Automobiles and Trucks Updates and Introduction
But if you like to eke every mile that you can out of your car, while paying as little as possible for the privilege, here’s how to do it. And let’s face it in these difficult and uncertain times, it makes a lot of sense to conserve what you’ve already got as it’s often cheaper than buying a new car. And some cars can go on for a long time – but only with careful maintenance, much of it you can do yourself more easily than you might think. Let’s take a look:
This might seem extreme, but it isn’t. If you use a really badly surfaced road every day it can take its toll on your car with broken springs, buckled wheels and potentially damaged tires all resulting. Taking a different route that’s better surfaced could save you a lot more than you realise.
You’ve probably got loads of friends who refuse to switch on their air-con because “it pushes up fuel consumption”. Modern air-con systems are very efficient and by not switching them on from one month to the next you’re doing untold damage to the seals and other components – so when you do finally use it, it’ll probably leak or a major component will expire and it’ll end up costing you a lot more than you’ve saved on fuel.
There’s a maxim that says ‘gears to go, brakes to slow’. Some drivers change down through the gearbox to slow down, but this puts extra stress on the bearings, reducing transmission life. So if you need to slow use engine braking by all means – but use the foot brake to shed most of your speed.
So many people have a garage and don’t use it to store their car – they keep the lawn mower in it instead, along with boxes of old junk that will never be used. Garaging your car will stop the sun from bleaching its interior, preserve the paintjob and it’ll also prevent the cabin from getting really hot on sunny days – and that heat won’t do the interior trim or plastics any good.
You might not have the luxury of being able to let your car stand unused for more than a day or two, but if you’ve got more than one car or you don’t drive all that much, don’t just abandon your car altogether for weeks on end – and we appreciate this has been easier said than done recently. The battery will probably die, the brakes and clutch will probably seize up and if you leave the car long enough the fuel will go stale and you could even get flat spots on your tires.
Modern engines warm up pretty quickly, which helps to reduce wear, but it’s easy to get carried away and pile on the revs while the engine is still cold. Get into the habit of revving the engine when cold and it’ll wear out that much faster. Incidentally, an engine warms up much faster when it’s under load, rather than just idling.
Whether your car has a gasoline engine or a diesel, you need to explore the upper reaches of the rev range occasionally, as this helps to reduce the carbon deposits that can build up in the injection system and the cylinder head. But don’t overdo it!
If you’re one of those people who regularly runs their fuel tank on empty you could be damaging much of the fuel system. That’s because sediment tends to gather at the bottom of the tank and if the engine is always running on fuel from the bottom of the tank it’s likely that the pump, filter and potentially even the injectors could get clogged up, leading to hefty bills.
If you drive your car on an everyday basis, making a few key checks every couple of weeks could stop a small problem turning into a big one. Check the oil level and top up if necessary; fail to do so and the engine will seize. If the coolant or brake/power steering fluid levels are dropping by much you need to investigate as these shouldn’t need to be topped up.
Anti-freeze doesn’t just stop your coolant from turning to ice – it also acts as a corrosion inhibitor. In an aluminum engine it stops the block and heads from corroding internally, leading to debris washing around the cooling system and blocking everything up.
Don’t be tempted to use dish liquid in your screenwash as it contains salt and other additives that are likely to damage your car’s paint. Use a good-quality windshield washer instead, as this contains anti-freeze and detergents, plus it’ll help to lubricate the wipers as they clear the glass.
It’s amazing how many people don’t watch what their car’s instruments are telling them – many drivers don’t even know what some of the gauges are for, and it’s true there are less of them than there used to be. The Temperature gauge is very important – after running for a few minutes it should be steady in the middle of its range.
If it’s towards the hot end of the range, you may have a fan or coolant issue and need to check these as soon as possible. Most other gauges have been replaced by warning lights, but many don’t know what the obscure ones mean. Take a few minutes with the owner’s manual to find out as it could save you a ton of time and money.
Filters and fluids are designed to last only a certain amount of time or for a certain mileage. Failing to replace them on time guarantees reduced efficiency and potentially the premature failure of other parts – so replace everything on time.
If your car starts to make odd noises don’t just leave turn up the radio to drown out the noise, and hope that the problem will go away. Small problems have a habit of turning into big ones if left, with repair costs increasing too.
We all like to think we’re really good drivers, especially if we’ve been practising our art for years. But few of us have nothing to learn and a decent refresher course can make things a lot easier for our cars, in terms of improved awareness and anticipation which helps to reduce wear and tear on the brakes, transmission and maybe the suspension too. Budget $200-400 for something worthwhile; check out your local AAA to see what it can offer in terms of defensive driving courses and similar.
The same theory applies to your car’s interior. Once dirt gets into the carpets and trim they’ll get damaged that much more easily. If you don’t mind driving a mobile pig sty that’s fine, but if not just vacuum it every few weeks to reduce the chances of the trim falling apart.
Stone chips have a habit of festering, so if your paintwork is looking decidedly below-par you might need to get things touched up before corrosion starts to spread. If that’s in structural panels such as the sills or roof you’ll find things get expensive depressingly quickly.
If you use your car only sparingly, so it moves only occasionally, it’s worth buying a soft cover for it to protect the paintwork. Once the paint gets covered in dust the latter will act like an abrasive and if the paint is already old it’ll get damaged that much more easily.
