art form. Classic cars are works of art on wheels. The lines. The curves. The magnificence of the engine. The power. The engineering. The history. Each car was beautifully crafted, albeit on an assembly line, and they have become a major part in the fabric of American culture.   Classic cars are featured in movies, on television, in video games, and in songs. From the time we were babies, we were taught that cars are a piece of art that is both practical and an asset that defines you.   2.  Working on them is like meditation. Imagine going to your favorite place in the whole wide world. Now, imagine sitting i ... read more

  Vehicles produce a large amount of CO2 into the environment. Smog checks are the solution to this environmental problem. When you bring your vehicle in Orinda Motors for a smog check, we are ensuring your vehicle’s emissions are well-within state and federal guidelines.   California basically has a love affair with cars. Out of California’s 34 million residents, 25 million of them own a vehicle. That is one car for every adult over the age of 18. As a result, a ton of emissions are emitted into the environment. These emissions form into smog. Smog, unfortunately, is associated with several health problems and global warming. So, California was faced with a major problem. How do we minimize this smog, without limiting how much an individual can drive, or many cars they can own? The answer was smog checks. A smog check is designed to make sure your vehicle is not emitting excessive emissions into the environment, which ultimately, reduces the overall smog in C ... read more

How much do you know about tires? Do you feel pretty savvy, or do you leave it up to the experts to tell you what kind of tires your vehicle needs? Whatever your perspective on tires, the team at Express Oil Change & Tire Center are very knowledgeable about tires.   For many of our customers, tires are still a mystery. Most of them can recognize tire basics, such as a flat tire, a tire with worn tread, and a wobbly tire, but did you know these eleven things about our Tire Center?   We have a full service tire center located in the same place as our oil change and auto repair facilities.   We have 200 individual tires that will fit most vehicles. Special tires can often be ordered the same day or at least within one or two.   We can fill the tires with nitrogen to help fuel economy and extend the life of the tires.   We work on run flats, do tire repair when possible, and you don’t need an appointment.  However, you can make an appointmen ... read more