The Stylish, Fuel Efficient Encore

The Buick Encore is certainly a head turner in the SUV / Crossover segment. The Encore is not only designed to offer a luxury experience at a well below average price, but also intends to beat both Ford AND Chrysler products in fuel efficiency bringing a whole to game to the crossover market!

Freep writes:


The six-speed automatic, front-wheel drive version of the Encore received an EPA fuel economy estimate of 25 m.p.g. in the city and 33 m.p.g. on the highway for a combined rating of 28 m.p.g.

The EPA estimated that the average driver would spend about $1,900 per year on gasoline for the Encore.

GM bragged that the 2013 Ford Escape’s combined EPA fuel economy rating is 26 m.p.g. while Chrysler Group’s Jeep Compass’ combined rating is 25 m.p.g. GM also boasted that the Encore beats the Mini Countryman S and Volkswagen Tiguan on combined fuel economy.

Info From: http://www.freep.com/article/20120828/BUSINESS0101/120828037/GM-says-2013-Buick-Encore-will-beat-Ford-Chrysler-products-fuel-efficiency?odyssey=nav%7Chead

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Tips From Our Pros

e-Assist technology helps Buick cars such as the LaCrosse achieve an EPA-estimated 36 mpg highway, but it's not just e-Assist that helps you get a higher mpg average. You can also save fuel with proper tire inflation and regular rotations.

Regular rotations will make your tires will last longer, too, so make sure you come see our Buick Certified Service experts to have them rotated every 7500 miles or when they change your oil.

If you're looking for discounts on these services visit: http://www.buick.com/maintenance-repair/service-offers.html?cmp=bu_redir_1 or http://www.lehmers.com/ServiceSpecials !

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How to Use Jumper Cables

Need a jump? Seems like a basic thing to do for your car, but you'd be surprised how many people can't use jumper cables properly.

● Find a car to serve as the boosting car.

● Park the two cars -- the dead car and the boosting car -- close to one another, making sure that they're not touching each other.

● Make sure both cars' engines are turned off, and both cars are in park.

● Clamp the red jumper cable (i.e. the positive cable) to the dead car's positive battery terminal, which is marked with a "+." Make sure that the clamp is firmly connected to the battery.

● Clamp the other end of the red jumper cable to the booster car's positive battery terminal, also marked with a "+." Make sure that the clamp is firmly connected to the battery.

● Clamp the black jumper cable (i.e. the negative cable) to the booster car's negative battery terminal, which is marked with a " - ". Make sure that the clamp is firmly connected to the battery.

● Clamp the other end of the black jumper cable to a bare, metal surface on the engine of the dead car. This can be a bolt or a screw. This provides grounding for the jump start [source: Brauer].

● Ensure that the jumper cables are not touching any engine parts.

● Start the booster car's engine and let it idle for a few minutes.

● Start the dead car's engine and let it idle for a few minutes.

● Disconnect the black jumper cable from the once-stalled engine. Then disconnect the black jumper cable from the booster car.

● Remove the red jumper cable from the booster car. Then remove the red jumper cable from the once-stalled car.

Original Article: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/how-to-use-jumper-cables.htm

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2013 Verano Turbo On The Way

The Verano is getting some SERIOUS horsepower thrown its way with the release of the 2013 Verano Turbo.

AutomotiveAddicts released the following info for the Turbo:


Try to wrap your head around this one for a moment: Buick, long the brand of AARP members and those who consider 4:00 p.m. to be too late for dinner, has become the new Pontiac. In terms of sport-themed sedans, Buick already has the Regal Turbo and the Regal GS, and now it’s adding a third forced-induction luxury sedan into the mix with the debut of the 2013 Verano Turbo.

