Car maintenance habits to avoid

[TopAuto]

Car maintenance habits to avoid

There are a lot of maintenance tips out there that are generally believed to be good for your car, but that is not always the case.

 

[killerbyte]

1. Warming up your car - if you have a turbo then let the car warm up for a minute at least. Let that oil lubricate everything before you start rolling. Or you can just drive and wait for something to break sooner. There is nothing wrong with letting your car warm up while you check your messages on your phone.
2. Change your engine oil every 10,000km at least. Euro spec cars have much longer service intervals because they expect you to be running in a country with better fuel than we have, and not subjected to the heat we have.
3. If your car asks for 95 then use 95. Engine knock is a thing and if your car has been designed for 95 then use 95. If you have a Citi Golf or a Tazz then use 95 or 93.
4. Most people forget about their tyres. Its a sad fact of life that all that stands between you and death is likely an under-inflated, poorly maintained piece of rubber.
5. Sunlight liquid won't damage your clear coat. It will strip off any protectants you have. The Shield range of car products aren't bad, they are better than nothing. Spending more on better products is a good idea, but if you can't afford it then stick with Shield (I spend thousands on car cleaning products because I am a little touched in the head.)

 

[Gtx Gaming]

Changing your engine oil​

A well-known myth is that owners must change their car’s engine oil every 4,000-5,000km but this may be too frequent and therefore unnecessary.

The owner’s manual will guide you as to when the best time is to change the oil.


Its all done by computers now, the infortainment system will let you know when the oil change is required

 

[Big Rat]

Warming up your car - if you have a turbo then let the car warm up for a minute at least. Let that oil lubricate everything before you start rolling. Or you can just drive and wait for something to break sooner. There is nothing wrong with letting your car warm up while you check your messages on your phone.

Err nope. SO you stand there, warming up the engine. and drive off. while gearbox, diff, brakes are all still cold.
Best way to warm up ALL components is to drive off gently.

Change your engine oil every 10,000km at least. Euro spec cars have much longer service intervals because they expect you to be running in a country with better fuel than we have, and not subjected to the heat we have.

While doing it sooner does not have a bad effect at all, it is not necessary. If the quality of fuel affects your oil you have bigger problems. Only way petrol comes in contact with you oil is when your rings are kaput or you valvestem seals. that is your problem then, not the fuel quality. Self serviced my own cars at 15k, never had a oil related issue in 26 years.

Diesel on the other hand... Use the lowest sulpher level you can find, no argument there.

If your car asks for 95 then use 95. Engine knock is a thing and if your car has been designed for 95 then use 95. If you have a Citi Golf or a Tazz then use 95 or 93.

A tad tricky this one. Use the lowest octane you can safely use without knock (detonation) The higher the octane the more resistant to knocking, so you are correct there, but the higher octane does burn slower, meaning less power.
There lies the catch. if you go to 93, and the engine knocks, then the timing gets retarded and all little things, losing power. if you use 95 then all is happiness, as you have said. but if engine is happy on 93, then that will give you more oomph, very slightly, but still. Always struggle to put this in the right wording.

Most people forget about their tyres. Its a sad fact of life that all that stands between you and death is likely an under-inflated, poorly maintained piece of rubber.

Point 4 you are 100% correct. Buys the cheapest and drive till the metal thread shows. Grates my balls. Get the right tire for your car, bigger is not always better. especially in the rain, hello aquaplaning...
have a look everytime you drive off. and once a week check pressures.

 

[killerbyte]

Err nope. SO you stand there, warming up the engine. and drive off. while gearbox, diff, brakes are all still cold.
Best way to warm up ALL components is to drive off gently.

Never said to race off even after letting your car warm up. If I let me car idle up to operating temp I would be idling for at least 10min. The point is... let the oil heat up a bit and let that warm oil cycle through the engine and turbo (if you have one). Then proceed to drive away slowly and keep revs low until car is up to operating temp. This is how I treat my car... let it idle for a minute, drive off but keep revs at 2000RPM until oil is up to temp.


Furthermore, changing your oil depends a lot on the car. In my car we do 10,000km services, but those of us in my group using racing oil prefer to change oil every 8,000km. Not saying that a high quality synthetic oil will degrade in the 15,000km interval, but also I would not trust even the best oil to last the 35,000km that Alfa Romeo recommended for Giulietta QV oil services. I am sure we can both agree that 35,000km between oil changes is a little crazy.

 

[Big Rat]

35000k is fine... for the shop selling new engines

 

[NR7]

35000k is fine... for the shop selling new engines

Reminds me of the manufacturers and their advice that some gearbox oils or coolants are for the vehicle's lifetime and never have to be changed.

Yes, they are for the lifetime. Which will be a very short lifetime if you listen to them.

 

[krieg]

Reminds me of the manufacturers and their advice that some gearbox oils or coolants are for the vehicle's lifetime and never have to be changed.

Yes, they are for the lifetime. Which will be a very short lifetime if you listen to them.

When do you need to change your gearbox oil?

 

[Big Rat]

When do you need to change your gearbox oil?

You know you should have about 5 seconds after gearbox goes boom.
Otherwise i think round the 100k mark? just a guess here.
But for me i would think if gearbox start to feel sluggish, gears grind a bit more when changing.

