10 Top Tips for Tip-Top Autos
List of car audio manufacturers and brands (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
There’s nothing like that “new car smell,” whether the car is fresh off the lot or has a few miles under its bonnet. Your car looks fantastic and runs like a dream. But a few months down the line, does it still impress quite so much? Every car loses value through use but you can do a lot to preserve the quality of your auto. Here are 10 tips to ensure you get the most out of your car and prolong its life for a decent selling price.
Driving with Care
1. Don’t over-rev the engine when you start. This is one sure-fire way to add months of wear to the engine in just a few short weeks. For the first second or so of the engine running there will be no oil circulating; the less revs the better.
2. Accelerate slowly when you pull off in order to preserve the engine and minimise wear and tear.
3. Observe speed limits and avoid sharp turns, stops and accelerating to prolong the life of your tyres. And watch out for the curb when you park – repeatedly hitting the concrete will ruin the tyres and wheels. Using gears effectively to slow down will also help increase tyre longevity.
Avoiding Hazards
4. If you get stuck in mud or snow, on the rare occasions when there’s a heavy snowfall, then don’t make things worse by spinning your tyres and switching from forward to reverse. Call the tow truck. Don’t ruin your transmission. Over revving with minimal to zero traction is also a sure fire method of burning out the clutch.
5. Check the weight of your keys. Hanging car keys, house keys, stuffed animals, lucky stones and high school key rings off the ignition spells problems for the ignition mechanism. No one needs them swinging from the switch. Buy a separate key ring for your car keys.
Keeping it Spick and Span
6. Don’t go overboard with the cleaning products on the inside of your car. Too much water can cause a mould build-up, and an uncomfortable driving experience. Use a hairdryer if you’ve put too much water on the seats.
7. Clean dust and dirt from small places using a cotton bud or a toothbrush. If you have a can of compressed air (for cleaning laptop and computer keyboards, blow the ‘gubbins’ out of the cracks before hovering and polishing up the interior.
8. Preserve and clean leather seats with a specialist product. Cracked leather looks great on distressed furniture but not in a car.
9. Use a pressure washer – or have someone else do it for you – to loosen stubborn dirt from the wheels. And scrub the wheels with a specialist cleaning product to get them looking like new. Finish with a coat of wheel sealant.
10. Don’t forget the windows – keep them clean with the help of a window cleaning product and a soft cloth to minimise scratches. When your cleaning glass, remember trailing jewelry or rings can scratch the glass leaving permanent damage.
If you’re tempted to hit top speeds on the open road or let your friends use your vehicle as a picnic site on a rainy day, just think “one day, I’m going to want to sell my car, and I want to get a good price.”
Then wipe your feet before you get in and make sure your dog is never, ever allowed to ride with you unless it does the same. Every little helps as a famous chain store likes to remind us. Every little help maintaining your car in tip top condition will enhance its potential resale or trade in value.
Image attributed to FreeDigitalPhotos.net Naypong
Category: Car Purchase
