Costly Car Maintenance Mistakes to Avoid

Posted on July 15th, 2017

Keep your car running longer

When it comes to maintaining your vehicle, it is tempting to cut corners, skip or delay maintenance. However, avoiding these common mistakes can help you avoid expensive repairs and being stranded on the roadside.

• Not following the maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual – There is great information in that owner’s manual including the chart with the maintenance schedule that tells you when service needs to be done on your vehicle. That schedule can help you avoid doing more maintenance than is needed as well as avoiding costly repairs.
• Ignoring the “check engine” light – Don’t assume the worst. Get your vehicle checked out when you see the check engine light. It could be a small repair that could be fixed easily. Letting the problem persist could cause more expensive repairs later.
• Not changing the oil – Dirty oil ruins engines. Technicians often consider this mistake to be the single most damaging thing that you can do to your vehicle. Follow your maintenance schedule to keep your vehicle running longer.
• Neglecting to check/change coolant, brake, transmission and other fluids – Just like the oil, these fluids play an important role in operating your vehicle. When you ignore these fluids it can damage the interworking parts of your vehicle which can lead to expensive repairs.
• Not checking your brakes – your brakes are one of the most important safety mechanisms in your vehicle. If you notice a problem, you should have it inspected and repaired as soon as possible.
• Not rotating tires or not getting a wheel alignment– It is good to have your alignment checked periodically and your tires rotated to keep your car running smoothly.
• Not changing filters as recommended – Clean filters keep dirt particles from getting into your fuel, engine or air conditioning system. Dirty filters can lead to a variety of issues from poor gas mileage to wearing out important parts of your car’s systems.

At NuMark Credit Union we want to help you save money, so you can do more of the things you’d like to do. When it is time to look for a new vehicle, contact us. We have a variety of money-saving options available for financing new or pre-driven vehicles. We can even help you save money on your current vehicle with a refinance. Call us today at 815-729-3211.