Lower Merion Library System: Auto & Small Engine Repair

Press release from the Lower Merion Library System:

March 8, 2021: Resource Spotlight: Auto Repair Source and Small Engine Repair Reference Center

By Gwen Gatto, Belmont Hills Library

Having issues with your brakes, tires or another area of your car and want to find out some information before heading to the service station? Do you need to find a part for your generator or want to learn how to maintain your lawnmower? Well, your answer is just a library card away!

Lower Merion Library System offers access to two PA POWER library e-resources for automobile and small engine maintenance and repair. Check out Auto Repair Source and Small Engine Repair Reference Center for everything from parts numbers to tune-ups for cars, boats, lawn mowers, motorcycles, generators, and more. These PA state e-resources are available to Montgomery County residents with a valid library card through the LMLS website, under Explore Our E-Library>Online Resources, (Scroll down the alphabetical list to Auto Repair Source or Small Engine Repair.) If you live in a PA county other than Mont. Co., please visit your county’s library website such as delcolibraries.org or ccls.org.

Auto Repair Source is an up-to-date service and repair information e-resource for most domestic and foreign vehicles, with Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) providing all the content including repair information, diagrams, maintenance schedules, parts and labor estimates, service bulletins, and recalls. Get started by selecting the year, make and model of your car, then choose which component you would like to learn more about, from air bags to wheel alignment.

There are step-by-step instructions with diagrams for almost every repair, from putting in a new battery to testing the AC unit to finding the inflation pressure for your car’s tires, as well as tabs for basic engine component locations, diagnostic trouble codes, technical service bulletins and updates, and maintenance schedules.

A wiring diagram for an HVAC diagnostic procedure for a 2018 Subaru Outback from Auto Repair Source

Other types of engines other than automobiles, including motorcycles, generators, lawnmowers, snowmobiles, marine and boat motors, tractors, and jet skis, are covered under the Small Engine Repair Reference Center e-resource. Repair guides, routine maintenance, repairs and disassembly are topics covered in Small Engine Repair, with an advanced search option to search by product type, model or engine type, model numbers, and specific area of model or engine type, with printing or downloading permission granted for individual use. So if you want to get that old Honda Fourtrax 200SX all-terrain up and running or need to test the capacitator of your NorthStar PG 165912 generator before the next snowstorm, then Small Engine Repair can help you figure out the next steps.

Auto Repair Source and Small Engine Repair Reference Center are to be used as guides to understanding your car or small engine’s components, and owners unfamiliar with repairing, replacing, or maintaining any components in their vehicle or small engine should consult a qualified mechanic or technician. Auto Repair Source and Small Engine Repair Reference Center are available through Lower Merion Library System website with a valid Montgomery County library card. Both of these resources are part of the PA state POWER library. If you don’t live in Montgomery County, please visit your home library’s webpage portal to the PA POWER library.

This press release was produced by the Lower Merion Library System. The views expressed are the author's own.