We are fully qualified, and have a wealth of experience, when it comes to working with air bag and safety restraint systems (SRS), which is vital when dealing with components that are critical to your safety, the safety of your family, and other road users.

Here at Okee we have seen some terrifying air bag and SRS repairs over recent months and would urge all vehicle owners not to settle for any cheap vehicle repairs, but to give particular consideration to safety related components like your air bags, SRS and braking systems.

Recently, a new customer came to us with the air bag warning light on (an MOT failure) requesting we find and rectify the fault. After scanning the ECU and looking at live data, we found a high resistance value at the passenger front air bag igniter. So, with the system powered down we began our investigations…

First, we gained access to the air bag itself. A quick removal of the glovebox and a couple panels revealed everything we needed to see. The wiring loom had been damaged previously and someone had made a poor job of fixing it. The wires feeding the Air Bag had been re-connected by crudely twisting the two together, and they had neglected to apply any insulation to the join with nothing physically holding the wires together.

We also found the igniter wires on the passenger front seat belt retractor to have had the same sub-standard repair. They had been poorly soldered together and then taped to the seat belt to stop them falling off, obviously not a good enough repair and the result of poor workmanship.

You don’t need to be a master technician to know that this is not good enough. We professionally replaced the wiring loom and checked the resistances using the scan tool and everything had returned to normal. Best practice dictates that you should never repair air bag wiring, but replace with the correct wiring loom, supplied by the vehicle manufacturer. Also, it is important to use the scan tool to check resistances, as multi-meters could deploy the Air Bag.
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These systems are so important and do need highly trained technicians with experience and knowledge to repair them. At Okee we can repair any electrical system fitted to your vehicle. Modern systems are so complex and need people with good understanding to work on them. Cheap repairs often cause other faults to appear, costing you more in the long run. 

​We were pleased to be chosen to perform the first service on this lovely Fiat 500, and had great fun working on it – although replacing the pollen filter was a bit of a mission and required Mark to contortion himself under the clutch pedal to get the new one in. We honestly didn’t think he was coming out!  
 
With less than 900 miles on the clock this beautiful, coral Fiat 500 was nearly as clean as when it left the Fiat showroom. However, the yearly service was due, so we completed a manufacturer specific service, following Fiat’s service schedules, and using Original Equipment approved by Fiat.
 
EU Block Exemption laws give car owners the freedom to use alternative independent garages for servicing, without affecting the vehicle’s warranty. The chosen garage must follow the manufacturer’s service schedule and use approved OE parts.
 
At Okee, when servicing any vehicle, we always use Original Equipment filters which have been approved by the manufacturer, and quality Shell lubricants to ensure the long life of the engine. We also use an oil and petrol/diesel flush treatment, for a deeper clean of the vehicle’s oil and fuel systems.
 
Mark said this was the cleanest service he has done since we opened the doors in July 2016, and was pleased he didn’t have to put his overalls on! And to top it all off, one of our lovely clients brought in some delicious homemade cupcakes in aid of Comic Relief. All in all, we’ve had worse days at work! To find out more about our Okee Service Standards go to our website.

The large majority of people have no idea what remapping is. And those that do tend to associate it with petrolheads and boy racers, eager for an adrenalin-fuelled drive. But there are more benefits with remapping your car than just increasing the thrill factor. 

Firstly, what is remapping, you might ask. Every modern car has something called an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) which controls how your car behaves – It’s the brain if you like. Car manufacturers program and restrict the ECU at the factory with standard parameters. These parameters can be altered for many reasons; to accommodate for different grades of fuel sold in different countries, to allow for varying climates, to allow for regional emissions standards, and to compensate for different air conditions like pollution or even altitude. Manufacturers consider all these impacts when programming the ECU, but they are unable to program each individual vehicle to optimum performance across the world – there are simply too many variables to consider.  

Remapping is, changing and improving how your ECU (or brain) directs your engine to behave. We consider many factors that impact your car and reprogram the ECU so that your car preforms at its optimum level for the environment. 

It may sound too good to be true but we can normally improve power, acceleration, torque (pulling power) and in most cases MPG. So not only will you increase the thrill factor (if that’s what you seek), but you can pull bigger horse trailers, and a tank of fuel will last longer. The greatest gains are on turbo diesel engines but most vehicles can benefit from this service to some degree and we can advise whether there are enough benefits to make the service a worthwhile investment. We recently remapped a VW Transporter who called us to say, as well as improved performance, he now gets an additional 60 miles from a tank of fuel, which was great result. 
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So, is remapping just for Petrolheads? No, it certainly isn’t! If you want to improve acceleration, or you want improved performance when pulling a trailer, or you want to save some money at the fuel pump, it is certainly worth considering a remap on your car. Contact us today if you’d like to find out what improvements could be made on your vehicle. We can give a clear indication on the likely improvements and we offer a 30 day money back guarantee, if you’re not fully satisfied. ​

See our Remapping web page to find out what gains you can expect with your vehicle.

December has been an unusually busy month for us and Okee and we are really pleased to have expanded our workshop team. Jason Dennett is our newest recruit and brings with him 29 years of experience in vehicle electronics and diagnostics. You can find out more about Jason and the rest of the Okee staff on our Team page. We are really pleased to have Jason on board and look forward to working with him as we build our customer-focused garage in 2017.

