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Ever wondered why some people drive their cars for years together just doing the regular services and munching miles with super reliability and the others are stuck in the garage almost every weekend with the 'friendly' neighbourhood mechanic ( I am going to call him Vincent for some reason) parting with 2000 bucks every fortnight. Well it is a simple give and take situation between you and your car and there are so many points I wonder which one to start with. "You take care of the car and she will take care of you" is a phrase that is easier said than done. I am trying to list down these points in this article which will hopefully help out everyone and also those so many first time buyers who do not know words like Engine Oil, Coolant, Oil Filter, Regular Servicing etc. 

1. You need to ask yourself if you drive the car as it is meant to be driven. Do you subject it to more wear and tear than it is made to take. Well, all cars are made differently. Some are more robust and durable than the others. Still, almost everyone I see on the road driving is either too rough with the car or too careless. The third possibilty is ignorance which I will address here (Others can think they are driving tanks who cares). No matter how much faith you have in your car in this aspect and your opinion about how much abuse can it take, our roads overwhelm the machines most of the time. Our roads are just too bloody horrible to even take the car out and if you are careless or carefree, you will have those "friendly mechanic" visits lined up very soon.

First thing. Slow down. Just slow down on the breakers and relax your driving habits. Take the speed that the traffic around you has, the average. If you are faster, you will break suddenly which does not seem to bother many motorists. Do not take the brakes for granted. The brakes on most cars are hydraulic ones, they have brake oil and a master cylinder with pipes connecting the whole assembly to all wheels. When you press the pedal, the oil is pushed out to all wheels which pushes the caliper shoes against the disk and the drum shoes at the rear to expand and stop the drum of the wheel from rotation to eventually decelerate the car. This was just explained in layman terms and if you are wise this is more than enough. So next time, you slam the brakes, remember, once the brakes are screwed up, Vincent will not let go of the chance to fleece you. Brake repairs can be expensive and most probably you will not get the same quality and perfection from braking that you got from the original braking system even if you get it done at the authorized service station which you will not in all probability to save money. So save them (the brakes) and they will probably last for as long as the life of the car with only regular changes in the brake pads. It is that simple. Just break less and anticipate your stops. If you know the signal at the junction in front is red, just leave the throttle and avoid unnecessary braking, otherwise you waste fuel and screw the brake pads all at the same time. I never thought of starting this article from the brakes but then I did. 

2. Once you have learnt the art of braking (or not) and driving in the city, let me talk about the next very important part of your car. The Suspension. The suspension is something which takes the beating and insulates you from taking any. In developed nations, suspension setup is almost never touched or needs a repair, thanks to the infrastructure they have. The indian story is quite different. Here we have to overhaul the setup in about a lakh kilometes if not less. If you feel the need to do it sooner, you do not drive 'properly'. Slow down on the potholes, and those roads which are dug across by people overnight to lay a water pipe. These gaps are small but lethal for the springs and the shock absorber. Not doing this will result in fancy rattles and noises from the wheels which believe you me, you do not want to hear. The repair is expensive and then why would you want to go to Vincent when you can avoid it for a long time, yes by simply going slow. 

 

 

The suspension in a few cars these days might sound a bit hard because a lot of cars in the market come with handling oriented suspension rather than comfort oriented. The cars tendency to hold the road demands stiffer suspension setup which might upset the owner because every small pebble the car encounters is audible inside the cabin. Ford Fiesta and Skoda Laura are typical examples of such suspension setups. They can get uncomfortable over the slightest of undulations that the roads throw up. The spft suspension is different. The Hyundai Verna for example has very soft and no nonsense suspension which gives a comfortable and pliant ride but sacrifices on driving dynamics. Yes, the car handles like a boat if you have driven one. So, this was strictly FYI. 

3. Stop drilling for ICE (In Car Entertainment) or anything else - Keep your car away from unnecessary modifications from accessory shops or neighbourhood tuner shops unless absolutely necessary. They will do more damage in the long run. Use only branded accessories and do not let go of anything that comes with original with the car. For example, many people remove the original parcel shelf of the car and replace it with a wooden one for putting probably speakers and a subwoofer which demand a stronger shelf. If someone suggest you to replace your stuff like that, stay away from that person. Better sense will prevail when your after market tray made in some fabricators shop will give in and start rattling, you will then try to find the original but then that was exchanged wasn't it? It will probably be not available in the showroom anymore and even if it is, it will cost too much of money and you would regret your decision of spoiling the originality of your car way back when you did not realize the importance of that tray which had much better quality and would never rattle because it fitted so well huh. 

 

 

Also do not drill any holes in the plastics and the metal of your car. Do it only if it is absolutely necessary, make sure the damage is kept to the minimum. You will never have that the original state of your car back so think about it before going ahead. Once the rattles set in, they will never go and will bother you every minute of you driving the car for as long as you do. 

