Planning to invest in your first car? Or do you already have one, and are confused about how to maintain your car in the best possible way? Spending on a car is a long-term and significant investment, and you must be looking forward to reaping the best value out of it.
When you purchase your dream car after years of eager waiting and savings, you don’t expect on-and-off visits to the car garage! Vehicle longevity is subject to several factors, and the most crucial of them is how you maintain your car. Though actionable maintenance strategies differ from model to model, there are certain things you shouldn’t overlook at any cost. In this article, we will share some common but mandatory car maintenance tips that’ll help you extend your car’s longevity.
One complaint most car owners raise is frequent engine failures, and fixing it can be heavy on your pocket. To make sure that doesn’t happen within a year or two after purchasing your car, you shouldn’t miss out on regular oil changes. Not changing the oil may result in sludge build-up, and overheating which won’t let your car engine function smoothly and that’ll eventually lead to engine failure.
After all, car oil ensures that the engine is lubricated, and other parts are running smoothly and functioning in coordination. Ideally, an oil change is necessary after every 3000-5000 miles of drive. However, you must go through your car’s manual to get clear instructions on the oil change intervals. On top of that, make sure to use high-quality lubricating oil to keep up engine health as well as optimal performance.
Your safety while driving relies on the brakes of your car, and you can’t ignore checking whether they’re functioning properly or not. Brake malfunction can lead to costly repairs later, or accidents on the road in the worst-case scenario. To avoid these, you must keep inspecting your brake pads and brake fluid levels. We suggest you check these after every 10000-15000 miles of drive. Also, the brakes shouldn’t show any signs of wear like grinding or squeaking. If you observe any of these signs, take your car immediately to the mechanic’s.
Just replacing your car oil at a regular interval doesn’t suffice as other fluids are there inside your car to ensure seamless functions. Low levels of fluids can impact the functions of critical systems like brakes, and steering which can be dangerous. In fact, your car’s overall performance is determined largely by the levels of these fluids.
First off, you need to check the level of the transmission fluid level as that is directly associated with the gear-shifting mechanism of your car. Even a mild dip in the transmission fluid level can make it difficult to shift gears effortlessly.
Secondly, adequate coolant volume is a necessity to prevent overheating. When your engine gets too heated, your car’s performance deteriorates drastically. It’s ideal to replace the coolant every 4-5 years as a part of preventive maintenance of your car.
Apart from these, the level of power-steering fluid needs special attention because an inadequate volume of that may prevent you from using the steering properly. As long as you’re maintaining optimal levels of these fluids along with regular oil changes, your car is safe to a large extent.
Just imagine encountering a battery failure out of the blue in the middle of a drive. Sounds extremely annoying, right? That happens to ample car owners as they forget to take care of their car batteries timely. After all, the battery is the driving force of your car, and emphasizing battery maintenance is a fundamental one among the common DIY car care tips.
The first and foremost batter maintenance tip is to clean up the battery terminals at a regular interval to eliminate dust and dirt. Also, ensure that there are no signs of corrosion in the battery terminals as corrosion doesn’t let the battery get charged completely.
Also, don’t forget to keep track of the battery voltage of your car. Checking the battery voltage helps you determine the battery's health and whether there’s a need for battery replacement or not. Make sure to check the battery’s voltage after charging it fully to get an appropriate reading and you can use a multimeter to do that. Any value under 12.6v is a warning sign that you may need to get the battery replaced. Especially if you reside in extreme weather conditions, battery maintenance should be your topmost priority while assessing your car’s health.
Leaked car tires can leave you clueless about what to do in the middle of the road, and all you can do at that moment is blame yourself. If you don’t want to face that, check the condition of your tires frequently. In tire care, the first thing you do is check the tire pressure weekly or monthly. Under-inflated tires not only skyrocket the frequency of tire wear but also directly impact your car’s fuel economy.
Also, don’t miss out on rotating the tires after driving a certain distance to achieve better vehicle stability. Lastly, look for any signs of damage on your tires to decide when to replace your tires. Damaged tires lead to poor control during driving, making your car more prone to accidents. So, keep an eye on the tires before mishaps occur.
If you want your car’s engine performance to remain top-notch over the years, paying more attention to the air filter and the cabin filter is your weekly task. When these filters get clogged, your car engine doesn’t receive clean air for combustion, and it can’t perform at its best. The cabin filter keeps the air circulating inside your car clean, and that’s even more important. So, you must change these filters timely to unleash the best performance of your car engine. We suggest you replace the air filter after driving 12000-15000 miles while the suggested replacement interval for the cabin filter is around 15000-2000 miles.
You may consider your car’s electrical systems and cooling systems as secondary things, but that’s the worst mistake. The functioning of these systems depends on the worn belts and hoses. While taking care of other parts of your car, check for signs of wear and tear in the worn belts and hoses too, and replace them when they’re damaged. You don’t need to do much when you see signs of damage on them, just take your car to the mechanic immediately.
As you’ve seen throughout this article, car maintenance is not that difficult but it requires some basic knowledge of the car’s functioning. We’ve shared some insightful car maintenance tips and instructions in this comprehensive article that every car owner should execute. As you carry out our instructions properly, you can expect your car to perform at its peak in the coming years. So, put your knowledge to work and elevate your car’s longevity and performance!
This content was created by AI