Okee is pleased to be acredited by The Motor Ombudsman, the automotive dispute resolution body as part of our commitement to customer peace of mind and service excellence. Fully-impartial, it is the first ombudsman to be focused solely on the automotive sector, and self-regulates the UK’s motor industry through its comprehensive Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI)-approved Codes of Practice.

Over 7,500 businesses, are accredited to one or more of the Codes covering new cars, sales, vehicle warranties, and servicing and repair. These drive even higher standards of work and service, and give consumers added protection, peace of mind and trust during the vehicle purchase and ownership experience. For more information visit The Motor Ombusdman website

Lots of people have asked us why we decided to start Okee, and more to the point, what does Okee mean. Well, as its an easier question to answer, I will clear up the last question first... Why Okee?

To be honest it doesn't really mean anything (although we hope it will become synonymous with superior automotive services, trust and driving peace of mind, in the future). When we were brainstorming the company name, we decided early on that we didn't want it to sound like a typical garage. We wanted our garage to stand out from the crowd and the name had to too. 

Mark also has a passion for electric and eco cars so we thought... 'why not something ECO'. Then we flipped it around... OCE. The C became a K. And lastly we added an E, simply to try and get a decent website domain name. And that's 'Why OKEE' (NOTE: we are not just specialist in eco/electric cars, and can look after any vehicle).

It's safe to say the name has divided opinion (but then, what great name doesn't?!?). Some love it, some hate it, but one thing I can guarantee... You've said it (or heard it) this week... Okey Dokey! And your're probably saying it right now!

But more importantly... why did we even want to start our own garage. 

For me, I hated taking my car to the garage. Any garage! Even the majority of main dealerships fail to give a warm, heartfelt welcome. And small independent garages often feel awkward and threatening if you're not in 'the trade'. I only ever liked taking my car to my nephew, Mark, because I knew I could trust him. But even then, I never knew where to park, I hated sitting in a drab and dirty reception and I couldn't wait to be back on the road again.

For Mark, the ability to offer the customer a higher level of service was his main objective. He was keen to invest in the most up-to-date diagnostic equipment to enable Okee to offer a dealership grade diagnostic services. This means, rather than send our customers to the main dealer when complicated problems arise, we can diagnose and repair here. So the dream was to offer the highest level of service and expertise, in the most friendly and welcoming environment.

So we discussed creating something completely different. Could we create a garage that was actually a positive experience for those that historically hate it? Could we have a nice, relaxing reception with a coffee shop style waiting area, with plenty of parking and a genuinely warm and friendly welcome? We also wanted advice and billing to be really clear, so our clients could have complete trust in our service to them. We saw an opportunity for an independent garage with a superior customer experience, and that's what we hope we have achieved.

So that was the birth of Okee. We are so proud of what we have created. I (Ben) have always said 'if we can create an environment that my wife and child are happy to be in, we've got it right. And thankfully they love it!  There is still a long way to go. We've only been open for 5 months in Wellington but word is getting around and our customer list is growing daily. And we've been pleased to receive such a warm welcome and some lovely reviews on Facebook. A huge thank you to everyone who has support us.

Tyre manufacturers are continually investing in R&D and product development and the motor trade has seen impressive advances over time. Certainly, in recent years, the improvements made to winter tyres is of particular notice. Although we haven’t seen large quantities of snow in Somerset for some time, many of us have horror stories of cars losing control in such conditions. Obviously, our tyres’ ability to grip the road is dramatically reduced on snow and fitting winter tyres can provide improved levels of friction. This is great, I hear you say, but it rarely snows in southern Britain so what’s the point in fitting winter tyres just in case of a sudden down pour of snow? Well, there may be more point than you think...

Extensive braking tests have shown that winter tyres provide far higher levels of grip in wet conditions, on ice and in temperatures below 7 degrees centigrade. Winter tyres are made of a different compound rubber than summer tyres and this compound stays softer at lower temperatures. In temperatures below 7 degrees the rubber in a summer tyre can start to harden, reducing the tyres ability to grip the road.

It may not surprise you to know that in the UK the average temperature between October and March is below 7 degrees and usually very wet indeed, which is precisely the conditions winter tyres have been designed to cope with. Our recommendation to our clients (providing you have room in the garage) is to fit a set of winter tyres for use through October to March, and store them away in the garage for the rest of the year. It will keep you and your family safer on the winter roads. For more information on tyres or for orders/fitting, please give us a call. 01823 617790 or email office@okeedrive.co.uk

We recently had this Honda S2000 through our doors for four new tyres and a 4-wheel alignment. It was a lovely specimen and the owner's pride and joy. Our client required tyres which had been specifically designed for the S2000, which we were able to source for him. In addition, we completed a 4-wheel alignment to ensure an optimum driving experience and to ensure the tyres last as long as possible. A digital 4-wheel alignment is always a good investment to ensure that all four of your tyres are pointing in the right direction and to maintain long tyre life.

We are proud to be accepted as RMI and Trust My Garage members, as part of our dedication to superior customer service in the automotive industry. TMG is the fastest growing garage scheme and highlights our commitment to providing quality workmanship on every vehicle that comes through our doors. Find out more at the TMG website.