Looking after your car

A car has many uses and many UK residents use their cars to drive to work, for business purposes, grocery shopping, travelling and many other uses. In order for the car to provide quality services to its owner and to not fail, there are some checks that need to be conducted regularly and some maintenance to be performed occasionally. When such simple checks are conducted, the car will run smoothly and provide reliable service to its owner with undue problems, breakdowns or other troubles.

There are some daily checks that need to be performed just to confirm they work okay. Any problem noted among any of these checked items should be attended to as soon as possible. Daily checks should include brake-lights, parking lights, windows, indicators, windscreen washers and windscreen wipers. Should any of the above parts not be working properly at any one time, the driver could get in trouble with the law. It could also affect the driver’s ability to drive properly and adhere to the Highway Code.

Keeping your car up to date with the checks below will improve your car’s value.

Tyres

These need to be visually checked every single day. Tires are checked for loss of pressure, any wear and tear or other damage. Tire pressure can be checked using a gauge and any drop in pressure should be replenished.

Brakes

A brake test should be performed each and every time the car is started. There is a static brake test and a running brake test. Each should be performed at least once per day to confirm the brakes are working okay. The static brake test is performed by simply pressing the brake pedal to confirm the brakes are working while the running brake pedal is performed with the car moving at 5 to 10 miles per hour.

Weekly car check

The following checks can be performed on a regular basis every week. These include engine oil level and coolant level, clutch, steering wheel and brake fluids levels, the level of battery electrolyte levels, the tension on the fan belt and condition of the wiper blades.

Apart from these checks, there are a couple of things that motorists can do in order to look after their cars in the right way. Drivers should always drive the car smoothly and should avoid revving the engine. Door hinges and all locks need to be lubricated on a regular basis. The car should also be services every couple of weeks so that al worn out parts are replace, all dirty oil is changed and any major faults and problems fixed and parts replaced.