6 Auto Maintenance Tips To Help Save You Money

One of the happiest times of people's lives is when they get their first car. They wash it, wax it, check the fluids, and check the air pressure fairly religiously for about a month. After that, unless it's their absolute dream car, it's just "the car" and taking care of it becomes more of an afterthought. But taking care of your car not only keeps it looking good but keeps it running good as well. Utilizing good auto maintenance tips helps to keep your car running well and reduces expenses at the same time.

To get the most out of your car and to save the most money at the same time, take advantage of these auto care tips:

1. First, changing your oil every 3,000 miles or so is key. Some oil and auto manufacturers may state that oil changes aren't required until 5,000 or more, but your motor oil is what collects the debris and metal shavings in your engine and transports it to the oil filter. While the oil itself may be good until 5,000 miles, it's the oil filter that needs changing and to change it, the oil has to be drained anyway.

2. Another filter that gets ignored is the air filter. Most air filters are simple paper filters that keep dust and dirt out of the engine. An easy time to check it is when you're changing the oil. Simply remove the filter from its compartment and see how dirty it is. Although you can usually knock a lot of the dust out of them they still should be changed every 25,000 miles.

3. Theoretically, transmission fluid doesn't need changing since it's a "sealed system".
However, changing out the transmission fluid and filter doesn't have to be done very often, changing it out every 100,000 miles will make your transmission last much, much longer.

4. Another auto maintenance tip is when you have your oil changed, have the technician also check the grease on your wheel bearings and tie rods. It only takes a few minutes to check and if they need to be lubricated, it's the perfect time to have it done.

5. Every couple of weeks or every time the oil is changed, check the tire pressure. Not only will you be able to catch a tire problem before it goes flat, having properly inflated tires actually saves gas. Over inflated or under inflated tires wear unevenly and also affect the car's handling.

6. A very important car care tip is to check the water level in your radiator and when you have the oil changed just before winter have the technician check the level of anti-freeze as well. Having the proper level will prevent the water from freezing which can crack your engine block. By flushing the radiator and having it refilled properly gives you the protection you need when winter hits.


Car maintenance doesn't have to take a lot of time but if you want to have your car as long as possible and to get the best trade in value for it, good maintenance is definitely necessary. Simple auto maintenance tips like these ensure your car will last for many, many years.

There are many ways to save money in today's economy and finding oil change specials is just one way to do it. Brakes Plus can help you save with oil change, shocks & struts, brake specials and more auto service work.






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