The Verano Turbo gets the same 2.0-liter Ecotec turbo found in the Regal GS and the Regal Turbo. The good news is that the Verano is a smaller and lighter car than the Regal, so the 250 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque that Buick’s given the Verano Turbo should prove entertaining, If you’re keeping score at home, that’s more horsepower (but the same amount of torque) than the Regal Turbo gets, but it’s nowhere near the Regal GS’ output. Buick may want to attract new buyers, but not by pirating sales from the higher-margin Regal lineup.

Read more: http://www.automotiveaddicts.com/31458/buicks-2013-verano-turbo-priced-from-29990

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Cars, Now The Victims Of Computer Viruses

I bet when all of our grandparents were sitting around and thinking of wild things that would happen in the future there was one thing that wasn't on the list... Computers in your car. The only thing that seems more far fetched than the idea of a computer in a car is that computer getting infected with a virus... But it's happened.

Cars are almost more computer than machine these days, so it's not a leap to think that all those nasty viruses you get on your laptop, phone, or tablet can be translated to infect a car, and one angry mechanic did just that.

This guy did everything from making your car alarm go off without stopping to preventing it from starting at all. HowStuffWorks (the award-winning source of credible, unbiased, and easy-to-understand explanations of how the world actually works) wrote the following:

More than 100 Texas drivers could have been excused for thinking that they had really horrendous luck or -- at least for the more superstitious among them -- that their vehicles were possessed by an evil spirit. That's because in 2010, more than 100 customers of a dealership called Texas Auto Center found their efforts to start their cars fruitless, and even worse, their car alarms blared ceaselessly, stopped only when the batteries were removed from the vehicles [source: Shaer].

What seemed to some to be a rash of coincidence and mechanical failure turned out to be the work of a disgruntled employee-turned-hacker. Omar Ramos-Lopez, who had been laid off by the Texas Auto Center, decided to exact some revenge on his former Austin, Texas employer by hacking into the company's Web-based vehicle immobilization system, typically used to disable the cars of folks who had stopped making mandatory payments [source: Shaer]. Besides creating plenty of mayhem and generating a flood of angry customer complaints, Ramos-Lopez, who was eventually arrested, highlighted some of the vulnerabilities of our increasingly computer-dependent vehicles from a skilled and motivated hacker.

Read More: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-computer-virus.htm

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Tips From Around The Lot - Rust:

Are you experiencing lower MPG's on your routine trips? Has your car started stalling? Have you had to replace multiple fuel pumps?

These are all signs of a rusty gas tank. A rusted gas tank can have all of the symptoms above, and can cause more and more harsh issues the longer you run your car with a rusty tank!

Rusting can also cause issues not only in your gas tank, but in everything it connects to, so be sure to get it replaced or fixed as soon as possible. If this rust spreads it can cause greater and greater issues and can even result in fuel leakage.

To get an estimate on replacing a fuel tank give us a call at: (925) 566-7279 or visit us online at  http://www.lehmers.com/?http://lehmersconcordbuickgmc.cimasystems.biz  today!

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Tips For Long Trips:

Long road trips in your car can be cumbersome... They take not only a toll on your car (As it's doing most of the work) but also you as a driver... So here are a few tips and facts to stay safe!

1) Take a break every two hours!

Did you know this? The mind tends to wander, "Highway fever" can start to take over, you easily lose attention span, and that's how accidents can occur. To reduce this risk it's recommended you take an out of car break to stretch your legs and get fresh air once every two hours. It sounds like a waste of time, but it saves time compared to what you'd spend if an accident were to occur!

2) Sleep during the day

If you're taking a multiple day/night trip make sure when you're resting and sleeping that it's during the day! Studies show that while less places are open at night and that is a disadvantage, that the roads are also much less occupied. Driving at night can mean less waits in traffic jams and less risk of a car to car collision.

3) You may not need a break... but your car does.

Even if you're car is brand new, fluids are topped, and tires are new... extended driving without stopping can have a MAJOR impact on the future condition of your car. Constant stopping heats rotors, constant driving has tire wear, and prolonged engine heat can lead to stretched belts... so even if you don't need to stop, stop every few hours for your cars sake.

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