5 Common Mistakes New Car Owners Make
New car owners often take time to get used to driving as they are new to it. There are chances they might commit newbie mistakes due to insufficient knowledge about automobiles and lack of driving experience. It may also lead them to make wrong decisions on crowded roads.
However, knowing the nature of mistakes can eliminate the risk of motor crashes and give you the confidence to drive like a rider. If you are a new car owner, here are 5 common mistakes you may be making.
1. Not Getting Your Car Serviced Regularly
New car owners are often unaware of the importance of car repair and maintenance. However, delaying car maintenance can cause significant damage and cost you mechanic bills. Delayed maintenance can also cause vehicles to perform poorly and pose safety risks to you as the drivers. Therefore, it is essential to conduct timely servicing of your new car.
Make sure you check essential parts like the engine, battery, spark plugs, and brakes of the car. Clean them regularly, and replace them if they are worn. Additionally, ensure that you remove trash and dirt from dashboards, clean the center console, wipe the windows and disinfect the steering wheel. You can call the service center, or refer to the car manual to know the specifics of maintenance required for your vehicle.
2. Speeding With Cold Engine
Once you start the car, it takes about 15 to 20 seconds for the oil to circulate all over the engine. However, if you accelerate a car with a cold engine, it prevents oil from reaching its destined components. This can cause significant damage to your car engine. Additionally, driving at high speed will increase fuel consumption and gas mileage. Even though it is alright to speed up your vehicle in emergencies, doing it frequently can reduce the functionality and performance of your car engine.
3. Not Checking Tyre Pressure
The temperature of the surroundings, friction between the road and tyres, and hot surfaces can affect the air pressure in tyres. It can cause them to get overheated and underinflated. Therefore, it is necessary to check tyre pressure regularly to avoid blowouts. As specified by manufacturers, you can use a pressure gauge to measure the pounds per square inch(PSI) level. Make sure to look for worn tyres and consider replacing them to avoid sudden breakage.
4. Ignoring The Check Engine Light
Your dashboard indicates if there is anything wrong with your car, which is why you should keep an eye on the dashboard to check if the engine light pops up. There are several reasons for the engine light to flash. It can blink when you have issues with spark plugs, faulty catalytic converters, defective oxygen sensors, or mass airflow sensors. It also blinks when your gap cap goes missing in the combustion chamber. No matter the reason, it is essential to discontinue driving whenever the engine light turns on, and take your car to a mechanic.
5. Forgetting to Keep Car Tools With You
Imagine you are driving a car on a deserted highway and suddenly get stranded due to a minor car issue. You might feel helpless if you did not bring the essential tools to repair your cars. If you do not want to see yourself in such situations, make sure you carry essential car tools like a life hammer, tow strap, jumper cables, duct tape, scissors, tyre inflator, flashlight, portable fire extinguisher, and wheel clamps with you. These tools will allow you to fix problems like replacing flat tyres, removing dirt from spark plugs, opening struct screws, and more.
New car owners commit several other mistakes apart from the above examples, like not washing a car, driving with a flat tyre, delaying oil replacement, buying cheap parts, and not conducting visual inspections. It can cause significant damage to your brand new car and also decrease its functionality. Make sure you don’t repeat these mistakes and learn from your previous experience.
Need professional help in maintaining your car? Talk to us at Cars24.
New car owners often take time to get used to driving as they are new to it. There are chances they might commit newbie mistakes due to insufficient knowledge about automobiles and lack of driving experience. It may also lead them to make wrong decisions on crowded roads.
However, knowing the nature of mistakes can eliminate the risk of motor crashes and give you the confidence to drive like a rider. If you are a new car owner, here are 5 common mistakes you may be making.
1. Not Getting Your Car Serviced Regularly
New car owners are often unaware of the importance of car repair and maintenance. However, delaying car maintenance can cause significant damage and cost you mechanic bills. Delayed maintenance can also cause vehicles to perform poorly and pose safety risks to you as the drivers. Therefore, it is essential to conduct timely servicing of your new car.
Make sure you check essential parts like the engine, battery, spark plugs, and brakes of the car. Clean them regularly, and replace them if they are worn. Additionally, ensure that you remove trash and dirt from dashboards, clean the center console, wipe the windows and disinfect the steering wheel. You can call the service center, or refer to the car manual to know the specifics of maintenance required for your vehicle.
2. Speeding With Cold Engine
Once you start the car, it takes about 15 to 20 seconds for the oil to circulate all over the engine. However, if you accelerate a car with a cold engine, it prevents oil from reaching its destined components. This can cause significant damage to your car engine. Additionally, driving at high speed will increase fuel consumption and gas mileage. Even though it is alright to speed up your vehicle in emergencies, doing it frequently can reduce the functionality and performance of your car engine.
3. Not Checking Tyre Pressure
The temperature of the surroundings, friction between the road and tyres, and hot surfaces can affect the air pressure in tyres. It can cause them to get overheated and underinflated. Therefore, it is necessary to check tyre pressure regularly to avoid blowouts. As specified by manufacturers, you can use a pressure gauge to measure the pounds per square inch(PSI) level. Make sure to look for worn tyres and consider replacing them to avoid sudden breakage.
4. Ignoring The Check Engine Light
Your dashboard indicates if there is anything wrong with your car, which is why you should keep an eye on the dashboard to check if the engine light pops up. There are several reasons for the engine light to flash. It can blink when you have issues with spark plugs, faulty catalytic converters, defective oxygen sensors, or mass airflow sensors. It also blinks when your gap cap goes missing in the combustion chamber. No matter the reason, it is essential to discontinue driving whenever the engine light turns on, and take your car to a mechanic.
5. Forgetting to Keep Car Tools With You
Imagine you are driving a car on a deserted highway and suddenly get stranded due to a minor car issue. You might feel helpless if you did not bring the essential tools to repair your cars. If you do not want to see yourself in such situations, make sure you carry essential car tools like a life hammer, tow strap, jumper cables, duct tape, scissors, tyre inflator, flashlight, portable fire extinguisher, and wheel clamps with you. These tools will allow you to fix problems like replacing flat tyres, removing dirt from spark plugs, opening struct screws, and more.
New car owners commit several other mistakes apart from the above examples, like not washing a car, driving with a flat tyre, delaying oil replacement, buying cheap parts, and not conducting visual inspections. It can cause significant damage to your brand new car and also decrease its functionality. Make sure you don’t repeat these mistakes and learn from your previous experience.
Need professional help in maintaining your car? Talk to us at Cars24.