Another point I realized lately. All the aftermarket material fitted to the car actually does not last as long as the car itself. See for example, if the central locking is provided by the manufacturer, you will see it working at the 10th year of driving that car. But if it is a local or an aftermarket job done by some cool accessory fitter, the maximum you can see it working for is not more than 3 years and you will have to get it repaired a number of times in that time. Don't forget, the door panels are opened everytime that is done by screwdrivers and then slotted back in ruining the whole factory fitted finish and seals. The doors will start rattling sooner than you think which is plain hell that's it. Go for the top end version that you can afford and if you are one of those loosers who thinks that getting the Wagon R LX model and then upgrading it with accessories similar to the VX model later on is exactly the same as getting an original VX, you actually need to get a life. No aftermarket thing can match the quality of the original. The original equipment is tested by the manufacturer rigorously and only then fitted into the vehicle. And yes, it is made for your car specially so nothing beats that. 

The bottomline is, keeping the car in its original state will make sure you get your money back in case you decide to sell it. A wise used car buyer will stay away from cars which have been repaired too much or have wires dangling below the dashboard indicating frequent repairs, that too done very badly.

4. The engine - Contrary to popular belief, the engine is the most durable part of the car and will probably never give you any issues for the car's life and beyond if it has been maintained without shortcuts. Maintaining a car engine is simple. Just change the engine oil and oil filter at regular intervals as instructed by the manufacturer. Do not rev the engine hard immediately after starting it in the morning. That is when it is dry and the oil has not circulated on the internal walls and the faster you run it that time, the more damage it takes. The full oil circulation will take about 10 minutes when you start it first thing in the morning. So you can drive your car immediately but stick to low rpm for the initial few minutes. Also make sure the engine temperature is always under the limit. If the engine temperature shoots up, it ill damage the head and the gaskets and that would be some solid damage but it won't happen unless you check the coolants level regularly. If you give it for servicing at an authorised service station regularly, they obviously check all these things. So you are all set. Also, the air filter has to be dusted regularly. This is where your car breathes from and if you live in dusty areas, you need to run it through a vaccum cleaner more often. This determines the quality of air getting sucked into the cylinders of your car so it is important. The engine if serviced regularly will go on for lacs and lacs of kilometers and will not need an overhaul unless you do not stick to these points. 

 

 

 

If your car shudders in the morning when you start it up or when you put it on the first and start moving, there is nothing to panic really. Probably your engine mount bushes are worn out. They are made of rubber and are the contact between the chassis of your car and the engine and contain all the vibrations that your engine generates from reaching the body of the car or you. The rubber hardens everytime and the NVH containing capacity goes down. So replace them, it is easily done and probably the cheapest thing in the car to be replaced of course after the wiper blades. 

5. Tires - Tires and the tire air pressure is the most overlooked factor while maintaining a car and actually the most important one. Tires are your first line of contact on the road and the air pressure has to be optimum for them to perform at their best. Too much of air will give an uncomfortable ride, damage the suspension and the tire. The suspension will get affected because over-inflated tires will not absorb any undulations from the road and will pass them straight on to the suspension affecting it's life. The tire life will reduce because if it is harder, the rubber will give way sooner.

If the tire is under-inflated, it will affect the fuel consumption of the car. The car engine will strain more to get the car to a particular speed since the car will run heavy. The tire will be more prone to cuts and bruises because it will be soft and any sharp piece of stone on the road (which is not a rarity in bharat desh) can do a lot of damage to the rubber. So the pressure has to be optimum and you need to get the air pressure checked every week. If that sounds like too much work, then try nitrogen. It leaves the tire slowly and can retain the same pressure for at least two months which the normal air would loose in a week and over differing temperatures in the day and the night.

 

 

6. I forgot about the most important point. DO NOT take the car to Vincent unless it is absolutely necessary. As I said, he will do more damage than good and even take money from you to do that. 

 

7. Take the car to the correct guy if there is a specific issue - Suppose your A/c is not cooling, don't take the car to the regular Vincent. Take him to the A/c specialist instead. Vincent will never be able to do what the specialised A/c guy would do. Same goes for the electrical probelms. Otherwise, you will just waste your time and damege more. 

 

 

 

Stick to these things and list down the questions if you have any in the comments section. The motor car is one of the most important inventions of mankind, sadly the condition of vehicles in our country is just terrible because most of the people do not know the right things to do. Roads are bad and so is public awareness. Trucks driving on the wrong side of the road, dogs running around and even people, ill behaved two wheelers and taxi drivers who care about nothing but reaching there destination in the shortest time and the curse called the BRTS that our foolish poiticians have bestowed us with. It is difficult really to keep your beloved machine in the best of health in such circumstances but we are trying really hard. We hope for the best. 

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