Financial planners everywhere received good news yesterday that their message might finally be getting through.
Southfield, Michigan-based automotive research firm Polk announced that Americans are driving older cars longer than ever before. The average age of that car you just passed on the road? 11.1 years for cars and 10.4 years for light trucks. While this is certainly a sign that economic conditions have been horrible, coupled with the recent news that credit card debt is finally declining, there’s a growing feeling that people might be evaluating expensive car purchases more carefully. I hope this trend continues.
So if you want to stretch out your car’s life, how do you keep it reliable?
Change Fluids And Filters Regularly
Nearly everyone knows to change the oil and filter on a regular basis, but don’t forget other fluids and filters.
Change air filters to increase the life of your older car.
In college, I was an oil changing fiend, but discovered too late about the little miracle called transmission fluid. I learned the uber-expensive way that this should be changed every time you change the car’s coolant. The transmission work I ended up eating? It cost me every cent and more that I’d been stashing away for a new computer. Ouch.
Air filters are important also. Your car engine needs to breathe to run well. If the air filter is clogged, there’s a better chance of problems down the line. When I change my oil I’ll check the air filter and nearly always replace it. Air filters are cheap, while a new car is expensive. Consider it low-cost engine insurance.
Inflate Your Tires
Missing this simple step can have huge implications: lower gas mileage (costing you money), possible alignment problems (costing you money), wear on other suspension-based parts (guess what….costing you money) and finally, your safety (costing you more dearly than money). Remember that changes in temperature affect your tire pressure. Just because you checked a few months ago doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take a quick peek today to make sure your tires are ready to roll. Care for an older care requires frequent checks across the board, because there’s a greater threat that something may break.
Cool The Engine
Think it’s hot outside in the summer? Try sticking your head in the engine compartment. Car motors run at silly-hot temperatures. Using a good coolant and changing it according to directions can add years to your ride’s life. Depending on your vehicle, experts recommend changing coolant every 24,000 – 30,000 miles. While you have the hood open, check your engine hoses. Nothing should be dripping or leaking from any hose. By keeping hoses intact and the engine cool, you’ll avoid the ultimate nightmare: a complete engine meltdown followed by a full-on emotional meltdown.
Keep It Clean
Frequent wash-and-wax of your paint job keep the car sparkling and prevent rust. It also helps hold up the resale value for that day when you’ll finally sell the vehicle. Don’t forget the interior. Catching spills quickly, vacuuming the interior and shampooing carpets can keep your older car looking like new. If gauges fail, have them repaired immediately. For someone caring for an older car, checking engine gauges often is your key to successfully keeping your ride on the road.
Find A Good Mechanic
Similar to visiting a doctor for a yearly physical, you should take your car to a qualified mechanic regularly to check out and avert any potential problems. Remember the key here: the longer your older car runs, the longer you’ll avoid costly car payments. Paying a few dollars to the right mechanic is a small price to pay to keep your vehicle healthy and avoid much more expensive new car costs. By practicing good care for an older car, you’ll help your dollars stretch so you can use them for more important items on your agenda.
That’s our story…now it’s your turn: do you drive an older car? What tricks do you use to keep it running longer?
I have a habit of always checking my tire pressure because I’ve own too many old cars to know better hehe
I’m with you, Aaron! I’ve become a tire pressure-checking freak! My wife always asks “what are you doing?” I’ve learned to say, “nothing” because she’s tired of hearing “I’m checking the tires….”
Remembering to change that oil is a pain, but also very important. One other tip for older cars is to try and use a higher quality oil. Higher quality oil can help maintain better care of such old parts.
I love the high quality oil tip. That’ll make it last longer. My car is up to 145k miles, and I’ve always used high quality oil. A few bucks more for oil saves big bucks!
It’s nice to hear that people are keeping their vehicles longer. My dad has the same truck since 1986 (now that’s an old car!). And it’s still running great. He’s taken excellent care of it.
I plan to do these steps and keep my car for as long as possible. I’m pretty consistent with maintenance, changing the oil and keeping my car clean. I need to remember to check the tire pressure more often though. Great tips!
1986! His truck could be a Motley Crue fan!
I have a neighbour who does all this for me actually! And as he is a friend of ours, he does it for free! Could you have it better than this? 🙂 OK, I check the pressure in my tires occasionaly…
Wow! Can I borrow your neighbor? Pretty-please?
Eleven years on the truck and going strong. I have a short-term project to steam clean the seats and carpets.
Well, no me personally, I’m going to dragoon the kids into doing it. I’m sure I’ll find something they’ve done or haven’t done that will need good
hard work to make up for it…!
Failing that, I’ll have to pay them lower-than-minimum wage.
Parenting is such hard work.
It’s exhausting, isn’t it? All that “open my beer for me” and “feed me grapes while I watch football.” I don’t know what I’m going to do when they leave for college.
