Extend the Life of Your Car

With rising gas prices and costly car repairs, the last thing you want to worry about is having your car break down. Instead, protect your investment, and get from Point A to Point B as reliably as possible. Keeping your car running longer might be as easy as checking the fluid levels and making sure the tires and well inflated.

Steps

  1. Read the car's manual and schedule maintenance accordingly. Keeping up with your car's recommended maintenance schedule can help avoid costly problems with your cooling system, drive train, suspension and other components; following the recommended schedule also helps ensure you the get the full benefit of the manufacturer's warranty.
  2. Drive less. Especially, avoid short trips. Cold starts are hard on engines, your gas mileage, and the environment. Short trips can also significantly shorten the life of your muffler. Basically, you get condensation in the exhaust when you start a cold engine, and if you don't run the car for long enough to evaporate all of the condensation out of the system, excessive amounts of water can accumulate in your muffler, and rust a hole through it. Avoid starting a cold car just to pull it into the garage, for instance. Consider walking to the nearest store for a change. Combine short errands, and, if you have multiple vehicles, drive the one more recently driven when you go out again. Do drive a car at least every week or so, since cars that sit for longer than a week or two at a time have other problems, such as fluids gradually draining out of systems. Consult a mechanic if you will store a car for an extended period.
  3. Check the fluids: You should check the level of your antifreeze, oil, transmission fluid, power steering fluid, and brake fluid, very regularly. A good time to do so is when you fill up with gasoline/petrol. Even if your car doesn't leak fluids at the moment, one can occur at any time and you can identify it by checking the fluid levels often. You should also check the color of some of these fluids. Some of these have see-through plastic tanks that you can look through, and some have dipsticks. Antifreeze should be either pink, green, or yellow (Pink for newer cars with "Dex-Cool", green for old cars with plain Ethyl-Glycol, and green or yellow for cars that have been flushed and filled with universal antifreeze...brown antifreeze should always be flushed, it either has rust or a lot of dirt in it, probably both. Also, never mix different kinds of antifreeze; if you don't know what color antifreeze your car has, buy a universal brand. Oil will normally be slightly clear (when new) to brown. Oil that looks white and milkshake-like may be contaminated with antifreeze/coolant or very rarely, just a large amount of condensation. You should take your vehicle in for service soon if this is the case. Transmission fluid should be bright red, and should not smell burnt. If it looks or smells burnt, have your transmission fluid flushed. Letting it get too bad can damage your transmission. There's also a chance that you may have an internal transmission problem, especially if you are having problems with shifting or engaging in gears.
  4. Change the oil regularly. This will improve your gas mileage and protect your engine. The recommended mileage between oil changes is 3,000 - 5,000 miles (or 5000 - 8000 kilometres) or every 3 to 6 months, depending on the type of oil you use and your driving conditions. Doing this could make it possible for your vehicle to attain 200,000 miles (or about 320,000 kilometres). Change the oil filter at the same time; there is no sense in putting clean oil through a dirty filter, and filters are very cheap and available at any auto parts store. If you're unsure how often to change your oil, check your car's owner's manual or contact the dealer for your car's make. In general, conventional oil and harsh driving conditions (like short trips, taxi/police/delivery use, extreme weather, heavy loads) will require more frequent oil changes than fully synthetic oils and light driving conditions.
  5. Change the air filter. This is something you can do easily at home with few or no tools. A screwdriver may be required. You can buy a matching filter at nearly any auto parts store and your owner's manual will show you where your air filter is located. A dirty, dusty filter can slightly hamper gas mileage and make your car accelerate poorly.
  6. Flush these fluids every two years: power steering fluid, brake fluid, and cooling system anti-freeze. Check this timetable against your owner's manual. Newer cars generally allow longer intervals between changes. Change transmission fluid & filter at least every 50,000 miles (40k to 45k is even better). Older fluids don't lubricate and cool parts as well as fresh fluid and may leave your car unprotected in severe conditions (for example, old antifreeze may not perform well in a very cold winter).
  7. Monitor your brake pad thickness and don't let the pads wear down to metal. This will cause damage to your brake rotors ("discs") at least and possibly your calipers as well. Rotors and calipers are much more expensive to replace than pads. There is no such thing as "cleaning" a brake pad while it is still on a car - the friction between the pad and rotor will eradicate any outside substance almost immediately.
  8. Rotate the tires. Changing tire position is very important and reduces uneven wear and tear on the tread, thus extending the life of the tires. The recommended rotation cycle is twice a year or every 6,000 - 7,500 miles. Rotate them diagonally - front right to rear left and front left to rear right. However, this pattern can change depending on the drivetrain of the vehicle, and the type of tire. Your vehicle manual will contain detailed rotation information. Keep in mind some tires (especially on sports cars) are directional and are meant to spin only one way. They will have a large arrow on the sidewall to indicate this.
  9. Keep the tires inflated. Under-inflated tires can reduce the tire life by 15% and will slightly decrease your gas mileage, perhaps by 10%. Inflating tires is perhaps the easiest of all activities, and many stores sell tire gauges for a very small cost. Checking your tire pressure every other time you get gas will reduce tire wear and prevent these issues. Monitor your tire tread with a penny. Insert the penny into the tread with Lincoln's head down. If the top of his head is not obscured by the tread, your tires need to be replaced. Basically, if you can see all of Lincoln's head, you must replace your tires.
  10. Keep the front end aligned. If you notice your car shaking while driving at high speeds (not while braking - shuddering while braking indicates warped rotors), or if your tread is wearing unevenly, then you may need an alignment. This is also key to extending the life of your tires and will keep the tread even for increased safety.
  11. Get your car off to a good start every time you drive it. Start the car and drive off slowly and gently until the car reaches operating temperature (known as closed loop). This reduces the strain on the engine while the oil is still cold and thicker. Another option is to use electric engine space heaters, and start the drive with a warm engine. Accelerate promptly to the target speed. For most modern cars, idling a cold engine is both counterproductive and wasteful. Additionally, as you accelerate, release the gas a bit to cause the automatic transmission to upshift while you are not pressing hard on the gas. This causes less wear on the internal clutches. It is easier on the clutches for the car to shift when you ease up on the gas.
  12. Use your parking brake. Even if you are driving a car with an automatic transmission, use your parking brake regularly, especially if you're parked on an incline. It helps keep the brakes adjusted in the rear of the car and makes them last longer. Do not use your parking brake in the wintertime because your brake will freeze and it will be stuck until it thaws out.
  13. Wash your car: Road salt, sludge and pollution can lead to costly body work. Without regular cleaning, you can start to notice rust on the bottom of your doors within four years. Another three to four years and the corrosion will creep to underbody components, like brake lines. It can cost thousands in rust-related repairs if you neglect to wash your car, especially near ocean/gulf shorelines where the road sand or morning dew might be salty.

