How Car Maintenance Can Help Keep Fuel Costs Down

You can prevent the high cost of repairs and breakdown by maintaining your vehicle. Also, you can save money on fuel.

Fuel: A air filter is not an item you can set on a time frame or based on mileage before you have to replace it. Depends on the environment condition you are driving into, whether it might be dusty, smog on dirt from the ground being airborne in the air can make your air filter get dirty right away. To check if you need to replace your air filter, simply take your air filter and hold it against the light. If you can't see the light go through the filter, then you need to replace it. Also the fuel filter needs to replace every 12,000 miles. You can not determine the quality of the fuel you put in your car. Some gas stations have a fuel filter attached to the pump. Some gas stations have some foreign material in the tank under ground and can transfer to your fuel tank. To help your carburetor and injectors clean, add a carburetor or injector cleaner every fourth full tank.

Sparks: Make sure to replace your spark plugs and set it at the proper gap, every 12,000 miles, spark plug wires every 24,000 mile and distributor cap and rotor cap every 24,000 miles. The reason behind this is because that these items are constantly exposed to heat. After a while, they lose there resistance and they will not be giving the right amount of current (sparks) to combust your engine.

Cooling: Make sure your antifreeze and water is properly the right mixture and at its proper level. By doing these, you'll need an antifreeze tester. The engine needs to be at the proper temperature to operate at its efficiency. An engine running too hot can make your gas burn at a premature level. Make sure your radiator and condenser are clean. Hose it down with water once a month to wash off the bugs and dirt to allow the air to pass through to cool your antifreeze. Do not use a pressure washer on it because the pressure might damage the fins. Some people put a screen on front of their grill to prevent the bugs getting into your radiator and blocking the passage for air to get through. In front of the radiator is a condenser. By keeping them both clean will also make your air conditioner work a lot better. Check your coolant hoses for cracks and signs of rotting. Warning: Never check the level of your coolant when the engine is hot. There is too much pressure in the cooling system even if the engine just warm, the coolant will be hot and can burst out and causing serious injury or death. The best time to check your antifreeze level is when the engine is cool.

Tires: Properly inflated, balanced tires and good threads will save you on gas, but will also save your life. Front end alignment plays a roll too on your fuel economy as well as the life of your tires. Make sure your alignments are good. If your alignment is off, your engine is running harder. Imagine a shopping cart, when you are pushing it straight and the cart tends to steer to one side, your going to have a hard time pushing that cart straight, it is the same with an engine. Rotate your tires every 12,000 miles. Warning: When rotating your tires, use a jack stand and a proper jacking technique according to the manufacturer to avoid serious injuries or death.

Engine: Make sure you replace your oil and oil filter every 3,000 miles to prolong the life of your engine. Make a habit of checking your oil level and check your belts. Your engine must be off for at least five minutes to get an accurate reading on your dip stick. Every 70,000, your timing belt must be replaced. Timing belts are not visible so there is no way of checking it without taking the timing cover off. Do not take a chance going beyond that because, if the timing belt ever breaks, it might also damage your valve stems and any other internal parts. If that ever happens, the damage can get really expensive. Every once in awhile, you should pressure wash your engine to keep it clean. Keeping your engine clean will help all your parts from wearing out lot faster.

Transmission: Make sure you replace your transmission fluid every 24,000 miles. This helps the life of your transmission and will help your transmission shifting faster to the next gear to prevent high rpm. Yours transmission can get hot too. The fluid is cooled by your radiator. Your radiator has a separate passage for your coolant and transmission fluid. That is why it is important to hose down your radiator to get all the bugs and dirt off to allow the air to pass through to cool your coolant and transmission fluid. Also make a habit of checking your transmission fluid. By checking your transmission fluid, your engine must be running and it must be in its normal operating temperature (180 - 200 degrees) depending on your engine.

Tune-Up: Some of the above is part of a tune-up. A well tuned-up vehicle will give you a better mileage and performance.

Vehicle: Try to keep your trunk clean. Any unnecessary items in your vehicle are an excess weight and will cause your vehicle to consume more fuel. Some people put sand bags in the trunk of their vehicle to get a better traction in the winter time. But they forget to take it out when winter is over. Believe it or not, washing and waxing your vehicle plays a roll on fuel economy. Not only will the wax keep your vehicle looking beautiful it helps the paint from fading caused by the sun and acid rain, it lessens the friction in your vehicle. Imagine rubbing a wash cloth on cement versus on a glass. That wash cloth will slide along the glass. Well, the same concept with the wind. It will help your vehicle go through the wind more smoothly.

Warning:When working on your vehicle, make sure your not wearing any jewelry or loose clothing. Any metal jewelry will act as a conductor when it is touching on to electrical. If that ever happens, you might get burned or even loose a limb. You have a lot of electrical wires underneath that hood. Loose clothing might get caught in the moving parts. Always take an extra precaution when working on your vehicle to prevent serious injuries or death.

Now that the economy is so expensive, we must try to do what ever we can to save money. A well maintained vehicle will save you money and last a long time. If you have any question, consult your manufacturer or service technician.