For starters, don’t rely solely on car maintenance reminders.
Mechanics and technicians would know: As the doctors of cars, they see it all.
I wont neglect car maintenance.
Of all the mistakes she sees, Lateiner told HuffPost this is the most common.
They think, Its not a big deal.
And they can deal with it later, she said.
In reality, preventative maintenance is going to be always less expensive than the repair.
Lateiner said she would never ignore regular oil changes, for example.
Oil is the lifeblood of your car, she explained.
Its job is to keep your engine cool and lubricated.
So keeping fresh oil in there is really just crucial.
Lateiner recommends changing the oil about twice as often as the 15,000-mile intervals that car manufacturers typically recommend.
I cut those oil change intervals in half most of the time, she said.
I wont rely solely on car maintenance reminders.
Variability in driving conditions also can make these generic reminders unreliable.
Over time, engine wear can affect oil performance differently, necessitating changes sooner than anticipated.
I wont use aftermarket car parts.
And then its more of an expensive repair.
I wont use coolants or fuels that are different than what my manufacturer recommends.
So if your car is asking for 91-octane [gas], you have to use 91-octane.
I wont buy any over-the-counter product that promises to stop a leak.
I wont change my cars exterior without considering the climate where I live.
And they are a huge pain to remove.
I wont layer a rubber floor mat that does not fit on my drivers side.
I would never ignore a cars warning light.
Our cars today especially are designed to self-correct a lot of things, Lateiner said.
Listen to your car, because it is trying to talk to you.
I really just need to know, is this safe to continue driving?
How much time do I have?
Its always better to know than to not know.
I wont replace tires with used car tires.
A lot of times they put a tire on there thats pretty bad, Claudio said.
Even if your used tire looks normal, its age could pose a hazard.
Tire manufacturers like Michelinrecommendreplacing tires no later than 10 years after their date of manufacture.
Many car manufacturers alsorecommendreplacing a tire at least every six years, regardless of condition.
To check a tires age, look at the four-digitTire Identification Numberon the sidewall.
I wont lie to a car mechanic about the issue Im having.
We get it all the time …
I dont know what happened.
It just suddenly started making this weird noise, Lateiner said.
And then we look at it like, Clearly youve been off-roading with your very low-profile car.
To give more helpful details, Lateiner recommends keeping track of when you hear the weird noise.
