Shop Press

Shop Press is the news and idea hub for everything related to working on cars and trucks, focusing on repair, technology, and wrenching lifestyle.

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Hot Off the Press

Virgil Exner: The creator of Chrysler’s “forward look”

I’m a sucker for the sleek, smooth, and aggressive look of late 1950’s automobiles. As such, I owe a debt of gratitude to one man: Virgil Exner. In the 50’s, Exner was the head of styling at Chrysler, and he spearheaded the “Forward Look” of their cars, a look that...

Noisy disc brakes – ASE practice questions (VIDEO)

How to test for blown fuses in a car or truck | Fast and easy methodDescription All of the following could cause noisy disc brake operation EXCEPT: A) Glazed pads B) Grease contamination on the pads C) Broken anti-rattle clipsD) Foreign matter embedded into the pad...

The Shop Press Automotive Paragon series: a recap

If you read Shop Press regularly you've noticed we’ve been running a series for the past couple of years. It’s called “Automotive Paragons,” and it’s a series where we look at automotive entrepreneurs, designers, and engineers who were exceptional, ahead of their...

Minimum rotor thickness – ASE practice questions (VIDEO)

Description Technician A says the minimum rotor thickness specification etched into a disc is the minimum thickness beyond which a brake rotor should not be used. Technician B says the number indicates the minimum thickness to which the rotor can be machined. Who is...

Our Contributors

Lemmy

Lemmy is our jack-of-all-trades and master of none. A former tech, service writer, salvage dismantler, and parts counterman, his résumé is as checkered as his hodgepodge garage. The guy spends a fair amount of time under a lift working with cars, but loves wrenching on all sorts of stuff—motorcycles, tractors, and severely hot-rodded minibikes appear regularly. The junk he drags home is usually antique, and always about two steps away from being scrap.

Jonathan Roth

Jonathan has been a technical writer for Dorman for over a decade. If you’ve read any Dorman instructions instead of chucking ’em, he’s the guy who wrote them. He has also worked on the Dorman Helps benefit car show since 2013. Prior to writing for Shop Press, he was a freelance entertainment writer for the Allentown Morning Call, The Aquarian Weekly and two.one.five magazine. His dream car is a Tri-Five Chevy.

Mike Principato

Mike has been writing for and about the auto and heavy truck industries long enough to remember when Pontiac actually believed that the Aztek would save their brand and no self-respecting truck stop had a salad bar. He’s lost count of the number of vehicles he’s owned, fixed, reviewed, or conned an unsuspecting manufacturer into letting him drive. His work has appeared internationally everywhere but on your coffee table, and invariably reflects his irrepressibly nerdy fascination with highly engineered machinery of every kind. In Shop Press, his sworn mission is to help readers discover that same magic behind the seemingly mundane.

Mike Apice

Mike has been a long time photojournialist based out of Philadelphia. One day he walked into Dorman Products. They gave him a camera and said, “Shoot this part,” and almost 22 years later he’s still shooting. He’s seen a lot of changes in and around the automotive world, but is still a devoted manual transmission driver. He appreciates the stories each car and each driver has, and enjoys showing those stories in his photography.

Nick D’Alessio

Before coming to Dorman, Nick ran his own shop specializing in high-performance Japanese vehicles which he still owns and operates today. He holds a degree in electrical engineering, and holds certification as a Master Technician through the ASE. He began his career as a field service engineer for Bombardier Transportation working on projects like the SEPTA M4 train and AMTRAK Acela High speed train. Well-versed in fabrication and welding, you can find him performing complex try-ons, building on-vehicle test fixtures or test harnesses, or hosting Dorman product and original content videos.

Miriam Maltese

Miriam is the newest technician in the Proving Grounds Garage, having recently graduated with training focused on hybrid electric vehicles. She serves as a regular video host in addition to her varied mechanical duties.

Lee Procida

Before writing for Shop Press, Lee was a staff writer for The Press of Atlantic City daily newspaper. Now he writes about the stories behind auto parts, and the issues affecting the people who work on cars and trucks. His favorite automotive-themed songs are “Daddy’s Cup” by Drive-By Truckers and “Gear Jammer” by George Thorogood. He thinks if the world were fair then Mazda would have Lincoln’s marketing budget. He proudly takes his cars to Grove Auto in Haddonfield, New Jersey.