Five Vehicle Maintenance Tasks You’re Probably Forgetting

We all know to change our oil and check tire pressure, but what other less common maintenance issues are slipping by, slowly whittling down your vehicle’s lifespan? These five maintenance tasks are easy to forget or leave alone, but they can turn into a real nightmare if you aren’t careful. Check these aspects of your car to keep your mind at ease.

5. Transmission Fluid

The transmission moves the tires, so it’s vital you don’t neglect the transmission fluid, which has a dipstick close to where you check your oil. Good transmission fluid will last around 75,000 to 100,000 miles and should be red. If you tow other vehicles often or drive in harsh weather like snow, it’s important to check more often, such as every 30,000 to 60,000 miles.

Changing your transmission fluid is no more complicated than changing oil, and yet an AAA survey for technicians and mechanics reported that only 19 percent of drivers maintain their transmission fluid properly.

4. Brake Fluid

In the same AAA survey, just 12 percent of technicians reported proper customer maintenance of their brake fluid, a pretty dangerous decision, since brakes can be the difference between life and death. Check your owner’s manual to be certain, but usually you should change your brake fluid every two years. The job is a little complicated, and it usually requires a helper pumping the brakes while you work, but you’ll save more money taking care of it yourself.

3. Battery

Batteries are typically meant to be maintenance free, but a few simple tasks can keep them going strong. Corrosion can build up on the terminals (the spots where you hook up jumper cables), so a quick wipe with a cloth will keep the battery healthy.

Your car’s engine powers the actual battery, so simply driving it around should keep it alive for several years. They can still lose their charge, however. If you haven’t driven your car in a while, it’s a good idea to turn it on and let it run for about ten minutes, just to recharge the battery. You don’t want to leave your car alone for a month and then have it refuse to start when you need it.

2. Tire Treads

Hopefully you know your tire pressure and check it every month or so, filling them back up as needed. However, when do you know if your treads are too worn down and it’s time for new tires?

Take a quarter and stick the top down into the tire treads. If you can still see the top of Washington’s head, you need new tires, because that’s below 1/8 inch of tread.

1. Brake Pads

While you can typically feel if your brake fluid needs changing, brake pads make a distinct squealing sound when they need replacement. Apart from jacking your car up and taking your tires off, there’s nothing difficult about replacing brake pads, and you’ll save about $200 compared to having mechanics do it.

Keep track of these five parts of your vehicle, but also be sure to look up your individual model and see if it has a history of certain things needing replacement (there’s always something).

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