Automotive News & Information - Rhodes Engines

At Rhodes Engines in St Charles, we know that the first and most important step toward keeping your car, truck, or SUV reliably on the road, is knowing how to properly care for it. Here are a few tips on how to keep your vehicle in shape.

Who created the world’s first car is actually a matter of debate; since the invention of the engine, people had been installing them on horse carriages to make them self-propelled. Even when automobiles specifically designed for engines came around, they were hardly recognizable as a car by today’s standards. However, the first patented automobile, a vehicle specifically designed to be propelled by an engine, was built by Karl Benz and completed in 1885.

On all modern vehicles, electronic engine controls have truly changed the game in terms of performance, efficiency, and reliability. On diesel trucks, whether you drive a Chevy, Dodge, or Ford, this innovation has been particularly revolutionary. The gains diesel engines have made in the past couple of decades are impressive by any standard, and electronic engine controls are a huge contributor to those developments.

Without a working battery, your car will not be able to start. If you perform proper maintenance, however, an average car battery can start your car reliably for roughly four years. Your vehicle's radio and headlights, plus a slew of other important functions, are powered by an electrical current generated by your vehicle’s engine but a vital part of generating electricity is having a place to store it while it’s not being used, which is where a car battery comes into play. The battery holds electrical energy while a car is off in order to help the engine turn over and create a spark to start internal combustion. What you don't want is to have a bad battery!!

Here at Rhodes Engines in St Charles, MO when your vehicle has a problem we know you want answers, and when it comes to information on pistons or engine building, most of our drivers know little about it. However, there’s some practical information regarding modern engine design that helps you better care for your vehicle, and keep it going strong. Here are some important aspects of modern piston design, and what it means for you that we felt might come in handy.

Your vehicle's cooling system is one of the most important systems in your vehicle. Inside your engine, spark plugs ignite the fuel within the cylinders to produce small explosions that propel your vehicle down the road. With small explosions comes scorching temperatures that can destroy your engine if not controlled. There are two types of cooling systems - liquid-cooled and air-cooled.

At Rhodes Engines in St Charles, our expert mechanics are here to work for you. On large commercial trucks, there’s one component that works harder than almost all the rest; your brakes. Our technicians have the knowledge and ability necessary to have your truck stopping like the day it rolled off the lot, no matter what the problem is.

At Rhodes Engines in St Charles, routine maintenance and repair isn’t the only thing we do. For custom parts installation, you can also count on us. Common modification enthusiasts do is swapping to a short-throw shifter; but what actually is a short-throw shifter, and what does it do?