| Scheduling Maintenance |
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Because cars aren’t created equal, however, the maintenance schedules are the same for, say, a Toyota Tercel and a Cadillac Catera. The Toyota folks recommend an oil change every 7,500 miles and the Cadillac people suggest 5,000 miles—under “normal driving conditions.” So what’s normal? You would think that that means the conditions that most cars face. Wrong. Actually, about two-thirds of all cars fall in the “severe driving conditions” category. Lots of stop-and-go driving, driving where the air is full of dust and pollutants, or driving where it gets below freezing or in hot weather more than half the time. That’s most cars! Severe driving conditions typically double the amount of basic maintenance that needs to be done. Twice as many oil and air filter changes. Fortunately, these aren’t expensive maintenance steps, and most car owners can easily do them. So you can do a lot toward keeping operating costs down with simple car maintenance. Car Words Most car manufacturers define severe driving conditions as driving less than 5 to 10 miles for most trips, driving in hot (over 90 degree) temperatures, extensive stop-and-go or idling driving (bumper-to-bumper commutes), towing a trailer, or driving in dusty or muddy conditions. If your car is infrequently driven under these circumstances, it’s considered normal driving conditions.
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Okay. You’re sold on regular maintenance. But what, when, and how? Fortunately, car manufacturers know the answers to these questions and will share them with you. Sure, they want to sell you a new car, but they know they won’t if your current car is a pain to maintain. So they will tell you how often to change the oil, replace parts, and other tasks.
