Category: Car Care Tips

Stop the Clutter; Keep it Clean When you first bought your vehicle, you probably were pretty meticulous about how it was treated.  Kind of like Richard in the movie Tommy Boy when he’s constantly getting after Tommy for eating in the car and getting it dirty. As time goes on, things lapse a bit.  You stop being quite so meticulous about things.  A little slides here and there, and soon you have piles of garbage in the back seat, and...

A Responsible Car Owner Maintains a Better Vehicle Most of us consider ourselves to be responsible.  We know that maintaining our vehicles is important, and we don’t speed (much), and definitely don’t drink and drive.  When behind the wheel we pride ourselves in our defensive driving where we are constantly playing the “what if” game. But how responsible are you really?  You are probably a good driver, but do you maintain a vehicle that could literally kill you if it’s...

Don’t Forget these Important Maintenance Items We often take our vehicles for granted.  It feels great to jump into a new car or truck, and for a while you take meticulous care of it.  But over time, we tend to forget some of the more important maintenance issues.  The oil gets changed, but what about many of the other necessities for a smooth running, and safe vehicle? Maintenance goes beyond regular oil changes and semi-regular washes and waxes.  Maintenance will...

6 Easy Ways to Get Top Dollar When it comes time to sell your vehicle, you have a few options.  You can trade it in for something else, you can sell it to the dealer, or you can sell it on your own.  Going the dealer route is going to save you the most time and effort, but you won’t get quite as much for it.  Selling it on your own will net you the most money, but you will...

You Could Even Be in an Accident! Cars are a depreciating asset.  That means as they age, they are worth less and less.  Some will hold their value longer than others, but if you really want to wear yours down quickly, we have put together the list for you! Try to incorporate as many of these as you can so that your new vehicle will be destroyed in short order.  Bonus: you could even get in a wreck! Accelerate Quickly...

Is Idling Bad for the Engine? Living in Montana, you probably don’t jump into your vehicle in the dead of winter, crank it over, and take off down the road (unless you’re running very late).  Instead, most people will start the vehicle and often go back inside to finish their coffee and gather their things for the day.  Vehicles run better when they’re warmed up first; in fact they need to be warmed up… right? The truth is, not really. ...

You can Drive Almost Forever if You Maintain How long do you think a vehicle will last?  Most people would say that a vehicle will conk out somewhere between 150,000 and 200,000 miles.  At this point the age of the vehicle means that it’s often not worth the money to do major repairs.  Long before that time comes, however, many people will trade in their rigs in order to have something newer, perhaps more reliable, safer, and all around more...

Showing Your Affection this Valentine’s Day Valentine ’s Day is just a week away.  You probably have big plans for that special person in your life (or maybe you’re bemoaning Singles Awareness Day).  But have you stopped to think about all that your vehicle does for you?  It works hard for you every day without complaining.  Skidding to a stop, smashing onto the horn, and the occasional fist pounding on the dash; it accepts you for who you are (we...

Most Vehicles are Subject to It There are certain words that you really only encounter when you’re working in certain industries.  For example, if you work in the insurance industry, you probably use the word “indemnification” quite often.  If you’re not in the insurance business, you likely have never used it, nor will you ever use that particular word. When you work in the auto body restoration business, you come across a lot of jargon.  Sometimes it’s pretty common stuff...

A Maintained Vehicle Stays on the Road The average age of a vehicle on the road today is 11.5 years.  The average driver puts on a little over 13,000 miles each year.  Given those numbers, half of the vehicles on the road have more than 150,000 miles on them.  There’s a good chance that if you’re reading this, then you are driving a vehicle that is a high mileage vehicle (a vehicle with more than 100,000 miles on it is...