Use These Car Care and Maintenance Tips to Drive Through Fall

PEKIN, Ill. –– The signs of autumn have arrived as warm weather succumbs to cooler temperatures and the leaves begin to turn beautiful colors. While this season is great for relaxing and enjoying activities like cider mills, pumpkin patches, and bonfires, it’s also the perfect time to make sure your vehicle is up-to-date on what should be considered regular auto service. Use these car care maintenance tips to drive through fall and ensure that you’re staring at the colorful foliage this season rather than a seized engine on the side of the road.

Get a Brake Inspection

Brakes should be inspected every 10,000 miles, and seeing as fall is just ahead of winter it makes this season the perfect time to take a look. If you hear high pitched squealing or grinding, or if it’s difficult to stop, bring your vehicle to our factory-trained and certified service technicians and get your brakes inspected before the roads get slick with snow.

Get a Battery Inspection

Seeing as your batter keeps your vehicle running, you’ll want to make sure you have it inspected before the temperatures plummet. When it gets cold, your battery has a harder time kicking into gear. Open your vehicle hood and check for corrosion around the battery terminals. If you see any, or if your engine is struggling to start and if your check engine light is on, bring your vehicle to us and we’ll give it a thorough inspection. We use batteries of the highest quality and can get your vehicle back on the road, healthy for the upcoming colder months.

Check Lamps and Bulbs.

Although fall is a colorful season, the sky that comes with it can be pretty dull. Autumn days can be dark and gray enough to require the use of headlights when you’re driving. Make sure your vehicle’s lamps and bulbs are working and that they’re bright enough. If you have malfunctioning lamps and bulbs, or if they’re too dim, our service techs can fit your vehicle with the correct headlamps, tail lamps, and interior bulbs to make sure the road is always illuminated as bright as it should be on the dreariest fall days.

Get a Cooling System Inspection.

Your engine coolant, also referred to as antifreeze, keeps your engine from overheating in the summer, but it also keeps your vehicle’s radiator fluid from freezing in the winter. Coolant should be checked every 24,000 miles and fll is a great in-between season to have your cooling system inspected to make sure your vehicle has a healthy engine. Our cooling system inspection includes:

• Inspecting overall equipment condition and operation
• Monitoring operating temperatures
• Checking coolant quality and levels
• Checking hoses for damage and leaks

Rotate or Replace Your Tires

You should have your tires rotated every 3,000 to 7,000 miles, which is about every other oil change. Unfortunately, the majority of people are unaware of this, and many others continue to drive on worn tires that should be replaced. Fall is the perfect time to take care of this vital maintenance before winter hits and the roads get icy. If your tires look bald, treadworn, or you feel less traction on the road, we offer these tire services:

• New tire installation
• Tire mounting and balancing
• Tire rotation
• Tire inspection for proper inflation and wear (for both new tires and tire inspections)

We want our customers to be safe on the roads this fall, and the best way to ensure that is for you to use these car care maintenance tips to drive through fall. Stop by our Pekin area dealer for the auto service your vehicle needs to remain a healthy machine. At Velde Ford, we are committed to providing our customers with an unbeatable level of service and a great car buying experience. Feel free to visit our dealership, Velde Ford at 2200 North 8th Street, Pekin, IL 61554.

Visit our website: VeldeFordPekin.com

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