How to make your car last forever

17/12/10

You may see plenty of new cars in your neighbourhood. But, despite all those shiny 60-reg models, what’s the average age of the UK’s 31 million cars? It’s surprisingly high: just over seven years old, according to the Department for Transport.

And that average is rising. Last year’s new-cars-for-old scrappage scheme cleared over 200,000 elderly vehicles from our roads. But despite this, writes Ray Castle of motors.co.uk, there are more and older cars around.

Much-improved rust prevention treatments mean cars are no longer eaten away within a few years. More sophisticated lubricants enable engines to run way beyond 100,000 miles without needing major attention. It’s no surprise that, for instance, seven of every 10 cars Porsche has ever made since it began back in 1948 are still with their owners.

And the fact that car makers now offer warranties that last up to seven years (Kia) or no age limit and up to 100,000 miles (Vauxhall) is proof if ever you needed it of cars’ ability to last.

How long yours will run for depends, of course, on you. But here motors.co.uk, ever eager to help, provides our expert guide to prolonging your car’s life – indefinitely.

Use it
Cars left to languish in the garage or standing forlorn on the drive suffer. Brake discs rust and parts grow stiff from lack of use. Tyres flat-spot and fuel in the tank grows stale. And an endless diet of short trips is bad for them too, because engines never fully warm and condensation within the exhaust causes it to rot. Vehicles driven daily and that see a mix of long and short trips stay healthier.

Drive it…sympathetically
Move off as soon as the engine has started but take it easy for the first couple of miles to give the oil time to circulate. After that, don’t dawdle, but equally don’t race off only to slam on the brakes as you panic-stop a few hundred yards later.

Listen to the engine and watch the rev counter and learn to work with the car. You’ll soon learn when it sounds happy. If your car is manual and has a gear change indicator fitted, don’t obey it slavishly, though. Of these are set to indicate the best change-up points for fuel economy. But they may also leave the motor ‘labouring’ away as it attempts to accelerate from low revs.

If your car has air conditioning fitted, use it regularly – even during cold weather. Leave it switched off until summer and the system can corrode and leak.

Adapt your driving style. Look ahead, anticipate changes in traffic and brake and steer gently whenever you can.

Keep it clean
Give your prized motor a hand wash every couple of weeks. Auto car washes give paint a hard time, leaving swirl marks and even scratches. If you use a jet wash, take not to hold the lance nozzle too close to the car’s body and give don’t use the scrubbing brush that’s often provided. These usually spend half their lives on the forecourt floor picking up grit… which you’ll transfer to your car.

Every six weeks, wash the underside using a jet wash.

Polish your car every couple of months using good quality products. Put a second coat on the bonnet, roof and boot to add protection where it’s needed most.

Don’t smoke in the cabin and vacuum it every couple of weeks. If you eat and drink at the wheel, tackle food stains quickly using carpet shampoo.

Check under the bonnet… weekly
Keep an eye on the engine’s oil and coolant levels, the first using the dip stick. Learn how to add oil and how much you’ll need to bring the level from ‘Min’ to ‘Max’. Don’t think that a warning light will come on before the level drops too low. In most cars it warns only of low oil pressure, which occurs if the engine springs a leak or has all but run dry. The coolant should hardly ever need topping up. If it often needs attention there’ll be a leak or an engine fault.

Refill the screen wash when needed, using the correct solution, which you can mix yourself or buy pre-mixed.

Check tyre pressures once a month and examine tyres for uneven wear or cuts and bulges. Remove anything wedged in the tread.

Know your car’s servicing schedule
Learn when your car will need work and get it carried out on time. Jobs that need doing infrequently – such as brake and coolant fluid changes and cambelt renewal –often get missed, so make sure that they aren’t. Renew the wiper blades as often as you do the tyres.

If you only cover a low annual mileage, it’s worth getting the oil and filter changed every year, no matter what the service book says. And if you car is old, more frequent oil and filter changes will keep a high-mileage engine going for longer.

Be choosy about spare parts
Ensure maker approved spare parts are fitted, not cheap, low-grade copies. They’ll last longer, come with a warranty and work better. Similarly top-make tyres grip better and last better than cheap no-name makes or remoulds.

If you dent it
Get it fixed quickly and by a body repairer approved for your make of car. Check the work carefully when you pick the car up afterwards. Smaller scratches and chips you can fix yourself using a touch-up kit.

Join an owners club
They exist even for ‘ordinary’ makes. Go online for advice from other owners. Their forums are often full of expert tips on how to keep an older car going.

For more great car buying advice and to view and buy new and second-hand cars, click on to motors.co.uk. Surf the web using your mobile phone? Go to http://mobile.motors.co.uk/ or text ‘motors’ to 65056 and we’ll send you a link. If you’ve an iPhone, you can download the motors.co.uk app for free. Go to the ‘utilities’ section of the iTunes store.