 

[Neuk_]

Changing your engine oil​

A well-known myth is that owners must change their car’s engine oil every 4,000-5,000km but this may be too frequent and therefore unnecessary.

The owner’s manual will guide you as to when the best time is to change the oil.


Its all done by computers now, the infortainment system will let you know when the oil change is required

This myth...

 

[killerbyte]

Reminds me of the manufacturers and their advice that some gearbox oils or coolants are for the vehicle's lifetime and never have to be changed.

Yes, they are for the lifetime. Which will be a very short lifetime if you listen to them.

Well Audi does that, but they only warranty the car to 100,000km. So thats the lifespan of the car in their eyes.

 

[dj_jyno]

You know you should have about 5 seconds after gearbox goes boom.
Otherwise i think round the 100k mark? just a guess here.
But for me i would think if gearbox start to feel sluggish, gears grind a bit more when changing.

Depends on the gearbox. For my car, ZF recommends every 80 000 km or 10 years (ZF 6HP28). VW Group dual clutch, generally 60 000 km. With my manual Ford MMT6 transmission, it was after 10 years (or 160 000 km, if memory serves).

 

[RudderVator]

Changing your engine oil​

A well-known myth is that owners must change their car’s engine oil every 4,000-5,000km but this may be too frequent and therefore unnecessary.

The owner’s manual will guide you as to when the best time is to change the oil.


Its all done by computers now, the infortainment system will let you know when the oil change is required

Yea computer so smart… you realise most just count down since the last reset?

Read the owners manual properly. Plenty of people actually fall under the “severe use” schedule.

Believe it or not plenty of short trips and extensive idling falls under extreme conditions.

 

[RudderVator]

Reminds me of the manufacturers and their advice that some gearbox oils or coolants are for the vehicle's lifetime and never have to be changed.

Yes, they are for the lifetime. Which will be a very short lifetime if you listen to them.

Lifetime fluids the newest scam in the industry.
“Lifetime” according to who?

Same story with the 20-30k oil changes.

 

[6spdmanual]

I change oil every 7500km.

 

[nazmo]

1. You don't need to idle your car. Start it. Wait 30 seconds and enough oil is everywhere. However don't put strain on the engine by revving it high or giving petrol at low revs and loading torque. I wait for oil Temps to hit 75 before hooning it. Also water temp always get to temp sooner than oil does, so don't rely on that Guage.

2. My Fiesta St had service intervals if 20000kms. My polo gti 15000kms. Both I feel is too infrequent, especially on "performance" engines. My current car mandates 10000kms which I think is great.

3. Renault says my dct doesn't need oil changes. I call bs and plan to do it soon.

 

[Lupus]

1. You don't need to idle your car. Start it. Wait 30 seconds and enough oil is everywhere. However don't put strain on the engine by revving it high or giving petrol at low revs and loading torque. I wait for oil Temps to hit 75 before hooning it. Also water temp always get to temp sooner than oil does, so don't rely on that Guage.

2. My Fiesta St had service intervals if 20000kms. My polo gti 15000kms. Both I feel is too infrequent, especially on "performance" engines. My current car mandates 10000kms which I think is great.

3. Renault says my dct doesn't need oil changes. I call bs and plan to do it soon.

You know it's a year or the mileage point for a service?

 

[Harmonic]

1. Warming up your car - if you have a turbo then let the car warm up for a minute at least. Let that oil lubricate everything before you start rolling. Or you can just drive and wait for something to break sooner. There is nothing wrong with letting your car warm up while you check your messages on your phone.
2. Change your engine oil every 10,000km at least. Euro spec cars have much longer service intervals because they expect you to be running in a country with better fuel than we have, and not subjected to the heat we have.
3. If your car asks for 95 then use 95. Engine knock is a thing and if your car has been designed for 95 then use 95. If you have a Citi Golf or a Tazz then use 95 or 93.
4. Most people forget about their tyres. Its a sad fact of life that all that stands between you and death is likely an under-inflated, poorly maintained piece of rubber.
5. Sunlight liquid won't damage your clear coat. It will strip off any protectants you have. The Shield range of car products aren't bad, they are better than nothing. Spending more on better products is a good idea, but if you can't afford it then stick with Shield (I spend thousands on car cleaning products because I am a little touched in the head.)

One thing to add - if you have a turbo car, let it cool off before you switch the ignition off.

By this I mean, don't be nailing it within 2-3km of home. Ease off the throttle once you get into familiar territory so that when you do switch the car off, it's not at blistering temps. Sudden heat changes kill anything mechanical.

 

[Crowley]

One thing to add - if you have a turbo car, let it cool off before you switch the ignition off.

By this I mean, don't be nailing it within 2-3km of home. Ease off the throttle once you get into familiar territory so that when you do switch the car off, it's not at blistering temps. Sudden heat changes kill anything mechanical.

Depends on the car. My car circulates oil through the engine and turbo until it has cooled down enough after I shut it down.

Well Audi does that, but they only warranty the car to 100,000km. So thats the lifespan of the car in their eyes.

My car has 144k KM and it is still under warranty.

 

[nazmo]

You know it's a year or the mileage point for a service?

Thanks captain obvious. Pre covid I always hit miles before 12 months