Knowing what’s important is very helpful. Any criteria on what makes a good mechanic and how to find one?
I don’t have any advice there, Evelyn! It sounds like another blog post in waiting…..
Actually, I take that back….
Here are two links: The first is an Edmunds.com discussion on auto mechanics.
The second is a post written at FiveCentNickel.com, another good personal financial blog.
I am really bad with inflating my tires. But it is quite important because it saves you big time on gas. I learned it the hard way, unfortunately.
My secret? Drive a 2003 VW TDI diesel. It gets great MPG and so far hasn’t cost much to keep running (the A/C went out last summer which cost a bundle even at a mechanic I trust, but Texas summers make A/C pretty much an absolute).
I have a question for a family member (SIL): When is it time to cut your losses with an older car? They have a 2000 VW New Beetle that seems to cost $600 in repairs ever 3 or 4 months. I think it’s about time to part with that car and move on. Thoughts?
Go out and find the car that would replace it. Figure out the monthly payments if you were to finance it at 0%. If the repairs are more than the monthly payment, junk it and buy the car you looked at.
I agree 100 percent w/ Big Dave. I’d also add in that your time is worth money, too. If the cost of your time is being eaten too much by the car to justify the payment (IE: you’d make more money if you were at your job instead of taking car of auto repairs), then let it go.
I own two older cars. I’ve found a good, cheap mechanic I trust, bought the service manuals for all my cars (to help with self-repairs), and maintain my vehicles religiously. Also, a good friend of mine in the next state over is a professional mechanic, so its always great to be able to call him and get answers and advice before I commit to take a car in to the mechanic. Being able to do much of the maintenance and repairs yourself means you’ll save bundles and that you’ll be more likely to actually have it done in a timely manner. Besides, if you screw it up, you can drive it/have it towed in to the mechanic anyway. Until you get all the proper tools and get better at it, you won’t be saving much money but it pays off eventually when you do something that would have been expensive all your self.
What I wouldn’t give to have a buddy who’s a professional mechanic….
Another good thing to do to extend the life of your vehicle is to switch to a synthetic oil. Synthetic oils last longer and provide better protection, especially in colder climates where the synthetic oil will maintain is viscosity at lower temperatures. Great list of tips! Thanks.
keeping the car clean, changing the fluids regularly and maintaining the engine performance are the most important things that can be done to keep the old car in top most condition.
Check the tyres of the car frequently as it is filled up with necessary air. Fluid Checking is also very important if u meant to have a long time. Scheduled maintenance of the car itself gives the long life time to the car.
Thank you for this awesome advice. I know so many people love having an older car because of the charm and the history. Keeping up on maintenance is imperative!
It’s good to know that I could prevent a little rust from my old car, just by a car wash. I’ve actually been trying to find ways to replace my car keys, I couldn’t find my keys today. I just hope that I’ll be able to replace my car keys before I have to leave for work.
I had an older car with overheating problems and it took two different repair shops to find the problem. So it’s definitely important to find a quality mechanic and get second opinions if your car continues to malfunction. Great post!
Well, no one can disagree to the fact that the performance, look and reselling value of a car gets deteriorated over the time. So, here I can say that it may be too old or it may be ugly, but if someone does not take good care of his car then I am sure it could pay him back by living him stranded. Here, in this regard the blog has mentioned with some useful steps which will help in maintaining an old car. I genuinely like all the five points. But apart from these five points, I want to share some extra tips in the following.
1)Revitalize the car ac which will help to remove bacteria and maintain its performance.
2)Change the air filter, so that a car can breathe properly.
3)Clean the exterior parts and paint it if necessary. Etc.
Thank you so much.
For most taking care of the old car is meaningless. But, some wants to keep them for more years or for life time giving respect to their emotions. Car like objects demand more repair and need proper maintenance as they grow older. So, the article will definitely be considered as panacea for such old car lovers. Meanwhile, you should check it regularly with a well-known garage that must have mechanics who have possessed a vast experience especially dealing with your car model. On a overall basis I found the blog quite appreciating and would like to say thank you for sharing such an useful info.
Maintaining an older car is very costly. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Some owners maintain their vehicles in a great way. They never ignore their old cars as they want to keep them fit life long as it has witnessed their many incidents. For this, you have to embrace few tips. You should maintain your car’s tire pressure and change engine oil and filters at right time. Above all, you have to care about the mechanic who handles your car issues. He should be well experienced and talented and must have knowledge how to handle the modern tools required for car maintenance.
My dad gave me his old 70’s Chevy truck and I wanted to see what I’d get to have it tuned. I like that changing oil and air filters will enable our car to breathe and run well. We all know how Chevy trucks could get loud and rocky. Thanks for the great tips!