Most families consider their car part of the family. It drives the kids to school, brings everyone to work, and hauls the groceries, and somehow does so after years of wear and tear. Yet believe it or not, most people fail to give their vehicles the basic checks they need at some point until it’s too late.
What’s even crazier is that you don’t have to be a mechanic to get a preventative jump on your maintenance needs. A simple walk-around check once a month can help you avoid issues before it ends up breaking down – or worse, putting your family in danger.
Lights and Visibility are more Important than You Think
Where to start? The easy stuff. Walk around your vehicle and check each and every light that functions on the outside. Headlights, fog lights, brake lights, reverse lights, turn signal lights, and even those tiny license plate lights that typically don’t do anything but let you know the same digitized numbers you see on your bumper are indeed real. It’s shocking what people don’t notice – when a bulb blows out, the same bulb replacement effort goes neglected for months.
But a burned-out brake light isn’t just a nuisance; it’s a safety issue for everyone behind you. People cannot tell when you’re stopping, and the chances of getting rear-ended in stop-and-go traffic increases immensely.
While you’re checking lights, assess your windshield. Most people have chips and cracks but ignore them until they become life-threatening gashes across the whole vehicle. But where the damage is located is more important than size. Damage in the acute area of windshield – the part right in your eye level – severely complicates nighttime driving and driving during glaringly bright sunlight.
A chip in the far corner is irritating but nothing to rectify right away; a crack spanning right across your line of vision needs to be handled sooner rather than later. This portion of the windshield also contributes more to the structural integrity of your vehicle than people realize, especially when airbags deploy.
Tires are Nuisance Yet Informative
Tires are one of those things that everyone knows they should check but none do correctly. The penny test for tread depth is easy enough – insert a penny with Lincoln upside down into the tread; if you see all of Lincoln’s head, the tires are too worn.
But that does not tell you enough about tires. Pay attention to how tires are wearing. Are they more bald on the inside or outside edges? Your alignment is off. Are they bald yet catch patterns? Your suspension is questionable or tire pressure has been off for some time. Check tire pressure while cold – meaning before driving anywhere. The sticker on your driver’s door jamb tells you what PSI is appropriate; most people keep their tires low without even knowing, which compromises gas mileage and causes unnecessary wear.
And don’t forget the spare. There’s nothing worse than getting a flat tire only to discover your spare is also flat when you absolutely should’ve been driving on a full spare.
Fluid Levels Don’t Lie
After checking tires, pop the hood and take a gander. You don’t have to know what’s what, but when you get to fluids, the most obvious levels can be checked by non-literal grease monkeys.
Oil is black and visible on the dipstick; wipe off the dipstick to get rid of residue, stick it back in, pull it out, and gauge the measurement. If it’s low, fill it back up with some oil; if it’s severely low or brown (the coolant infiltrating oil), it’s time to make a pitstop for an expert opinion.
Coolant is also visible in the overflow tank; there should be min/max indicators. If it’s low but not below max, fill it back up with Antifreeze and water; if it’s below minimum, seek help or at least evaluate the coolant situation further if you’ve driven for ages without checking once at all; opening that radiator cap when it’s hot will either get you burned or in need of some serious first aid.
Brake fluid, windshield washer fluid and power steering fluid all have containers – their nozzles/sections are labeled differently; check to see if any are exceptionally low (meaning leaks exist) or need topping off (not necessarily definitive criteria for needing immediate help).
Listen to What Your Car Is Telling You
This one sounds vague, but in time with your car, you’ll notice when something sounds off when you’re driving. During your monthly check – start the engine and listen for one minute as it ticks away.
If you hear squealing when you start up, there’s probably an alignment issue with a belt somewhere; if you hear clicking or ticking that’s new to your experience – turn off the engine and call someone when you’re low on oil – or there’s an issue with a valve somewhere; if there’s grinding sound – especially when braking – your brake pads are crying out for help.
Finally, take a test drive around the block and pay attention to any anomalies. If the steering wheel pulls, it’s likely an alignment issue or tire pressure; if you feel vibrations at certain speeds – either wheels need balancing or one tire has an issue; if brakes feel spongy or sound off – it’s time for professional insight.
The Stuff Under the Hood You Can Actually See
You don’t have to understand the inner workings of an engine to make sure what’s outside of it that’s practical looks alright.
All belts and hoses should look fine: cracks/tears/fraying/softness indicate replacement overdue; shiny belts mean they’re worn too thin; hoses should maintain integrity/solidness when squeezed – but shouldn’t be mushy; these are inexpensive evaluations that prevent breakdowns down the line which cost hundreds if not thousands.
Also check around the engine for leaks; oil leaks will stain black; coolant will either be bright green/orange/pink; power steering fluid stains crimson but nothing should be leaking from your vehicle overnight especially when parked in warm places like driveways.
Battery terminals corrode over time; they build up that whitish crusty form of blue-green stuff – you’ll see over time that poor connections make it hard for your car to start. Clean battery terminals off with baking soda combined with water, it’ll remove corrosion properly without ruining it.
Interior Safety Equipment Gets Forgotten
When doing this once-a-month check in the comfort of your driveway or garage, assess safety equipment inside as well as all other mechanics outside. Is your fire extinguisher still charged if you have one? Is your first-aid kit still equipped with basic supplies? Do you still have gloves? Jumper cables? Flashlight? Basic tools?
Check that seatbelts still work perfectly – they shouldn’t feel tight/restrained under pressure or slow in retracting; if you have kids – make sure car seats are still safe/locked in and have not come loose over time.
Check your horn; as stupid as it sounds now may prevent embarrassment down the road when you get into someone’s way and don’t warn them with a loud honk.
Why Monthly Matters
Here’s why: rarely do car problems arise all at once – it will be small increments time after time before something finally snaps – and then stress levels rise – and finances diminish further avoidance tactics become more expensive repairs or necessities.
Oil leaks (about $50) become problems needing new engines (about $2k); worn brake pads ($50) become destroyed rotors ($1k); windshield chips ($50) become chips across your WHOLE windshield ($1k).
Nip everything in the bud while you can before it escalates – and more importantly – for performance and safety factors keep everyone who relies on the vehicle safe because having a tire blowout on the highway or brakes die during rush hour isn’t just expensive – it’ll be dangerous.
Most of these checks take but minutes at a time – set an alarm once a month on your phone as a reminder that first weekend to create routine until it’ll come second nature – or get your children involved so they learn about basic car care as well.
Your car does so much for your family it only makes sense that giving it proper attention consistently goes appreciated in return – and vehicles that are given regular attention often last longer and keep their resale value better too – for 20 minutes a month? Sounds worth it.