Northeast Columbia Auto Repair

Photo by Liviu C. on Unsplash   So it’s time to hand over your precious BMW to the next generation of drivers in your family. This is both an exciting and slightly scary process because it’s not so simple as people make it out to be. Incredibly irritating is the fact that your kid (inheriting your car) will have to pay a used car tax which has never been a fun experience.    Keep in mind, most states can allow you to avoid this tax, but only if you are gifting it to an “immediate” family member, such as your spouse, kids, grandparents, grandchildren, and siblings. But, as we said, that’s in MOST states.   Although there are a lot of steps to take and a lot of paperwork to do when passing ... read more

Photo by Wade Austin Ellis on Unsplash   Hurricanes are both terrifying and devastating. Throughout its history, South Carolina has been hit by a total of 30 hurricanes, some of which caused the state to go into an emergency (most notoriously Hazel in 1954 and Gracie in 1959). This month, we wanted to look at what to do in a hurricane, as a refresher course in case something big and unexpected hits the Carolina coast in September.   Before we get into what you’ll need to protect yourself and your loved ones during a hurricane, we have to make something clear: you need to stay informed. Check your weather news an ... read more

Photo by Julian Hochgesang on Unsplash   BMW has established itself as one of the most forward-thinking car brands in the world. With sales going through the roof, the company has plenty of space to cook up new ways to reassert its dominance in the market. Innovation and technological advancement are coming, and looking back at BMW’s history, we can see that they may be ready to take another big step forward.    What we’re focused on today is their 100 Year Vision, the Bavarian Motor Works manifesto for the next 100 years of automotive creation. The vision, in a nutshell, is to create a line of individualized and connected drivin ... read more

Photo by Khusen Rustamov from Pixabay   We’ve got summer on our minds this month, specifically getting ready for another hot summer in Columbia. South Carolina heat can be pretty serious. However, there are lots of steps you can take to protect your BMW (or your Mercedes or your Mini Cooper), your passengers, and yourself when out in the summer heat.    The key to getting through a hot summer is good planning. That may mean making more decisions than you’d like to make, but those decisions can spare you and your car a lot of oppressive heat. Here are some of the things you can do to get ahead of summer’s heat!   Plan your trips. The less you have to go out, the ... read more

Photo by Jo Zef Mrkwa from Pixabay   Welcome to the June blog for Brown Motor Works! It’s time for summer fun again, and with people returning to the highways just in time for the 4th of July, it’s a good time to go over some of the basic knowledge drivers should have.   Your BMW works in a similar way to most combustion devices. The more you know about it, the more prepared you will be for the challenges drivers face. Here are our top 5 things every driver should know!   Know how to check the air tire pressure -- This is the number 1 item for a big reason. Your tires are the point where your car connects to the road. Tire pressure can decide your fuel efficiency, but ... read more

Welcome to Brown Motor Works Blog! It’s so frustrating to think of others enjoying their shiny new 2021 BMW X5 when we’re starting to see the age of our 2011 X5. Everything we’re noticing about the 2021 X5 makes us want one. It’s a gorgeous car. Understandably, you’d want a more recent, shinier model. But sometimes, greed and desire for new things can get the best of us. Our X5 has been loyal to us over these many years. It may not have all the flash of the 2021 model or the bells and whistles, but it does have many great features. And it’s ours. We’ve paid for it. The X5 is a sport utility with all-wheel drive. You have five passengers capacity and with a lot of interior space. Your BMW is a car you can keep for years because BMWs are luxurious, classy, and have great curb appeal, as long as they are maintained.  It’s so easy to get caught up in the idea that we should have the latest model, and if we don’t, we’re fall ... read more

Welcome to 2021! We thought we would ring the New Year in with a collection of our all-time favorite commercials for BMW! This has to be one of the best car commercials ever-- “We Make Joy.” This untitled commercial for Father’s Day will tug at your heartstrings. We’ll begin with The Small Escape, a story of a BMW Isetta that was used to smuggle freedom seekers out of Soviet-run East Germany and into West Germany during the time of the Berlin Wall. It’s a remarkable true story. Next up is a collection of BMW’s funniest ads, including a funny public breakup; a very babied Beemer; an unexpected split between two identical twins; Katie Couric and Bryant Gumble sending up their own hilarious first encounter with email; and a frustrated golfer resigned to his fate. This very short ad features a case of mistaken identity. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3x9s8Q4CMdI" frameborder=" ... read more

We made it! Welcome to December. After months of COVID19 running everything, fear, and a hotly-contested election, we are finally nearing the end of this terrible, remarkable year. There’s just 31 days until this terrible year is finally behind us and we can all concentrate on 2021. But the year ahead looks foreboding. We’re facing a recession. We still don’t have a COVID19 vaccine in the poorest quarters, and until we do, we’re still facing this pandemic getting in the way of business and safe living. 2021 is uncertain for anyone who has to work to support themselves or their family. Young people planning weddings will have to decide to either make their weddings smaller, risk their being cancelled, or postponing them for a year, maybe more. Rather than wallow in the doom and gloom, we need to take the best things that came out of this past summer-- our resourcefulness, our genuine concern for each other-- and build on these things in 2021. For instance: we c ... read more

While going back to school this year without COVID-19 contained is a risky situation, there will undoubtedly be a part of the population who is eager for things to return to normal. That being said, much of the country’s children will be returning to school through distance learning online. No matter what your children’s schools choose to do, read on for some tips on how to keep everyone safe back in the school zone!   Before you can do anything, you’ll need to find out what your child’s school is doing. Not everyone will be comfortable with returning their children to school in person, but your child’s school district should have a plan in motion for distance learning. If your school has plans for when they want to open back up, you’ll have to decide what risks are acceptable for you and your loved ones. The course most parents and educators have used is to prepare for an extended social distancing school year.   Regardless of where your k ... read more

Since its beginning in 1933, Volkswagen's history has been long and storied. As a company, it began with the idea of a 'people's car.' With Hitler's rise to power in Germany through the Nazi regime, that idea came to fruition. In a meeting with Ferdinand Porsche and representatives of the Daimler-Benz Corporation, Hitler demanded they create a strong, reliable, and affordable car for the German people to buy. And that's what Ferdinand Porsche aimed to do.    Beginning with the 'beetle,' as many liked to call it, Porsche continued on designing new and improved automobiles for the German military and citizenry. This continued on for several years, with a Volkswagen factory opening in Wolfsburg as a result. After the end of the Second World War, the company fell under British control during their occupation of Wolfsburg. In 1945, the British authorities put in an order for 20,000 cars to the factory. From then on, Volkswagen was on its way to mass ... read more