Stay On The Road with These 5 Preventive Maintenance Tips

Anyone can consider an automobile as an important investment – one that’s expected to stand the test of time as it serves to transport people from point A to point B. However, cars are as perishable as they can get – they’re meant to be replaced after years of constant usage, and wear and tear. If you’re the type who would stick with your old faithful through thick and thin, you’re expected to deal with numerous repairs as you adhere to a fixed maintenance schedule.

Now, if you wish to make your car useful for longer, you must practice ways on how to prolong its life. Check out these five tried and tested ways to lengthen your car’s lifespan, and you won’t have to worry about purchasing a replacement vehicle anytime soon.

1. Don’t miss your scheduled car service

Have your car checked regularly to ensure that even the smallest ailments can be dealt with preventively? After all, there’s nothing like dealing with the problem immediately before it happens. It’s even more economical to take on a preventive approach to car maintenance than wait for greater damages to happen, which can reduce your car’s lifespan considerably. This means going in for your oil change when it tells you to, not waiting for a couple thousand more miles just because it feels like you just got one!

2. Keep your fluids in check

Check the condition of your car’s fluids so that you won’t expose it to greater chances of damage. Cars typically have transparent vessels for fluid storage, so it should be relatively easy to check whether your car’s fluids are at their right levels. Also, make it a point to conduct oil change at least every 3,000 miles or three months, so you can provide greater protection to your engine. Do the same for all other fluids as well, though make sure to consult your owner’s manual or a professional technician on when to replenish them. Technicians usually check this when you go in for your oil change…we’re serious about your oil changes!

3. Take good care of your tires

Your tires are integral to your car’s overall operation. For that, make sure to take good care of your tires. Check if your tires are regularly inflated to the right pressure and rotated accordingly to ensure smooth and worry-free drives. Otherwise, you’d expose your car to unwanted accidents due to tire blowouts or worse, crashes.

4. Go for smooth engine startups

Don’t just step on the gas the moment your engine hums after startup. Allow your car to reach suitable operating temperature after you start your engine. By letting your engine heat up after starting, you’re ensuring that the oil becomes hotter and thinner. With that, your engine won’t have to push itself too much, which in turn would ensure lesser chances of damage to your car’s other components.

5. Replace your air filter

Think of having a dirty air filter as a car with polluted lungs. To avoid having your car choke on performance, make sure to have your air filter replaced with a new one once it accumulates much dirt. You don’t need much tools or specialization to have your air filter replaced. All you need to do is to consult your owner’s manual, and you don’t even need to worry about purchasing a replacement from any auto parts store since air filters are pretty much generic in design.

Conclusion: Up to what extent is preventive maintenance practical

Taking care of your car through preventive maintenance is not exactly difficult. But as with all other kinds of investments, your car requires your thorough demonstration of responsibility. Thus, you are definitely expected to devote some of your time for some tender loving care for your beloved automobile, especially as it ages. Note that you may not want to spend another chunk of your hard-earned savings just to purchase a new car, what with the realities of inflation gnawing through consumers’ purchasing power.

In the event where problems regarding your car arise despite the prudent practice of car maintenance, you must make it a point to ask the help of professional technicians. Do remember that from day one, owning a car would certainly entail such kinds of expenses. Of course, though, it will be entirely up to you to choose from among varying prices and quality of professional technicians available for your car. At the same time, purchasing a new car to replace your old faithful is entirely up to your decision, but just make sure not to speed up on that by not maintaining your current one well.