Car Care Tips

Take 10 minutes and use our Monthly Checklist to do your own quick visual car inspection and fluid levels check. A few minutes each month could save you a lot of money on repairs down the road. Following a basic car maintenance checklist can help keep you on the road and out of the repair shop. A little vehicular pampering can also help extend your fuel economy and put less of a burden on the environment. Take care of your car, and it will take care of you.

Basic automobile maintenance and upkeep describes the action of examining and testing the state of your car's engine and servicing or replacing parts and fluids. Regular maintenance is necessary to ensure the safety, reliability, drivability, comfort and longevity of your car. Completing a monthly preventive maintenance checklist, will alert you to fixable problems, before it's too late.

The actual schedule for a monthly preventive maintenance checklist varies depending on the year, make, and model of your car, its driving conditions and driver behavior. Auto makers create their recommended service schedules based on boundary factors such as:

• Number of trips and distance traveled per trip per day
• Extreme hot or cold climate conditions
• Mountainous, dusty or de-iced roads
• Heavy stop-and-go vs. long-distance cruising
• Towing a trailer or other heavy load

Our monthly preventive maintenance checklist (created by experienced service technicians) recommends a maintenance schedule based on the driving conditions and behavior of the car owner or driver.

Common car maintenance tasks include:

• Car wash
• Check/replace the engine oil and replace oil filters
• Check/replace fuel filters
• Inspect or replace windshield wipers
• Check or refill windshield washer fluid
• Inspect tires for pressure and wear
• Tire balancing
• Tire rotation
• Wheel alignment
• Check, clean or replace battery terminals and top up battery fluid
• Inspect or replace brake pads
• Check or flush brake fluid
• Check or flush transmission fluid
• Check or flush power steering fluid
• Check and flush engine coolant
• Inspect or replace spark plugs
• Inspect or replace air filter
• Inspect or replace timing belt and other belts
• Lubricate locks, latches, hinges
• Check all lights
• Tighten chassis nuts and bolts
• Check if rubber boots are cracked and need replacement
• Test electronics, e.g., Anti-lock braking system or ABS
• Read fault codes from the Engine control unit

Following a basic car maintenance checklist can help keep you on the road and out of the repair shop. A little vehicular pampering can also help extend your fuel economy and put less of a burden on the environment. Take 10 minutes and use our Monthly Checklist to do your own quick visual car inspection and fluid levels check. A few minutes each month could save you a lot of money on repairs down the road. Remember ... Take care of your car, and it will take care of you.