Basic Car Care Tips for the First-Time Driver

While a vast majority of first-time car owners seem to think that vehicle maintenance is only done after owning the car for several months or years, it’s always best to take excellent care of your ride from the time you drive it off the car lot. By making sure your vehicle is in excellent condition, you ensure its superior driving performance and increase its resale value significantly.

After giving you some summer car care tips in my previous post, I’m now presenting you with car care tips that you should regularly follow—be it summer, winter, spring or fall.

Tip #1: Wash and Wax Regularly. Giving your vehicle frequent baths and removing debris from every corner and crevice can help you lessen the chances of corrosion and scratches. If your windshield wipers get a hold of twigs and small debris, using your wipers can increase the scratches and dents on your windshield. Too many dings on a windshield can increase the possibility of having your windshield shatter on you in the event of a collision—minor or major.

Tip #2: Choose Your Soap Wisely. Contrary to popular belief, not any soap will do when it comes to washing your car. I can’t quite understand why some people insist on using dish soap to wash their vehicles. Aside from wasting a LOT of soap, this type of bubbly cleaner can and will remove all the wax from your car. In short, Dish Soap=Car Damage. Rely on high quality car washes instead—the kind they sell in parts and automobile stores. These cleaners are more of a detergent than soap, meaning it doesn’t harm your vehicle’s wax job as much as your dish soap would.

Tip #3: Drive Safely. Driving safe and not adding yourself to the long list of DUI drivers is not only a great way to avoid accidents and to stay out of jail, it’s also an excellent way of minimizing the possibility of dents, dings and scratches.

Tip #4: Before you Start Washing, Remove Debris and Dirt on your Car’s Surface. Just as the tip says, don’t forget to take out the dirt on your car carefully before rubbing your vehicle vigorously when washing it. If you rub the dirt or the debris in, this could contribute to the scratches and dents on your ride.

Tip #5: Note Down All the Scratches and Dents on your Ride. Dents and scratches can and usually do eventually turn into rust problems. There are ways by which you can remove rust but that’s for another post.

Tip #6: Do Care for your Car Tires. Check your tires periodically to determine if your ride requires added air pressure. Also check the treads on your tires to see if they need replacing. The correct air pressure needed for your tire should be indicated in your owner’s manual. If you’re using a brand-new-second-hand ride, then check online if there are details on the right air pressure for your car make and model or contact the old owner and procure the manual from him or her.

Tip #7: Look into your Valve Stem Caps and Use Rubber Protectant on Your Tires. Okay, that’s basically two tips in one—what a bargain! So sub-tip #1: check your valve stem caps and make sure they’re nice and tight—they’re the last seal that can hold up your tire pressure. The rubber protectant should keep your tires from cracking and drying.

Tip #8: Vacuum the Interior of your Ride Thoroughly. Aside from keeping your vehicle’s interior spotless, it also prevents corrosion inside your vehicle. If there are stains on your carpet, remove them with good ol’ upholstery shampoo.

Tip #9: Wash the Windshield both Inside and Out. Use a protectant and a great vinyl cleaner for this purpose.

Tip #10: Inspect Under the Hood Once in a While to Check for Loose Fan Belts, Leakage and Damaged Parts. Remember to conduct this step when the engine is cold. Look for loose parts, leakage, cracks and damage on the numerous vehicle parts to determine if any of your vehicle components require repair or replacing.