Don’t lose sleep over auto maintenance but don’t neglect it either. A trusted auto repair shop can help

Have you ever seen someone who just seems a little carried away when it comes to maintaining their vehicle? Year after year, day after day, you see them doting over their car as if it’s the only thing they worry about, as if it’s their second biggest investment or something. Of course, chances are, it is their second biggest investment.

Still, maybe there is a point where someone takes auto maintenance too far.

Boss: “Just a reminder, Linda. We have an important meeting tomorrow at 9 a.m. with one of our top clients.”

Linda: “I’m sorry, boss. I won’t be able to make it. I have that time scheduled for checking all the fluids on my car.”

Yes, there probably is such a thing as going too far with auto maintenance.

“The problem is most people don’t go far enough,” said Denny Norton, owner of Ringwood based auto repair shop Performance Unlimited.

Few of us wake in the middle of the night wondering, “Did I miss changing the car’s air filter on schedule?” before rushing to check our maintenance log. No, most of us rely on a gut feeling that the car may be due for an oil change. Most other maintenance, the car provides the reminder.

For instance, the car will remind us to check the air pressure in our tires when the steering feels a little funny and we discover one or more tires are low. The car will remind us to check the charging system when the battery is dead one winter day. We’ll know it’s time for a tune up when the idle is rough or the car dies at each stoplight.

The problem with vehicle induced reminders is they are usually inconvenient, at best, and costly at worst. For instance, by the time you notice the car needs a tune up, you may have wasted good money on less than optimal gas mileage and other costly complications could result.

Your Owner’s Manual provides a full list of required maintenance for the vehicle. Most Owner’s Manuals include a maintenance log. If not, you should start one of your own. But you don’t need to ponder over it nightly, lose sleep thinking about it or put maintenance ahead of picking the children up from school. The only way maintenance usually interferes with your personal life is when it’s neglected.

Instead, think of your car’s maintenance log as the equivalent of the records the doctor looks at when you go in for a checkup. To know how you are now, the doctor needs to know what conditions you’ve had in the past, what treatments you’ve had.

When they sell a new car, the manufacturers provide a maintenance schedule. You might say the schedule is designed to cover their tails. If anything goes wrong, they can always say, “Well, did you follow the maintenance schedule?” If not, warranty wise, they may be off the hook. But the maintenance schedule is good for more than just alibi.

A maintenance schedule will ensure that the vehicle is maintained at its peak performance and value.

If you’re not sure about this, ask at your trusted auto repair shop. Any repair shop worth its salt will gladly talk about proper maintenance and where your vehicle stands.

To speak with someone at Performance Unlimited, call 815-728-0343 or visit www.4performanceunlimited.com.

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