Auto care? Do you do it or just let it go?

ninerbuff

Every vehicle I've ever owned has been properly maintenanced and well taken care off. So whenever I've had to sell them or give them to family, it was always in very good condition.
Not only do I keep the engine clean and replace any suspect parts, I thoroughly clean the inside and really take care of the paint.

Later today I'm going to do my regular 6 month clay barring, polishing and sealing of my van. It's work, but the paint still looks like it did on the Show room floor almost 3 1/2 years ago.
I have a 1999 CRV in excellent condition at 159,000 miles and still purrs with a paint job that looks redone when it hasn't.

So do you take car of your cars/trucks/SUV's or do you just let it go and just buy a new car later?

LorinaLynn

You're supposed to clean them!? That's what rain is for!

Qarol

"We" take excellent care of our cars. I use the royal we...my husband takes excellent care of both our cars.

moushtie

I buy an old car so I don't care as much how shiny it looks. I wash the dirt off occasionally, but I make sure the fluids and everything are topped up and all that sort of stuff so it works properly for a nice long time!

BigDaddyBRC

Mechanically, ALWAYS serviced, by my grease-monkey upbringing self.
Looks, depends on the vehicle. If its my bike...damn straight.
If its my Jeep...Its a Jeep, its supposed to be dirty.

tigersword

Love working on the car when I can. I have an '01 Tiburon with 125k on it, and other than recently replacing the alternator, it hasn't given me a single problem.

boomboom011

Clean inside and out. Well with the exception of extra shoes or cups from the kids. I have a tendency to change shoes after work and i forget to take them inside and well other than that I keep my baby looking nice. Our truck is nice and shiny too.

Maintenance is a must. I cant afford not to maintain my car. The truck too.

ohthelawd

My dad was a shadetree mechanic, so I've always done the maintenance myself and kept everything up to spec to ensure the longevity of the vehicle. Due to life changes the last 5 years or so, though, I seem to be getting a different car every 12-16 months...lol.

Jennloella

my Tahoe is my baby, I spoil her I've spent too much money making her nice to let her be dirty, or scratched up, and as far as mechanical stuff goes, my husband does that stuff like clockwork, and he takes care of both his jeeps the same I think you've got to have pride in the things you work for, and I teach my kids this by example - in how I take care of my car, my home, my pets, and them

merlyngrey

One of our sons is a Master Mechanic, so our cars are extremely well maintained, it's pays off. One of our cars is a 2000 Grand Am with 300000 miles on it. That one is semi retired but still runs great with original engine and transmission.

otr12

Nothing that gets rallied gets exterior detailing more than twice a year.

It's for driving. It's not just for looking at.

Pandorian

My vehicles are kept mechanically sound. How I got my first car to over 400,000 km's while others driving the 'same' model died at 120,000 or there'bouts

Appearance wise I'm not worried about it, I hate a "new" vehicle as you're always worrying about that first ding, mine has a parking lot dent on each side that don't affect it's performance or safety at all.

It's just part of what I do. Every vehicle I am in I have a personal bag for when I'm not the driver and then if I am the driver there's a bag with a 12V compressor, flares, emergency lighting (powered by battery, charge-able by 12V outlet) extra fluids, tools specific to the vehicle etc, reading material, candles, and some sort of shelf-stable food....II won't set out on a road-trip without the bag in my area as I know the road-side assistance guys can take 6-12 hours to get there I'm not going to go hungry / thirsty or freeze if I have to wait for help to get there. On MY vehicle I have a window-breaker securely attached within reach of the drivers seat and it has a seat-belt cutting ability. Just gives me options to take the best care of myself that I can.

I view mechanical maintenance as the same importance.

Kalrez

I get regular oil change & that kind of maintenance. And that's about it. The inside isn't too bad. I vacuum it maybe every two or three months. I'm the only one who is ever in my car, so it doesn't get that dirty.

Must be doing something right considering the fact that my car ('99 Grand Am) has 235k miles and still runs reliably. She's not starting too well in the cold mornings, so I'll be getting that checked out soon.

