Mike Herzing has some great tips on saving money by extending the life of your vehicle. Courtesy photo
Purchasing a vehicle is a huge investment, usually our second largest, and the best way to protect that investment is to follow the maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual. Of course, maintenance isn’t what it used to be.
Even though you don’t replace spark plugs until 100k miles or more, vehicles are far from maintenance free.
The main point to remember is to pay attention to your fluids and filters.
Power steering fluid, transmission fluid, brake fluid, and coolant should be flushed out every 30,000-50,000 miles. Always use synthetic fluid if you can afford it.
Air filters and cabin filters need to be checked and replaced as needed. Once again, use good filters. By the way, the aftermarket oiled cotton filters aren’t as good as they say. Stick with a good quality paper filter. It’s hard to go wrong with the OEM filter.
Always use quality parts and have your oil changed every 4,000-6,000 miles. I would go ahead and rotate the tires at the same time. While the tires are off, have the shop check the brakes. Most shops do a quick check of your vehicle at every oil change anyway. And most do it for free. Some charge for the tire rotation, and some don’t.
Auto maintenance isn’t an exact science; each person’s driving habits are different. You need to go with what works for you. Be conservative, but cutting corners will only cost you in the long run. Remember that the average vehicle on the road is almost 12 years old.
The new generation vehicles are well engineered, but they have to be maintained. If you do your maintenance, you will have a vehicle you can depend on for years of reliable service.
Mike Herzing is an ASE Master Technician, Former Automotive Instructor, and Current Host of Let’s Talk Wheels with Mike Herzing heard on ESPN 97.5 Houston and The Lets Talk Wheels Radio Network. Saturday Mornings.
Email Mike: Mike@letstalkwheels.com
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
Marcell Ozuna hit his major league-leading eighth homer and Orlando Arcia’s RBI single in the 10th inning lifted the Atlanta Braves to a 5-4 win over the Houston Astros on Wednesday.
It completes a three-game sweep of the struggling Astros and is Atlanta’s fourth straight victory.
The Braves scored two runs in the eighth inning to tie it at 4-4. Michael Harris II started the 10th as the automatic runner on second and there was one out in the inning when Seth Martinez (1-1) intentionally walked Matt Olson.
Ozuna lined out to right field to send Harris to third base. Arcia then singled on a ground ball to left field to score Harris and put the Braves on top.
Pinch-runner Jake Meyers was on second when Kyle Tucker walked with no outs in the 10th. Meyers moved to third on a fly out by Yainer Diaz but Jeremy Peña grounded into a double play to end it.
A.J. Minter (3-1) got the last two outs of the ninth for the win and Raisel Iglesias earned his fifth save.
Reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. added his first homer of the season to help the Braves to the victory. Ozuna also leads the majors with 23 RBIs and he extended his hitting streak to 16 games, which ties his career best and is the longest active streak in the majors.
Yordan Alvarez and Mauricio Dubón both homered for the Astros, who fell to 6-14 and are last in the AL West.
There was one out in the first when Alvarez connected on his homer to the seats in left field to put Houston up 1-0.
Ozuna opened the second with his 432-foot shot to left field, which bounced off the wall and tied the game.
Acuña put the Braves up 2-1 when he sent the first pitch of the fifth inning to straightaway center field.
The Astros tied it on an RBI single by Alex Bregman in the fifth and Kyle Tucker’s RBI double came next to put the Astros up 3-2.
Dubón hit his first home run of the year off Jesse Chavez to start Houston’s sixth and push the lead to 4-2.
Harris singled to start the seventh before a ground-rule double by Austin Riley. Olson reached, and Harris scored on a fielding error by first baseman José Abreu when he couldn’t grab a routine ground ball.
There was one out in the inning when Riley scored on a sacrifice fly by Arcia to tie it at 4-all.
Houston starter J.P. France allowed four hits and two runs in five innings.
Max Fried gave up seven hits and three runs in five innings.
UP NEXT
Braves: Atlanta is off Thursday before opening a series against Texas on Friday night with LHP Chris Sale (1-1, 4.58 ERA) on the mound.
Astros: Houston is also off Thursday before ace Justin Verlander will make his season debut Friday night against Washington. The three-time Cy Young Award winner opened the season on the injured list with inflammation in his right shoulder.