The last thing you may want to hear is that you may be contributing to car problems due to your poor habits or etiquette. Nevertheless, perhaps you should make a few modifications when you get behind the wheel or maintain your car and you might not run into some of these problems in the future. What should you be focusing on instead?

Every Little Helps

Automobile manufacturers do tend to "overengineer" their vehicles, so that they can put up with a reasonable amount of wear and tear and poor driving habits. However, this does not mean that they are designed to be abused and they will respond if you're not careful in a few areas.

Cold Oil Can't Protect

Consider letting the vehicle warm up first thing in the morning, before you drive away for the day. Certainly, you may be late on certain occasions, but most of the time you are not. Whenever you put the engine and transmission under load in these situations, damage is possible.

The oil within will still be cold and will not have warmed up to operating temperature. It's also possible that it will not have reached some of the mechanical components before you actually apply the load. In this case, each part will experience a small amount of additional friction and this can build up over time.

Avoid Adding Strain on the Transmission

If you're still in a hurry when you get to work, you may be guilty of causing some additional damage. You may be keen to reverse into a parking spot before somebody else snatches it and engage reverse gear before the vehicle has come to a complete halt. Once again, your car or truck will probably conform but this can place a great deal of strain on the transmission.

Look Over Oil Labels

When you are shopping for parts, do you simply buy the cheapest product that you can find, thinking that it is basically the same as the manufacturer-recommended version? Each can of oil on the shelf is designed for a specific purpose and has a different level of viscosity. If you don't take time to read the label, you may be adding something to your vehicle that could lead to problems.

Pick Coolant Over Water

Likewise, don't be cheap when you're filling up the radiator. Water can certainly help to cool down your engine in the normal course of driving, but manufacturers create a specific coolant to give even more protection. If you don't add any coolant at all, the engine could overheat in a typically hot Australian summer and as you can imagine, additional damage could ensue.

Visit the Mechanic

Are you looking for more specific ideas for car maintenance? Contact local car repair services to learn more.