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We wish all our customers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 
Please note, Whatlington Garage will be closed from 24th December to 1st January. We’ll reopen on 2nd January.

Maintaining your car vs repairing your car

May 24, 2017
Maintaining your car vs repairing your car

Cars are often an expensive affair to run and keep on the road, but for most this is a necessity rather than a luxury. As we all know, cars are prone to mechanical, electrical and body issues and can range from timing belt issues through bald or damaged Tyre’s. The point which is often overlooked by many car owners is the difference between maintenance and repair, so what is different between them? and how does it effect you as a car driver?

A large percentage of car owners will wait for an issue to appear before taking it to a garage, this is normally a last resort to the issue with various symptoms and noises being ignored. When the car is presented to the garage it has come in repair and is often when the car is at is worst thus resulting in an expensive and often avoidable repair.

Maintaining your car is when you preempt these issues and take steps to avoid them escalating to the large repair cases. With Maintenance you would take your car in for regular checks (normally yearly for average mileage) regardless of any faults showing, this is quite often referred to as a vehicle service. By taking this approach you can catch many issues or problems at an early stage before they have had time to cause problems and produce large repair bills.

For some people, a trip to the mechanics for maintenance (such as a service or winter check) can seem like an unneeded expense, sometimes even an unwelcome one too however in the long run it can save you a lot of money on future repairs. For example a timing belt change can be a few hundred pound but if the belt was to snap due to not being replaced your repair bill may be into the thousands. You may also find your brake pads low and get them changed for a £100, but fail to change them on time and you will damage the brake discs too, doubling your repair cost!

As you can see, it’s advisable to maintain your car regularly in order to remain cost effective and enjoy trouble free motoring.

Give us a call on 01424 870 307 to discuss servicing options for your vehicle.