Your not defenseless against depreciation of your McCullom Lake car, truck or SUV

McCullom Lake depreciation of car truck suv

Depreciation starts its insidious attack on the

value of your car, truck or SUV as soon as
you bring it home to your McCullom Lake
home.

Remember the day you pulled that new car, truck or SUV into the driveway of your McCullom Lake home for the first time? No doubt you were proud of your new vehicle. There’s a good chance that good feeling was dampened a little bit, too.

Most likely, you had a car loan to think about each month when you sat down at your desk in McCullom Lake. Those are substantial monthly payments you’ve assumed. And how long will you make those payments? 60 months? 72 months? Whatever it is, it’s nothing to sneeze about.

As with any car, truck or SUV you buy, one thing is certain – Depreciation

Some say that the biggest chunk of depreciation happens the moment you drive your new car, truck or SUV off the dealer’s lot. But there is always more depreciation to come. Bit by bit, depreciation eats away at the value of your vehicle.

Every time a rock nicks your hood or someone opens their door into your beautiful machine, you get depreciation. It’s insidious. The only way to avoid it is to pack your vehicle away in protective material and never drive it. But what’s the point of buying a new car, truck or SUV if you’re not going to use it?

Keeping the vehicle clean and with a protective coating of wax will help protect the finish. Parking it in the garage will go a long way to protecting your car, truck or SUV. But what about everything inside that shiny finish?

Mechanical protection is even more important than protecting the vehicle’s finish. And protecting your vehicle mechanically is the best way to reduce the rate of depreciation.

Fighting Back Against Depreciation of your Car, Truck or SUV

Giving your car, truck or SUV timely oil changes is the best thing you can do to protect the engine. But there’s more to maintaining a vehicle than changing the oil.

In fact, the best way to maintain the value of your vehicle is to stay on top of all aspects of maintenance. For instance, here are some recommended timelines for having critical parts of your car, truck or SUV checked:

Check the tires and wheels every 6,000 to 8,000 miles.
Check the brakes and suspension every 6 months or 12,000 miles.
Replace air and cabin filters every 12,000 to 15,000 miles.
Check the steering and alignment annually.
Have the battery tested twice each year – best times to test the battery are before summer and winter.
Have your headlights and signal lights checked frequently.
Inspect belts with every oil change.
Change the oil according to recommendations I your owner’s manual.

If you abide by this list with due diligence, you’ll ensure that you’re less likely to have a breakdown or more costly repairs later. You’ll also reduce the rate of depreciation every time you pull out of your McCullom Lake driveway.

Comments

Is your antifreeze safe from freezing this Richmond winter

You still have time to have it checked Well, there’s no denying it – winter tends to get chilly here in Richmond. We have to deal with snow and ice on the roads, scraping the same off our windows and windshield, and staying warm while we drive. Of course, you had your antifreeze checked before winter rolled into town. What?! You didn’t have your antifreeze checked before winter clamped down on Richmond? So, how’s your antifreeze doing? If you haven’t had it checked, there’s really no way of knowing, is there? This car has overheated in the middle of a Richmond winter. But, on the other end of the spectrum, the antifreeze can also freeze if it's not up to its job. Hopefully, you haven’t had a serious problem with your antifreeze already. If you did, you’d probably know. When antifreeze fails, it’s a potentially catastrophic condition for your vehicle’s engine. You could have hoses that have burst because of freezing antifreeze. Worse than that, your engine block may have crac...

Blocks of ice falling from cars in McHenry could cause accidents or damage

We’ve all seen those blocks of snow falling from behind the rear tires of a car when the snow rolls into McHenry . Fortunately, they’re just packed snow that will disintegrate under your vehicle’s tires as you simply drive right through them, right? Don’t count on it. Those blocks of snow are often packed so tight, condensed by the thaw-and-freeze cycle, that they’re anything but oversized snowballs . They’re often more like boulders. Hit one of those blocks and the collision between the block and one of your tires could send you careening off the road or into oncoming traffic. In some cases, they’re so solid you could pound them with a sledgehammer with little effect. They truly can represent a serious road hazard. The problem is that it’s difficult to tell how solidly they’re packed when you see them on the road, left their unwittingly by another driver. Either way, your best bet is to try to avoid them. But you want to be careful dodging blocks of ice in the road, too. You need...

Get out to McHenry Music Festival for a good time and music near to home

Some folks here in McHenry will load up the car and head out to Red Rock Amphitheater near Denver to see a show. Some will go to the MSG Sphere near Las Vegas. Some will go to the Bonaroo Festival Concert to see a show. That’s quite a bit of driving and you’d better make sure your vehicle is up to the trip. What happens, however, if something goes wrong – if your vehicle breaks down while driving there or back? What happens if the show is canceled, as happened this year with the Bonaroo Festival? We’re talking about some serious inconvenience, aren’t we? Wherever you go, whether your driving to Colorado, Nevada, Tennessee or anywhere else in this continent, you want to perform your due diligence and make sure the vehicle is up for the trip before you go. And it doesn’t really matter if you’re driving somewhere to see some live music or for any other purpose. A breakdown can be costly and may put you at the mercy of weather conditions or nefarious characters that come across you while y...

Performance Unlimited Blog

Search This Blog