This article presents you with five of the best ways to save money on your automotive maintenance. For all those who own and drive a motor car, the maintenance thereof can be a costly affair. These tips should allow you to make some savings.

Keep the vehicle well maintained

Vehicle maintenance must be proactive, and rather than waiting till the very last minute, ensure that all maintenance, including cleaning, is done regularly. The basics should be to check and maintain the battery, change filters, and actually use the air conditioner from time to time, which will keep it in running order. Spark plugs and all electrical leads should be checked and replaced if needs be. These are minor maintenance issues that will not cost you much at all, yet leaving them undone, could see you losing power and getting stuck in adverse weather conditions.

The actual servicing of the vehicle must also be done according to the specific manufacturer scheduling and any components replaced with those of the correct specifications (preferably genuine parts). Based on the levels of knowledge and how-to videos and clips available many have actually begun to do some of the basic servicing at home on their own. You do need to know what you’re doing or could cause irreparable damage, especially when it comes to the oil filters and oil change.

Licenses and registrations up to date

Avoid any fines and ensure that the vehicle is licensed and registered appropriately. The road taxes, licensing, and insurance must be paid up to date, and no one should drive your vehicle if they are not insured and licensed to do so. You can buy personalized number plates DVLA approved if you want them. Furthermore, should you get a fine (speeding/Parking), then you need to pay or contest these as soon as possible as this will save some money as well.

Change the driving style, less speed = less braking, less braking = less wear and tear

If you really want to make a saving on your car running and maintenance costs, then you should be looking to change your entire driving style. Slow down, stick to the legal road speeds; they’re there for a reason. The engineers who designed the roads have done the math and risk assessments to determine these speeds. If you’re driving slower, then you need less effort to stop or slow the vehicle. This will cause less wear and tear on the vehicle and ensure it lasts longer.

Smoother driving has been noted as a terrific way to keep the vehicle running as efficiently as possible for as long as possible. Those in the auto field call it driving with mechanical sympathy, and the idea is not to put unnecessary strain on the vehicles components unless you absolutely have to. I.e., no emergency braking unless there is an actual emergency.

Being able to make financial savings on your automotive maintenance costs is critical  as we all face economic uncertainty. This is one of the best ways to keep the vehicle running as it should do and as such  improve vehicle safety, driving pleasure and aesthetics.