{"id":437,"date":"2011-12-26T05:00:09","date_gmt":"2011-12-26T12:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.www.accurateautoadvice.com\/?p=437"},"modified":"2017-02-07T10:09:25","modified_gmt":"2017-02-07T17:09:25","slug":"5-vehicle-fluids-not-ignore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.accurateautoadvice.com\/maintenance-repair\/5-vehicle-fluids-not-ignore\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Vehicle Fluid Levels You Shouldn’t Ignore"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019re probably always pretty good at keeping an eye on your gas level. In fact, watching gas prices, gauging how far you can get on a small amount of gas, and leaving room in your budget for transportation costs is something that we\u2019ve all gotten used to doing over the past few years.<\/p>\n

There’s also the fact that, if you run out of gas, you know your car isn’t going very far. That’s why we pay so much attention to how much gas is in the tank. The thing is, there are other fluids levels in your car that you shouldn\u2019t ignore<\/strong>. In some cases, a drop in one of these other fluid levels will just be an inconvenience. For example, a few years ago I was behind a truck that took a mud puddle too fast and splashed some mud up on my windshield. It was at that moment that I realized I was out of wiper fluid.<\/p>\n

In other instances, low fluid levels can be downright dangerous. Running out of oil can damage your engine, sometimes beyond repair. Transmission fluid, antifreeze, and brake fluid are additional fluids that you really don\u2019t want to run dry on, as they can all lead to catastrophic mechanical failures.<\/p>\n

Car maintenance is incredibly important. MSN Autos says that \u201ceven the newest cars require scheduled service to live long, productive lives.\u201d Checking fluid levels can be a hassle, but it\u2019s usually a lot easier to prevent something bad from happening than it is to fix it after it really happens. It\u2019s a lot cheaper, too. Wouldn\u2019t you rather spend the $40 for an oil change than you would $6,000 – $12,000 for a major engine repair? I would!<\/p>\n

Not long ago I was online looking for a quote on car insurance<\/a> and instead I found information that showed me that my oversights on my essential fluids might cost me an arm and a leg in the future-forget about the high prices of gas!<\/p>\n

The following is a short list of 5 fluids that you should keep your eye on as far as general car maintenance is concerned:<\/p>\n

1. Oil<\/strong>– The oil is the lifeblood of your car’s engine. It must remain at safe levels at all times. Whatever you do, don\u2019t let the oil level drop below the minimum level. A good rule of thumb is to check your engine’s oil level every 2 weeks – preferably just before you start your car first thing in the morning. It’s also a good idea to keep a quart of oil on hand to add a little bit just in case your low.<\/p>\n

Now there’s something really important to know here about checking your oil – it’s a good idea to do it on all vehicles, but it’s essential<\/strong> to check the oil on older vehicles and\/or vehicles with more than 100k miles on the odometer. As vehicles age, they’re more prone to burn a little bit of oil during normal driving…so if you’re driving a car that’s more than 8 years old, or if it has more than 100k miles, you need to check the oil religiously.<\/p>\n

2. Transmission fluid<\/strong>– The good news is that transmission fluid is necessary but it rarely gets low. It should be checked on a regular basis, and for most drivers this can be done when the oil is changed. Fortunately, most decent shops will check your transmission fluid for you at the same time that they put new oil and a new filter on your car. However, if you change your own oil and need to check \u00a0the transmission fluid level yourself, there are some things you should know:<\/p>\n