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  Vehicle maintenance, like death and taxes is one of those things we just cannot avoid unless of course you don’t mind the occasional walk home from wherever you are! Not nice when your 1000 kilometres away! There are plenty of things that even the mechanically-challenged of us can do to help minimise the chances of a breakdown. The most important thing is preventative maintenance. Getting to a problem before it gets worse or causing other problems. Simple daily, weekly and monthly checks if done properly will weed out any issues before they become a major drama and usually a major pain in the wallet as well. I used to laugh when I heard customers say to me that they have had thier car for two years and haven’t had to spend a cent on it, as soon as you heard those words you knew not to book in any work for a while! Unfortunately if you drive a vehicle it will wear out and you may have been lucky and had a good run with it, but if you ignore basic maintenance for too long it will catch up with you. I’ve put together a list that is fairly general, for any specifics refer to your owners manual or consult a qualified mechanic.

• Have your engine oil and filter changed regularly. I recommend a maximum of 10,000km or 6,000miles between changes. Manufacturers of newer vehicles are stretching it out to 15,000km or 9,000miles but I believe in giving your engine the best protection you can, hence the 10,000km / 6,000mile recommendation. Don’t go for the cheapest oil and filter you can find. Like anything you get what you pay for. A middle-range oil and filter would be fine as long as your handbook doesn’t specify fully synthetic or super light weight oil. Weekly checks of oil level is highly recommended, nothing worse than ruining your engine from lack of oil!
• Your tyres can tell you alot about the condition of your steering gear and suspension. A weekly check of your tyres is important. If you see uneven wear on any of your tyres it would indicate either A)wrong tyre pressure- 32psi for a cold tyre is considered optimum for a passenger car tyre, 40psi for 4×4 or light truck tyres B)wheel alignment needs correcting C)worn suspension or steering parts that need to be corrected as they will not only wear your tyres out, they may cause other components to wear faster than they would otherwise.
• Fanbelts or drive-belts. Belts that have cracks in their inside surface need to be replaced, especially if it drives the waterpump or alternator. If the belt breaks and you overheat your engine it could end up being a very expensive repair. Making sure the belts are tight is also another consideration. A loose belt may slip and be ineffective at driving other components.
• Radiator, coollant and heater hoses. If you find that any hoses in your engine bay that are cracked or swollen at their ends, chances are that there is corrosion underneath them, but if repaired early they should not pose too much drama. If you squeeze your radiator hoses and they feel brittle or a cracking is heard or felt then it is time for them to go. The coollant level in the radiator and overflow tank needs to be checked weekly when the engine is cold. Any consistent drop in level needs to be investigated.
• Air Filters. Needless to say the cleaner the air going into your engine the better. Also a clean air filter will keep your fuel consumption up where it should be.
• Fuel Filters. Although fuel filters on modern cars aren’t simple to replace, they should not be overlooked. If you have to, have your mechanic replace it at the recommended intervals, no later. Fuel injected cars rely on fuel passing through minute nozzles in the fuel injectors and if the fuel contains impurities when it reaches this stage it has the potential to block or restrict the flow at the injector causing a loss in performance and fuel economy and a few hundred dollars to have the injectors serviced.
• Brakes. Probably the most important item to pay attention to. I don’t know why it is so far down the list, I’m thinking of things as if I was carrying out a service at the workshop so excuse my lack of organization! If you have any noises, like scraping, squeeling or grinding then you have trouble. Expect a small amount of squeeling when the brakes are cold but if it persists or becomes louder you may be in need of brake pads. A grinding noise or grinding feel in the pedal needs to be looked at ASAP as the metal backing of the brake pad may be grinding itself into the brake disc. Replacement discs and brake pads = expensive repair! Any variation in the “feel” of the brake pedal needs to be checked out. Fluid level in the brake master cylinder resevoir needs to be kept at the maximum level, and the fluid needs to be clean to operate correctly. If you are finding yourself topping up the fluid level every week then you need to get that examined also. Fluid leaks at the master cylinder and wheel cylinders (if you have drum brakes) are very common and if the level is not kept topped up, air can enter the system and will greatly reduce the braking ability of the vehicle - not good! Later model cars tend to have very thin brake discs and we often find the owners complaining of a vibration in the steering wheel or brake pedal, usually braking from around the 80 km/hr mark. Generally all that is needed is machining of the disc rotors to make them run “true”, although if this has been done before there is a chance the rotors will be too thin and they will need to be replaced.
• Any oil leaks should be investigated. Not only do they have the potential to cause problems from not having enough oil in the engine, leaking oil can also find it’s way into and around other components causing them to fail. For instance, a?leaking front crankshaft seal can halve the life of a timing belt, potentially causing major damage to valves, pistons etc. Oil leaking into alternators and the like can cause them to fail in no time and then you have two issues to deal with instead of one!
• Battery Terminals. Modern efi vehicles rely on having a good earth and correct voltage for the computer to do it’s job and because we are only dealing with 12 volts direct current, any weak link in the system can cause all sorts of odd problems. For that matter any electrical connections that look a bit average should be repaired.
• Wiper Blades. Often overlooked until you are driving? the next time it rains! A quick check of the blade inserts (the rubber part!) will tell you if you need to replace them. If they are cracked or brittle or only contact part of the wiping area of the windscreen you should replace them. You will be glad you checked them next time it rains believe me!

  As I stated this is a general overview of things and I could go on for hours yet and make it the longest post in history but I think you would be bored out of your brain by then! If you follow these basic checks I think your risk of an inconvenient breakdown will be lessened. However cars being like anything mechanical will be prone to problems as long as us humans keep making them! Take care and be safe on the roads.

Craig