Car expenses can be a drag. If the expense of having a car is enough to send you to the bus stop, you aren’t alone. It can be expensive to own and maintain a car, so what is a driver to do?

This enlightening article takes a look at 8 savvy things any motorist can do to lower the high cost of driving and car expenses to keep more money in their pockets.

How to Save on Car Expenses

Whether you’re a teenager along with your first car or a family person with a minivan, the expense of driving can really get you down. You still like to drive, but adding up all of the costs of automobile ownership is sufficient to make you leave your car in the garage.

So what can you do to trim the high cost of auto ownership? There are many things one can do to lower car expenses, such as the eight smart ideas outlined below.

See also: How to Cut Automotive Fuel Costs

Be Smart About Your Purchase

Your biggest automotive cost is the automobile you drive, so be smart when it comes time to purchase. Choosing a gently used, late-model used car over a more expensive new version could save you thousands of dollars on the sticker price, and much more in depreciation down the road.

Insure with a High Deductible

Car insurance is the second largest annual expense many drivers face, but you don’t need to let the high price of an insurance policy keep you stuck in the garage. The surest way to reduce your monthly premiums is to increase your deductible so that’s a fantastic place to start.

You may self-finance your higher deductible by putting the monthly savings into a special savings account. If you don’t damage your car, you’ve got the cash. If you’re involved in an incident, the cash will be there waiting for you.

Get Regular Oil Changes

It may seem like a tedious, time consuming and expensive pain in the ass to change your oil every 3,000 to 5,000 miles, however, there’s a fantastic reason behind this. Automobiles, and changing of their oil frequently can help guarantee those delicate moving internal components are properly lubricated.

Routine frequent oil changes may significantly extend the life of your motor and also help you avoid the massive car expenses of motor replacement. Be sure to also check your oil between oil changes and top off the oil in your engine as required.

Keep Your Tires Properly Inflated

While keeping your tires properly inflated can improve your mileage, it can also keep you safer behind the wheel. A vehicle with properly inflated tires will be stable during emergency maneuvers, and you never know when you’ll need to put that to the test. You should check your tire pressure every time you get gas and top off the air in your tires as need be.

Check Wheel Alignment

While you’re checking your tire pressure, make sure to take a quick minute to check at the tread wear patterns. If the tires are wearing unevenly, your front end is most likely out of alignment. Paying for a front-end alignment can actually prolong the useful life of your tires and make your daily commute a safer one.

Keep Your Car in Good Shape

However much you love your car, you will likely sell it someday. Whether you trade the old automobile in on a different late-model used vehicle or sell your car independently, its value will be directly affected by it general condition. Washing and waxing your car or truck, taking care of the undercarriage and performing the normal maintenance can all enhance the resale value of your vehicle and reduce the yearly cost of ownership.

Drive Gently

How you drive and operate a car does count for something, and not just to your passengers. Jackrabbit starts, panic stops, and other unwise maneuvers actually take their toll on your vehicle, shortening the lifespan of your brake lining and tires, putting a greater strain on your engine and doing a number on your gas mileage. Driving slow and carefully is good for you, good for your vehicle and good for your wallet.

See also: How to Master Parallel Parking

Learn to Do Basic Maintenance

You can ease the car expenses of those frequent oil changes by doing the work yourself and it is not as daunting of a task as you might think. Once you learn the basics of how to change your own oil, you will wonder why you ever took your vehicle to the dealership for something so simple.

If you are not up to changing your own oil, you can learn other simple maintenance tasks, like checking and topping off the fluids, evaluating the condition of the tires and checking for rust on the undercarriage.

Conclusion

Having a car can be costly, but you don’t need to let those car expenses eat you out of house and home. You require a vehicle to get around, get to work and run your errands, but with just a little bit of foresight and planning, you may decrease your automotive costs appreciably.

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8 Shrewd Ways to Save on Car Expenses