April 11, 2016
Sometimes busy Appleton residents dream about going back to the “simpler” days of our grandparents. But if you could travel back in time and take a road trip around Wisconsin in a Model T, you might change your mind. The improved designs and quality of today's automobiles have significantly reduced the amount of time Appleton residents spend at the side of the road during breakdowns. With proper maintenance, today's vehicles can stay on the road longer than ever before.
Some of those improvements, however, have led to higher repair costs. For example, older cars often broke down from vapor lock. Gas vaporized while traveling from the gas tank to the fuel pump. No gas, no power. The car quits going. The solution was simple — you just sat by the road until the car would start up again. Today's Appleton drivers would hardly tolerate that kind of inconvenience, and it's likely that yesterday's Appleton drivers didn't care much for it, either. So on today's vehicles, the fuel pump is actually located inside the gas tank. Problem solved. No more vapor lock. The downside is that now it costs a lot more to repair or replace a fuel pump at Appleton area auto service centers.
Appleton drivers certainly should be grateful for the improvements in auto design that keep us off the side of the road, but it comes at a price. Vehicle care in Wisconsin simply costs more than it used to. So if you think about it, Appleton drivers can avoid many vehicle repairs by preventive maintenance. If we plan for maintenance, we can avoid a lot of costly repairs.
Just a bit of auto advice from Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Center Appleton: If you like new vehicles and can afford them, then buy them. But if you are buying a new vehicle every few years because you're afraid of the higher repair costs for older vehicles, then you ought to take a second look at the numbers. You can save a lot of money on car payments and Wisconsin auto insurance with an older vehicle and preventive auto maintenance can help you avoid most car repair bills. And if you budget for preventive maintenance you have done at Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Center Appleton, it can become as routine as a car payment — only a whole lot less!
Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Center Appleton
2940 E. College Ave.
Appleton, Wisconsin 54915
920-954-8500
August 24, 2025
In a perfect world, all wheels and tires would be perfectly round and weigh exactly the same at every point of the wheel. Unfortunately, they're not, and if they're out of balance, they can reduce the lifespan of your tires, make your vehicle shake like a carnival ride, and maybe even damage a f... More
August 18, 2025
If youve ever stepped on your brake pedal and felt your vehicle vibrate, thats a signal that you shouldnt ignore. A pulsating brake pedal is a sign that something is wrong. Braking action should be smooth, sure, and quiet, not shaky and noisy. Most newer vehicles have disc brakes, called that b... More
August 10, 2025
There's nothing quite like getting in your vehicle on a hot day, switching on the air conditioning and having warm air blow out of the vents. You may have had no problem for months and then, one day, you are driving around in a sauna. You're hot stuff, but not in a good way! So what goes wrong w... More