Importance Of Vehicle Maintenance
In many cases, your vehicle is the second largest purchase you will make, after your home. Like other machines, it’s made up of thousands of different moving parts and many of those parts wear or need maximum lubrication to perform. Why is performing a regular maintenance check on your vehicle so important? Monitoring fluid levels … Continued
In many cases, your vehicle is the second largest purchase you will make, after your home. Like other machines, it’s made up of thousands of different moving parts and many of those parts wear or need maximum lubrication to perform. Why is performing a regular maintenance check on your vehicle so important? Monitoring fluid levels and understanding your vehicle, you can prevent costly repairs and most importantly, keep you safe.
Vehicles have many fluid systems to lubricate moving parts or cool temperatures down to a set range. Let’s look at some of these items to understand what they do and why it is important they be maintained.
Engine Oil
This is the life blood of your engine, it lubricates all of your engine’s internal metal parts. It reduces friction and cleans and cools your engine. Over time, it gets dirty, contaminated, and can no longer perform the duties it needs to perform. Changing your oil on-time and regularly is the best insurance for longer engine life.
Transmission Fluid
Just like engine oil, transmission fluid cleans, cools, and uses hydraulic pressure to operate your transmission. Like engine oil it also gets dirty and breaks down, no longer performing the tasks needed.
Coolant
Coolant is made up of propylene and/or ethylene glycol. Its main purpose is to absorb heat and transfer it to the radiator to be cooled. However, it breaks down over time because of the extreme environment it lives in. When this happens it struggles to cool your engine which could cause severe engine damage.
Now let’s move onto your vehicles wear items: brakes, tires, wiper blades, and filters. All of these items are essential to the safe operation of your vehicle. As stated, they are wear items and need to inspected to make sure they are able to operate at peak efficiency for your safety. The best way to monitor these items is by asking for a Vehicle Health Check Inspection two times per year.
Tires
Tires with excellent tread offer increased performance and handling. With proper maintenance and correct inflation and alignment, they can improve your gas mileage. The harder your vehicle needs to work to maintain the appropriate amount of contact with the ground, the more gas your vehicle uses.
Brakes
Your brakes are the most important safety system in your vehicle. Brakes give you the ability to slow down or stop in an instant and can help avoid a serious accident. Lack of brakes maintenance and inspections can let you down when you need them most.
Wiper Blades
Windshield wipers are a small part of your vehicle but have a big impact on your driving and overall safety. They remove rain, snow, dirt, pollen, frost and other debris quickly and smoothly. You can’t drive safely if you can’t see clearly.
Engine Air Filter
Just as humans need oxygen to breathe, a car needs oxygen for the combustion process. The air filter prevents insects, dust, particles, sand or debris reaching the engine and ensures a good mixture of air and fuel to support performance. A dirty air filter increases fuel consumption.
Passenger Compartment Air Filter
A cabin air filter cleans the air passing through heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. A cabin air filter keeps dirt, dust, sand, and other contaminants from getting inside the cabin.
A well-maintained vehicle will give you the confidence and safety when you need it and will keep the value of your asset at a maximum level. As mentioned, the best way to monitor your vehicle is by asking for a Vehicle Health Check two times per year.