Maybe you were lucky as a child, having parents who taught you that taking care of things will make them last longer…especially mechanical things, like your bike. If so, hopefully that carried over more expensive things later in life, like your car. While being a bit lax on taking care of your car may seem superficial, in the long run…ongoing neglect and cavalier maintenance habits will undoubtedly cut your vehicle’s life by years. If you’d like to squeeze more faithful years of service out of your car, don’t fall for these five (5) mistakes that will trash your vehicle’s lifespan.
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1) Neglecting Maintenance Schedules – This is rule #1…from oil & filters…to tires, transmission & brakes. Cheap? No. Compared to replacing an engine or transmission? Yes! Remember, RTFM…Read the Friendly Manual (Owner’s). It spells out the schedules.
2) Check Engine Lights – Dashboard Warning Lights…aka… Idiot Lights are there for a reason. Ignoring them seems idiotic (kinda redundant, just like the act). If the light’s meaning is not immediately apparent, RTFM! A little reading now can save you tons of money later
3) Convulsive Driving – We’ve all been in the car with one…brake hard, jam the gas…slam brakes, floor it! It’s not like your vehicle will blow up immediately in response. But over time, major systems like the transmission, brakes…not to mention the engine will begin to have issues faster than it should. Cars with abusive drivers (sounds like a support group) will develop breaks, leaks and all sorts of mechanical problems…prematurely.
4) Shifting While Moving – No, that’s not a moving violation…nor a misdemeanor. But when changing forward/backward directions, fully brake and come to a complete stop before continuing in the opposite direction. Tremendous torque and strain is placed on the transmission when that’s not the case.
