3 Car Maintenance Tips To Keep Your Car Running At Its Peak

3 Car Maintenance Tips To Keep Your Car Running At Its Peak

When the cost of living is rising all the time it is important to save money where you can. Car ownership costs can be quite steep so this is a logical place to start looking for savings opportunities. One thing that can make it expensive to own a car is the repair costs. It is a good idea to avoid these expensive repairs by taking care of your car.

One way to do this is to make sure that you take care of the maintenance basics so that little problems don’t become big ones later on. Even if you have protection like a Honda extended warranty it is still better to prevent repairs early. In this article, we will go over several of the basics that have to be adhered to so your car keeps running at its peak.

1 – Replace brake pads

Brake pads are what squeeze against the disc on the wheel of your car that makes it stop. The pads are designed to be relatively soft so that the disc is not damaged. Since a damaged disc is expensive to replace, but the pads aren’t then it makes sense to use a material that wears down over time.

This means that you have to periodically replace the pads. When they wear out completely then you will be replacing the pads and the discs which will cost you multiple times more money than if you had simply changed the pads on time.

Check your owner’s manual to see how long you should go before you need to replace the pads. You should also check to see how thick they are once in a while to make sure they aren’t prematurely worn out. To prevent them from wearing out too quickly, adjust your braking habits. Make sure to not drive too fast and don’t slam on the brakes to stop.

2 – Replace the timing belt

The timing belt is the keystone to your entire car. It links so many of the engine’s functions that your car literally cannot work without it. When it breaks because it is worn out then your engine will be ruined and it will cost many thousands of dollars to replace it.

Your car owner’s manual is there to help you understand when things need to happen as far as maintenance goes. Check it out to see at what limit you need to have the timing belt replaced. It depends on the make and model of the car but generally, you should have it replaced when your car hits between 80,000 and 100,000 miles.

3 – Get it tuned up

Spark plugs need to have the spark timed perfectly for the car to run smoothly and efficiently. You’ll need to have them replaced as well as the distributor cap so that the pistons will fire at exactly the right time to keep the motor running smoothly.

This is something that most people that are a bit handy can do themselves to save money.