Quality car care in summer is important to maintain your vehicle’s longevity, durability, functionality, and appearance. If you take good care of your car, it can keep on running until your odometer reads 400,000 miles and beyond!
Why We Need Quality Car Care in Summer
Each season brings some specific car care activities that you, the car owner, should be aware of. For example, road salt used in winter calls for additional exterior cleaning appointments to avoid car paint damage. Spring cleaning your car is necessary to remove all the dirt and sludge from winter. Interior cleaning is recommended during the fall season to remove pollen and similar contaminants from the interior as these might give you allergies.
So why is quality car care in summer important if all seasons require detailing anyway?
Summer can bring lots of fun for you and the whole family. There are reunions, summer camps, swimming parties to attend. There are beautiful places to explore. All these mean your vehicle will be working overtime. More miles on the road definitely come with more road dust and contamination to deal with. That’s why you need quality car care in summer. Below are some tips on what to do, in no particular order.
Quality Car Care in Summer: What Works?
1. Check Your Fluids
Summer is the best time for extended trips, but the warm weather it brings, plus the hot roads and dry air, can cause your fluids to dry out faster. So, before you hit the road, make sure you check your fluids and change or just top them up, if necessary. The most important fluids to check are the following: coolant, transmission fluid, power steering fluid, windshield washer fluid, and your gasoline, of course.
2. Keep the Engine Cool and Clean
One of the most common car maintenance mistakes is not cleaning the engine. Some people think that since it’s under the hood anyway, the engine doesn’t need cleaning. However, here’s the thing – all that gunk, bugs, sand and grime, plus the heat from the summer sun is a sure recipe for killing the engine. That’s why you need to keep it cool and clean. Remove all the contaminants. Then apply some DIY engine cleaner all over the engine to get rid of stubborn gunk. Leave for a couple of minutes. Rinse and dry thoroughly.
After cleaning your engine, add some coolant to ensure it doesn’t overheat while you’re on the road.
3. Ensure Correct Tire Pressure
Winter, spring, summer, or fall, your tires should be properly aligned and have the correct tire pressure. However, summer is the time when tires are more susceptible to overheating and worse, blowouts because of hot roads and dry air. Don’t be caught unaware. Have your tire pressure and balance checked and corrected before you travel.
4. Keep Your Car Clean and Sanitized
Long trips mean you need to stay hours, even days, inside your car. So, you have to have a squeaking clean interior before you hit the road to avoid getting in contact with germs and bacteria that might cause different types of illnesses. You can only achieve that kind of cleanliness by having a true deep car clean.
5. Quality Car Care in Summer Calls for Changing the Oil Filter, Too
The oil filter acts as a strainer of impurities that might enter your engine. But once it’s full or when its internal components start to disintegrate, it can no longer serve its purpose. Therefore, you need to change it occasionally. A good rule is to change the filter when you change the oil.
6. Check Your Car’s Battery
According to experts, heat is the number one cause of battery failure and reduced battery life. This is why we highly advise you to check your battery before going on a summer trip.
If your battery is more than three years old and you hear a grinding sound when you turn the ignition on, chances are, your battery needs more tender loving care. You’ll have to clean it – battery tray and all. A dirty battery connection can weaken the charge, while a soiled battery tray and casing can drain its power.
7. Park under a Shade
The heat of the summer sun can wreck havoc with your car’s beautiful appearance. It can fade the paint and cause ugly sunspots, too. Too much heat in the interior of your car can cause vehicle fluids to dry up faster and make your AC work overtime. Not to mention that frequently exposing your vehicle to excessive sunlight can fade the dashboard prematurely and cause the leather seats to crack.
That’s why it’s best to park your car under a shade. Better yet, park it in a garage. If you don’t have access to either, using a car cover made of breathable fabrics is a good option. This is probably the best free auto preventive maintenance tip there is.
As they say, early prevention is always better than any cure. Similarly, better car maintenance, especially during summer is always better than spending hundreds, even thousands of dollars for body repair work. Keeping in mind our tips for quality car care in summer will help you avoid extra spending. Remember to check the different fluids, battery, and tire pressure. Park under a shade and keep the engine cool. Change the oil filter if necessary. And, of course, keep your car clean and sanitized, including the engine bay and underhood.
Check out DetailXPerts’ professional detailing services to find out what high-scale quality car care truly means. Our polite technicians will gladly help you tick off your list with tasks that ensure quality car care in summer.
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