The Essential Car Maintenance Tips You Should Follow Every Year [Infographic]
Car owners often take advantage of their car’s performance status. They typically skip maintenance because they are busy or do not want to spend a significant amount of money replacing car components. Hence, when they see that the vehicle’s physical parts look good and the engine runs smoothly during drives, they think that their car and its components are still in excellent shape and do not need repair or replacing.
However, vehicle owners fail to understand the importance of conducting regular maintenance on their cars. Routine car inspection and maintenance can extend the car’s lifespan, improve its performance, avoid costly breakdowns, and guarantee the vehicle driver’s safety.
Here are some car maintenance tips on how people can improve their car’s driving performance or keep it in good shape.
Oil Change
Changing the car’s oil is among the most critical maintenance tasks that car owners should consider if they want their vehicles and engine to last for as long as possible and remain in good working condition. Oil change ensures the engine’s proper and smooth performance by reducing and removing moisture, metal filings, sludge, and other dirt and debris that can buildup in the motor from use.
Battery Maintenance
As cars can only start if they have fully-functioning batteries, car owners must know their car battery’s status. They can use a multimeter, a device that measures voltage, to identify how much power is left inside the battery. It will also help them know when to start considering a car battery change.
Besides knowing the car battery’s remaining voltage, drivers should also check if it has physical defects, such as corrosion in the battery terminals. Keeping the terminals clean from buildup can significantly extend the life of the battery. Consequently, vehicle owners should also keep the battery tightly fastened and positioned correctly in the mounting bracket to avoid it from experiencing internal damage and short circuits.
Replace Your Brake Pads and Fluids
The brake pads and fluids are among the critical safety components in every vehicle. The brake pads create friction when pressed against the brake disc or brake drum, helping the car slow down or come to a complete stop. Consequently, the brake fluid, also known as hydraulic fluid, also helps slow the vehicle down by moving the components in the braking system. Another responsibility of the brake fluid is to provide lubrication on all moving parts of the brake system, protecting them against rust and other corrosion types.
Brake pads must be replaced periodically as these wear down over time, mainly when the driver generally does heavy braking at higher speeds. The brake fluids will also run low and need refilling.
Replacing the brake pads and fluid can ensure drivers that their cars have effective and efficient brake systems to smoothly and quietly stop their vehicles.
Engine maintenance
Inspecting the engine may be a tremendous and challenging task for some vehicle owners, particularly those who are not knowledgeable about car components. In this case, it is better to seek help from skilled technicians for engine maintenance. They can analyze the car’s performance status and conduct preventative and restorative engine assessments.
However, people who are confident with their car knowledge and skills can do some basic engine inspection and maintenance.
- Check the spark plugs’ visual appearance to see if these are worn or if the wires have cracks or damage.
- Check if the fuel filter is clogged or dirty.
- Check the fuel pump’s performance status.
- Check if the fuel injectors have dirt or other deposits that may restrict fuel delivery to the engine.
- Check if the PCV valve is clogged or leaking.
- Inspect the ignition points and condenser
- Inspect the timing belt/chain.
Conclusion
Indeed, skipping car maintenance is not the end of the world; however, saving a small amount of money at that time does not give drivers any benefit, particularly in the long term.
Regular maintenance keeps the car in good shape, helping drivers spend lesser costs on repairs and replacements, avoid car breakdowns while on the road, and veer away from accidents.
Subsequently, they can avail car insurance premiums as additional protection for themselves and their automobiles if an accident or property damage occurs. It is better to conduct car insurance comparison Philippines through a comparison website when selecting a car insurance policy. It will help you view various insurance policies and the benefits that come along with them.
iChoose PH is a car insurance comparison site in the Philippines. It enables car owners to make the right decision when choosing a car insurance policy suitable for their needs and budget. Visit their website at iChoose.ph to view unbiased quotations from some of the industry’s leading car insurance companies.
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