7 ways to make your car last longer

When you buy a car, it is likely to be one of the biggest investments you are ever likely to make, so it stands to reason that you will want it to last for as long as possible.

Currently, the average age of a car when it is scrapped is 14 years, whilst many vehicles on the road are no more than eight years old.

However, with a little bit of tender loving care, you can help to protect and look after your vehicle to make sure you maximise the number of years that you can get out of it. In this article, Tracy, Marketing Manager at Car Mats UK has put together our top tips for maintaining your car to give it a long and happy life.

Driving style

There is a reason that most salespeople will tell you that a car has had one careful owner, and that is because the way you drive a car will determine how long it is likely to last.

You need to be sympathetic to the car when you drive it by using the steering wheel, gears and pedals as smoothly as you can to reduce the wear and tear on different components.

By anticipating situations ahead to avoid any sudden braking or sharp movements, you can not only save on your fuel bills but also protect many of the most important elements of your car.

Servicing

It is important to make sure that you service your car regularly, as this will affect how it runs. Ideally this should be done every 10,000 miles or once a year, whichever comes first.

Minor services will often include an oil and filter change, as well as a check on the other fluids in your car, whilst a major service will cover the replacement of air filters, spark plugs and the cambelt.

These services will ensure that your car keeps running smoothly and can help to avoid any problems that could end up creating even greater issues and shortening the lifespan of your car.

Avoid potholes

Given the state of our roads at the moment this may not seem like an easy task, but it is important to try and dodge the potholes that we see and keep away from any rough tracks.

This is because they are capable of doing tremendous damage to your suspension, tyres and exhaust. The repair bills for these can be extremely costly, and in some severe cases you may even find that you scrape your catalytic converter and lose power to the car altogether.

Clean your car

One thing that can make a car look old before its time is shoddy paint work, so you need to take good care of it. No matter what time of year it is, our cars can be pelted with sand, grit and dust which can be corrosive to your paintwork.

Other things such as bird droppings and grease can also cause damage when left on the car, so you need to make sure it is cleaned on a regular basis.

Hand washes, whether paid for or on your own driveway tend to be a better option as the stiff brushes of a car wash can often scratch your paintwork.

You should also consider polishing your car every few months to add another layer of protection and prevent rust from spreading.

Car interiors

Cleaning the outside of your car is very important, but that doesn’t mean that you can forget the inside. We are in and out of our cars all of the time, which puts a lot of strain on our seats and carpets.

Dirty shoes, muddy dogs and sticky fingers can all take their toll on the upholstery, and once this is damaged it can be very difficult to salvage. Car seat covers are now proving very popular as a way to keep the interior of your car on point.

They can protect against the scratches from dog claws, crisp crumbs from toddlers and leaking shopping bags to name just a few things. They are often available in sizes for your specific make and model of car so they will fit perfectly and protect your seats for longer.

Durable car mats can also help to extend the life of your car’s interior. They not only protect high wear areas from the general coming and going from your car, but they can also prevent the build-up of things such as mould, mildew and bad odours.

One of the best things about the car seat covers and car mats is that they are removable, meaning that it is much easier to take them out of the car and get them clean.

Car battery

If you are not on the road regularly, then the battery of your car is at risk of degrading and going flat. If you know that the car is going to be left unattended for an extended period of time, then it might be worth investing in a trickle charger which can keep your car battery topped up.

Jump-starting a car puts a lot of strain on the battery and can cause damage to the electronics in the car such as the engine management system, so it is best to avoid this situation if you can.

Keep your car fuelled up

We know how expensive fuel can be at the moment and it is tempting to want to get the most out of every last drop, but running low on fuel does not do your car any good. This is because when your car has low fuel levels, the pump can start to draw on air, sediment and debris that is found at the bottom of your fuel tank. These clog the system up and can corrode the pump and filters.

Keeping your car on the road does require a bit of work, but these are important steps that can go a long way towards getting all the life that you can out of your car before selling or scrapping.