Servicing and repair by a commercial workshop doesn’t come cheap, so when you buy a car it is important that you find out what that cost will be, as much as miles per gallon. However, skimp on servicing and the result can be costly repairs.

Basic Car Maintenance

There is a lot you can do yourself, which merely involves checking over at regular intervals and this does not require any in–depth mechanical knowledge, but more a case of becoming familiar with your particular model.

Checking Under the Bonnet

Check under the bonnet once a week. What you should be doing here is checking the level of engine oil. You are best to do this when the car has been standing over night, or similarly long period of time. This is because the engine oil will have drained to the bottom of the sump. Find out where the dip stick is and just pull it out. You will then see the oil level on the end of it.

The dip stick in your engine will have a maximum and minimum level mark on the end of it, but be aware it is just as harmful to have too much oil in the engine as it is to have too little. Make the car is standing on level ground when you check the engine oil. Otherwise, you will get a false reading.

Check the engine coolant level. This should be easy to do as most reservoirs allow you to see the contents without having to remove the filler cap. You will see a minimum and a maximum level mark, but like the engine oil, don’t overfill the engine coolant level.

Check the brake fluid level, which again can be done visually and without removing the filler cap.

With any of these fluid levels, if you find there are any significant and abrupt changes get the reason investigated as soon as possible. Otherwise you will no doubt be looking at a substantial and expensive repair. Don’t forget to check also the windscreen washer reservoir.

Something else you should be looking at under the bonnet, as well as under the car, is any sign of a leak. Don’t be worries of you see wetness under the bonnet if you have driven in the rain recently, as rain water can get into all sorts of places.

Check Your Tyres

Another important thing to do is check your tyres. Firstly, make sure they are correctly inflated to the right tyre pressure. Under inflated tyres, as well as making the car unstable to drive, can easily result in a tyre blow out and therefore a car crash.

Tyre wear is something else to look at. The legal minimum tyre tread depth in the UK is 1.6mm, but that is not all to look for. Check the tyre wear is evenly distributed across the tread area. Uneven wear is a tell–tale sign that something else is wrong with the car and which needs to be investigated.

Checking Your Lights

Lights will be another area that needs regular checking, but if you wondered how you can check your brake lights when you are on your own, try reversing the car close to a wall or garage door and then pout your foot on the brake. You will see the light reflected and this will tell you whether or not you have fully working brake lights.

Windscreen Wipers

Other tips for car care, which again require no mechanical or technical knowledge, are things like don’t turn on your wipers if you have a frozen windscreen, but lift the wipers away from the glass first, so as to unstick them. The same applies if the weather has been dry for a long period, as the rubber of the wiper blades will stick to the windscreen glass.

Steering

Never turn the steering wheel when the car is stationary, as this put tremendous and unnecessary strain on the steering mechanism. Therefore, always make sure the car is moving when you are steering.

Clutches

Don’t have the clutch pedal down whist the car is stationary for long periods, as this will cause accelerated wear on the clutch and never hold the car on a hill on the clutch. Another tip for clutches, never use the pedal as a foot rest between gear changes, as this will cause the clutch to fail.

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