Best maintenance routine for your car

Every motorist should carry out basic maintenance on their vehicle. This will help to prolong the life of the vehicle, reduce the likelihood of encountering an issue, preserve the value of the car and ensure that it is in the best and safest condition to drive. So, what should a car maintenance routine look like? Keep reading to find out.

Clean the interior & exterior

A good starting point is to clean the interior and wash the exterior. This will help you to prevent damage, improve the aesthetics of the vehicle and prevent the car from becoming worn and shoddy (this could also help to protect the value).

Keep on top of fluids

Next, you should check and top up the fluids. There are a number of fluids that the car needs to run efficiently, so you want to check that you are at the recommended level for each and top up as and when required. The main fluids to keep on top of include:

• Engine oil
• Coolant
• Power steering fluid
• Brake fluid
• Transmission fluid
• Windscreen washer fluid

Check your tyres

The car tyres are in constant contact with the road, which means that they inevitably suffer from wear and tear. Therefore, you need to keep a close eye on your tyres. You should physically inspect each one looking out for signs of damage and check the tread depth with a 20p coin. The legal minimum tread depth is 1.6mm, but many recommend changing once you are at less than 3mm. You also need to check the tyre pressure and top up to the recommended pressure if needed.

Check the lights

Next, you will want to check that all of your lights are working properly. You may need someone else to walk around the car while you operate them to check this. Additionally, clean the lights during your routine to ensure that there is no dirt or debris that could affect the performance (a common issue in winter).

Buy from a reputable dealer

When the time comes to buy a car, it is also important that you buy from a reputable dealership. You want to make sure that you are purchasing a used car that is already in a good condition and a reputable dealership will have fully checked the vehicle over to ensure that it is roadworthy. Hopefully, this will prevent any issues from arising with the vehicle (but you should still carry out a maintenance routine).

It is important to regularly maintain your car to keep it in the best condition. The above should help you to establish a maintenance routine that will allow you to check your vehicle over and keep it running smoothly. Hopefully, this will help you to avoid any issues, prolong the life of the vehicle and preserve its value.