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Vehicle maintenance
Regular oil changes are the most important part of vehicle maintenance, for keeping your engine in good condition. This particular aspect of vehicle maintenance will help eliminate so many other problems.
- Another example of vehicle maintenance is to wash your car regularly and to wax it once in a while to keep the car body shiny and free from corrosion.
- Minor concerns should be taken care of as soon as possible—to avoid them turning into larger problems later.
- Another vehicle maintenance tip is to check your oil levels often.
- A similar vehicle maintenance tip to the one above, is to check your engine coolant and automatic transmission fluid.
- For great upkeep on your vehicle maintenance, have your tires rotated when they need it. Also, know when to replace your tires.
- Make sure that your vehicle undergoes regular inspections as part of your vehicle maintenance
Vehicle maintenance: how to check the engine oil:
First, place your car at a level spot. Make sure the engine is stopped. Wait for the engine oil to pour down into the oil pan. Then pull the engine oil dipstick.
Next, wipe off the dipstick with a clean rag or tissue and insert it back all the way down into its place.
When you pull the dipstick again you can check the oil level easily. Remember, this is a very simple yet incredibly important aspect of vehicle maintenance.
Normally your dipstick should be at the "FULL" mark.
There are two parts to the vehicle maintenance of checking the engine oil.
The second part of this vehicle maintenance is that you check the oil condition:
If it is very black, you should change the oil.
If it is dark-brown, but still transparent, you are better off just getting the oil change right away as part of your vehicle maintenance, if not, remember to change it soon.
If it is white (like creamy coffee color) it likely means the engine coolant has mixed with the engine oil. Often this is because of some internal engine problem, and to keep up your vehicle maintenance, you should have the car inspected immediately.
For your vehicle maintenance top up the engine oil preferably by adding the same type and brand of the engine oil as you already have in the engine. Add a little then wait for a minute to let the oil to pour down. Then for this step in your vehicle maintenance check the oil level again with the dipstick. If it is still low add more. But be certain not to overfill it.
Vehicle maintenance: how to check your automatic transmission fluid:
Your car should be at a level surface, but this time, keep the engine on. Set the cars transmission in park. For this part of vehicle maintenance, you must let the engine idle, then check the dipstick for your automatic transmission fluid.
Again, off your dipstick with a lint free clean rag or tissue. Then insert it back carefully all the way down into its place.
Pull again and check the fluid level.
If the engine is cold, it should be within "COLD" mark.
If the engine is hot, the level should be at the upper end of the "HOT" mark.
If it is slightly lower do not worry about it. Otherwise, top it up.
The second part of this particular vehicle maintenance check is to check the condition of the automatic fluid:
If it's too black and has a burnt smell - your transmission is not going to last.
Normally your transmission fluid should be clean and transparent.
New fluid comes red and over the time it becomes brownish.
If it is brown, check your owner's manual, may be it's time to change it.
Top up you transmission fluid using only specified transmission fluid for this vehicle maintenance—check your owners manual. Then add a small amount of the fluid through the dipstick pipe but do not overfill it. Wait for a few minutes and let the fluid to flow down. Then start the engine, and check the level again.
There will be instructions in your owners manual for this kind of vehicle maintenance. So if you want to keep your car in great condition, refer to your manual and learn how to perform other types of vehicle maintenance, especially for:
A low coolant level will cause the engine to overheat, which can potentially cause serious damage to the engine.
Check the tire pressure regularly - at least once a month. If you don't have tire pressure gauge it is worth it to buy one for vehicle maintenance. Rotate your tires at least every other time you change the oil for proper vehicle maintenance.
Most of modern vehicles are Front-Wheel-Drive, and they all have CV-joints (Constant Velocity joint) used to transfer the engine torque to the front wheels. If the boot is breaks, it needs to be replaced. If not replaced in time your vehicle maintenance will require that you replace the whole axle shaft.
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