Tips

  • Manual transmission cars or cars with turbo/superchargers will require different maintenance schedules, depending on the climate, road conditions. Always consult your owner's manual or ask a local dealership service department.
  • If your user manual says it's best to let the car warm up a little first before forcing it to apply power to the wheels, it's best to follow it and do so; for as written several times before, the people who made it know best.
  • The best thing that you can do to extend the life of your car and potentially save yourself a bundle of money is to have your car serviced on a routine basis. All car manufacturers have a schedule of recommended service for each vehicle they sell. Follow this schedule. The best place to have work done on a new vehicle that is still under warranty is the dealership. On cars without a warranty, it is best to find a reputable independent shop and have it serviced regularly there.
  • Regular oil changes are cheap insurance against severe engine damage (which can cost thousands to be replaced).
  • Synthetic oils may be initially more expensive, but can provide longer protection than conventional motor oil. Oils have a grade SM is the newest and provides most protection. Oils have a viscosity Cold and Hot, make sure you have the right grade for summer and winter especially if you live where it snows. The most important thing is to use a quality branded oil. Good oils are honey coloured when new. Change the oil at least as frequently as the manufacturer recommends. If you wish to have longer oil change intervals, you must send our samples for lab testing to make sure that your oil is still providing adequate protection. If your oil fails, you will have expensive engine repairs. Understand that some folks cling to 3,000 mile oil changes, but in modern cars that is too frequent and is wasteful.
  • Check your local auto parts dealer for manuals specific to your car for complete instructions on how to perform basic maintenance on your vehicle. Often, you will save a bundle of cash doing simple tune-up work on your own. Schuck's and Autozone are great stores that have these manuals.
  • If you have a manual transmission, then do use your parking brake in the winter as long as it's not below freezing for several days.
  • In a manual transmission vehicle, at traffic lights, put the car in neutral rather than hold the clutch down. Holding the clutch down increases wear on vital clutch components.
  • If you get stuck in snow do not try to get moving by keeping the accelerator pedal pushed. Put first gear or R on and give small pushes on the pedal so you get the car on a pendulum movement. When the car get's on the peak of the pendulum movement and seem its going to come off give it a little more gas and steadily drive off. Also use winter tires during winter. This how your car won't need towing.

Warnings

  • Avoid engine oil FLUSH if your motor is sludged up because of missed oil changes these flushes can make a large chunk of sludge come off and block an oil channel. Only use if your mechanic says you must.
  • Avoid Fuel-additives: Only injector cleaner additives are of value, don't bother with octane boosters just buy premium fuel.
  • Beware First-time Repairs: Do not attempt to complete repairs on your vehicle without supervision if you have never attempted a repair before. Today's cars are complex jigsaw-puzzles and might require removing several components to reach one particular screw. Get help at first.
  • Check Warranty: Check the terms and conditions before repairing your vehicle on your own while if it is still under warranty. Unless you are a certified mechanic, this may invalidate your warranty.
  • Avoid pot-holes: which can knock air out of tires or dislodge weights to throw tires out of balance. (If you do hit a pothole and it damages your car, contact your municipal government, they may reimburse you for the damages)
  • Transmissions: Always come to a complete stop before going from reverse to 1st gear. Severe transmission damage may occur by failing to do so (applies to all transmissions).

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