Keeping your car moving By John Clayton  Monday, October 9, 2006

It happens every fall: A new school in a new town with new friends and new surroundings.

But not every student who heads off to college is in a new car.

Car maintenance is important for any automobile, but even more so for the owners of older vehicles. Properly serviced cars can save their owners money in fuel and can help head off the dreaded "big repair" bill. Your car will last longer and run better.

So, service your car regularly to get better gas mileage and performance, thus saving money in the long term. Saving money in the short term is also a big plus and a little research and effort can go along way toward keeping money in your pocket while keeping your car on the road.

The days of the shade-tree mechanic are long past. Automobiles require more than a wrench and screwdriver these days, so most people are dependent on mechanics for maintenance that drivers used to do themselves.

But before you go out looking for someone to service your automobile, make sure it is not under warranty if it is a newer car. If it is, the warranty probably requires service to be done by an accepted dealership. More expensive, yes, but you want to keep that warranty intact.

Other car owners have the ability to shop around and should take advantage of it.

Much of this is a common-sense approach to saving a few dollars, but here are a few tips, particularly for college students who are hours away from home:

• Use local knowledge. No matter where you are, you’re probably in school with at least a few local students. Find them and don’t be afraid to ask about good, trustworthy mechanics in the area. Professors and staff live there year-round as well. They’re willing to talk about more than just Chaucer, so ask them.

• Pick up a local newspaper. Check out advertisements from local shops that offer quickie oil changes and other basic services. Clip coupons if they’re there. For the girls, some of these shops have a weekly or at least monthly “Ladies Day,” offering significant discounts on oil changes and the like.

• Look around school. If you see signage from area shops or service centers, it means they’re involved with the college to some degree. Call them up and ask if they offer student discounts. You never know until you ask. You may find a proud fan or alumnus as an owner or manager.

• Schools themselves sometimes give out "freshman care packages." Take a close look in the bag of goodies and see if there’s a coupon book with savings on more than pizza inside.

• Don’t be afraid to try some of the simpler things yourself. Changing an air filter is probably the easiest thing to do on a car engine – and one of the most important when it comes to gas mileage. Pick up an air filter at just about any auto parts store, unscrew a wing-nut, remove the cover and slip it in – and you’ve just saved yourself about $20. These same auto parts stores usually have staff on hand to install windshield wiper blades at no extra cost.

• For bigger repairs, don’t be afraid to ask for a second opinion. You don’t want to go in for a tire rotation and end up paying for a brake job and new bearings on the suggestion of someone you don’t know or trust. It’s just like a medical diagnosis – you want to be sure before you check the car into the hospital.

These are just a few common-sense suggestions to keep you on the road as you enter a great time of life.

You can do all the right things for your car and save a few dollars along the way. Besides, when you roadtrip, you don’t want to end up on the side of the road.

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Keeping your car moving - 10/09/2006