All and all, I can't really complain about my car. I've definitely gotten my $6k worth out her.

lakersfan4life

i think i have almost every meguiar paint product in my garage including the polisher. i will typically go over the car once a year with a full paint detail. wash, claybar, wash, 2 different polishes, then wax. gets all the spider webs out of the paint, etc. and looks great after but takes about 8 hrs............

btw, I HATE BLACK PAINT and will never buy a black car again!!!!

lakersfan4life

I get regular oil change & that kind of maintenance. And that's about it. The inside isn't too bad. I vacuum it maybe every two or three months. I'm the only one who is ever in my car, so it doesn't get that dirty.

Must be doing something right considering the fact that my car ('99 Grand Am) has 235k miles and still runs reliably. She's not starting too well in the cold mornings, so I'll be getting that checked out soon.

All and all, I can't really complain about my car. I've definitely gotten my $6k worth out her.

my buddy owned a grand am. after spending 5k on it at the shop, the electrical behind the dash board caught on fire. lol

infamousmk

I take very good care of the mechanics... the interior stays clutter-free .... but it's a 93 Jeep Grand Cherokee. It's supposed to be beat to hell and covered in wilderness.

flimflamfloz

I just kill them and then ditch them. Yeah, I know... The great shame.

I do a few things myself if it's cheap, then when the cost of repairing them would be too high, I just sell them second hand.

I never buy my vehicles new too, so that I don't lose too much money in the process.

Justkeepswimmin

My husband changes brakes, rotors, belts etc. when needed. We pay for the oil changes, he says after parts those aren't as much worth his time in cost savings. That being said our front bumper has some nasty looking damage from over 2 years ago I don't want to put cash into fixing and in Phoenix what's the point of washing your car until about now (When you know another monsoon or dust strom isn't going to paint all cars brown anyways) So sort of...I do what is necessary.....but not more....we have worn this car down it's a 2005 Accord with over 180K miles on it...luckily we stopped driving as much when we moved to AZ.....and then when hubby took a traveling job. 110K of that came on in the first 2-3 years!

The leather wore down and cracked open on one seat already .... I just don't think this car is at the point it's worth keeping up more than for 'safety' precausions.

It is our only car right now, we've been a one car family over 2 years now. When the 01' Ford broke down we decided it wasn't worth the cash of fixing up. We also figured we didn't need a new car right away. Now that he's traveling we really only need 1.

solpwr

I maintain as needed. Regular oil changes.
I clean my 350Z convertible in the summer when I drive it. Pride and joy.
I do a big cleaning in the spring on the Infiniti FX45. It goes to the mountains all the time so it gets dirty.

poisongirl6485

Mechanically, I keep my mine in good condition. Oil changes, addressing any strange noises, replacing tires, etc.

Looks...well, my cars body is in okay shape. There's a dent in the rear corner of the bumper from being rearended that I decided not to repair (put the $$ towards my house downpayment). The hood of my car had a few little paint dings when I got it that have gotten worse, and the clearcoat is peeling off really bad. It's a 1999 Toyota Camry with 150K miles on it. Still runs like a champ, never had any mechanical issues aside from the starter connectors needing replaced ($35 do-it-yourself job), battery replacement, routine stuff. Not sure it's worth it to repaint it with it being so old.

juliecat1

I get the oil changed every 3000 miles and run it through a carwash every so often. With 3 kids though.... the backseat often looks like a bomb went off. I used to shampoo it on the reg to keep it clean but I gave up.

Iamfit4life

I try.

ninerbuff

i think i have almost every meguiar paint product in my garage including the polisher. i will typically go over the car once a year with a full paint detail. wash, claybar, wash, 2 different polishes, then wax. gets all the spider webs out of the paint, etc. and looks great after but takes about 8 hrs............

btw, I HATE BLACK PAINT and will never buy a black car again!!!!

I use Wolfgang products. More pricey, but I've noticed that I don't use as much and the shine is really wet. And I'd never buy a black car.
If spider webs are a problem, Wolfgang has a really good Swirl remover. Takes those spiderwebs right out even on black paint.

starbucksbuzz

I have a 94 ford tempo... I take it in for service when it starts stalling a lot, or the brakes go... or I have to. Its just so expensive to keep up a car, its depressing when you're dumping money into a car you know is only going to last you another year or two at the most.

When I get a better car (probably will inherit Husbs and he'll get something else) I'll keep it up a little more. It's also newer and has less miles on it.