10 ways to maintain your vehicle between car services
As a vehicle owner, a regular car service is a part of life. These important rituals ensure the safety, longevity and roadworthiness of your car, and therefore can’t be skipped.
But you might also be wondering how to keep your car in good nick in between services. To ensure you receive an A+ report card the next time you take your vehicle for a car service in Penrith or beyond, follow these 10 tips.
- Use the right fuel
Just like our bodies run better when we feed them healthy food, cars run better when we fill them up with the right petrol. Pumping the wrong type of fuel, poor-quality fuel, or ethanol blends (particularly for earlier models) can result in decreased power and engine knocking or hesitation.
- Stamp out bad driving habits
Whether you’re notorious for excessive revving, guilty of dodgy gear changes or prone to letting your engine idle in the driveway, bad habits should be addressed and eradicated as best possible to ensure the longevity of your vehicle.
- Keep it clean
Regular cleaning is not just a matter of keeping up appearances; this important chore helps to ensure grime, dirt and various stray particles don’t build up and cause corrosion.
- Lighten up your keyring
It may sound trivial, but attaching your car key to a chain of bulky bits and bobs can wear out the tumblers inside the ignition. Alleviate the load and avoid the potential of ignition switch failure occurring down the track.
- Record kilometres and fuel-ups
Keeping an auto log tucked away in your glove box is a smart way to track your vehicle’s performance. If your car starts to seem thirstier for fuel, mention this the next time you get a car service.
- Touch up minor dings ASAP
Invest in a pot of touch-up paint and treat any dings or nicks as they appear. Catching onto these early will help to prevent rust from forming.
- Tuck blankets underneath baby seats
Avoid stained upholstery by placing a sheet of heavy plastic and a towel underneath your little one’s car seat. Doing so can catch and absorb crumbs and spills, therefore protecting the integrity of your car’s interior.
- Avoid exceeding your car’s weight limits
Check your car’s load specifications in your owner’s manual, and adhere to these religiously. Taking the risk of overloading your car can lead to major wear and tear that simply isn’t worth it.
- Invest in a tyre pressure gauge
Proper inflation is key to avoiding excessive heat and stress of your tyres, which can lead to eventual tyre failure. Rather than simply pumping up your tyres at the petrol station whenever you happen to remember, purchase a tyre pressure gauge and complete the task at home once a month.
- Rotate your tyres
Consult your owner’s manual and make sure you’re rotating your car’s tyres according to the recommended period and pattern and car service schedule. Doing so will help to distribute wear evenly, therefore extending your tyres’ road life.