Regular Maintenance Keeps Your Car Running
Your car is a major investment. You want to make sure that you get the most return on your investment as possible. That means that you need to take care of it so that it lasts as long as possible. The way to do that is to make sure that you do some preventative maintenance. It's much less expensive to make sure that you do the preventative maintenance than it is to pay for a preventable repair.
Tire Pressure
You may not think that your tire pressure can help make sure that your car will last a long time, but it really can. There is an optimum tire pressure for your car. You should check your owner's manual for your car's optimum tire pressure. One thing that can happen if all your tires don't have the right pressure is that things like your axle or drivetrain wear unequally. That can cause long-term damage. For example, in an all-wheel or 4-wheel drive vehicle the uneven pressure can cause the differential to act as if the tire is slipping because that tire is rotating at a different speed from the others. That section of the differential can overheat and fail.
Checking your tire pressure is easy and something that you can do on a monthly basis. There are tire pressure gauges that can just live in your car. There are different kinds that you can get; analog models that had a little stick inside that popped up and told you the PSI of your tire, and digital models that give you a readout. No matter which kind you use, all you have to do is put it on the tire stem, press down, and get the reading.
Belts
Your engine may have several belts inside. Those belts can do a lot of things. One is that it can help the timing of your engine so that everything is firing off when it should. If the belts are loose, the engine won't work the way that it should. If your belts are loose or too old you may hear a squeal when you turn on the car or when the belts get wet. You can do a quick visual inspection of your car's belts monthly and see if they look loose or if there is any damage to them.
Doing regular maintenance on your vehicle will make sure that it lasts a long time. You should also make sure that you repair any problems as soon as they come up. If you wait, the damage could get worse and cause further breakdowns. If you are worried about cost, you should see if your repair shop can get refurbished auto parts to use. That will save you money and keep your car going.
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