8 mistakes in car maintenance

(Baonghean.vn) - In fact, many people make very basic mistakes in car maintenance because they do not understand basic techniques. When they accidentally make these mistakes, it will directly affect the car's engine.

Clean the engine

A clean engine compartment will give you more peace of mind than a dusty engine compartment. However, to clean the engine compartment, many people use high-pressure sprayers to spray strongly on the engine block as well as the nooks and crannies in the compartment. This can sometimes damage your car.

Today's cars use a lot of electronic technology to control the engine and auxiliary equipment, so having water in the engine compartment can cause damage to the above electronic equipment.

Many people have the habit of using regular soap, dishwashing liquid or laundry detergent to wash their cars. This is very harmful to the car's paint surface. Detergents can strip the wax layer on the car's body. Instead, use a car wash solution that is formulated to wash your car without stripping the wax layer.

Change coolant every time you change oil.

In fact, the coolant reservoir doesn’t need to be changed very often. Most owners manuals recommend changing it every five years or 60,000 miles (96,560 km). Of course, if the reservoir is frequently low, check for leaks and get it serviced as soon as possible.

Inflate the tire to the pressure indicated on the tire sidewall.

The psi (pounds per square inch) number printed on the tire sidewall is the maximum pressure the tire can handle, not the ideal pressure recommended by the manufacturer for the best balance of braking, handling, fuel efficiency, and comfort. Therefore, it is not recommended to inflate your tire to this psi level.

Check tire pressure monthly when the tires are cold or after the vehicle has been parked for a few hours and inflate to the proper pressure.

Prioritize replacing new tires for the front wheels

Usually when changing new tires, many people often think that the front tires bear a lot of pressure and wear out quickly, so they will prioritize changing the front pair of tires.

This is actually a mistake because your car can slide faster when going through a puddle or pothole, causing safety problems.

Tire shop statistics also show many unsafe driving situations with new tires in the front and old tires in the rear.

If you intend to replace a pair of new tires, replace the new pair of tires on the two rear wheels, and move the less worn rear pair to the front. If possible, you should replace all four wheels.

Brake

If you suspect a brake problem, get it looked at immediately. There are many factors that can affect your brakes, and first you need to understand what’s wrong. It could be a loose brake pedal (the pedal doesn’t go all the way down when pressed, but bounces back slightly); the car pulls to one side when braking.

Lamp

Check your entire lighting system by having someone stand outside the car and help you check as you adjust the headlights, low and high beams, turn signals, brake lights, and fog lights. If you’re not comfortable with it, don’t try to replace a broken bulb (it’s a delicate job; you could damage the bulb housing, which could be costly).

Windshield and wipers

If your windshield is cracked, don't remove it. You need to have maximum visibility on the road - it's important. Most auto parts stores have a self-service windshield repair kit that will help you prevent small cracks from becoming large cracks. If you don't do this, a crack will require you to replace the entire windshield, which can be a big expense. Clean your wipers with a towel dipped in cleaning solution.

It's not necessary to use a special windshield washer fluid - a few drops of dishwashing liquid mixed with water will do the trick.

Shock absorber

You can’t replace or repair shock absorbers yourself; only a dealer can do that. However, you can check that they’re operating properly. The best way to do this is to have a very strong person push down on each corner of the car, one at a time, and then suddenly release it.

If the car bounces back to its original position at normal speed, then the shock absorbers are still good. If it bounces up and down a few times, there is a good chance that your shock absorbers are bad./.

Ngoc Anh

(Synthetic)