How Driving Habits Impact Vehicle Maintenance

Are you a severe driver? The answer to this question might surprise you, as a severe driver is simply a person who puts more strain on their car or truck than they might expect. While being a severe driver isn’t exactly “dangerous”, it does mean you’ll probably need car preventive maintenance service sooner than you’d think.

If you’re an average motorist in Tucson, Arizona, you might assume you aren’t putting that much demand on your vehicle. Still, even supposedly normal behavior on the road can fall into the category of severe driving. Here’s a closer look at how quick acceleration, waiting too long to refuel, and other everyday driving habits can impact your need for car maintenance.

Keep an Eye Out for These Driving Habits

Severe driving may be relatively common, but that doesn’t change the fact that it can affect your vehicle’s ideal maintenance schedule. Driving habits that are considered severe include:

Rapid Acceleration

While going 0 to 60 in seconds flat may be thrilling, it’s not ideal for multiple components in your vehicle. More specifically, flooring it can put significant demand on your tires, transmission, and engine. 

Of course, you can’t undo the damage from this driving style without getting preventive maintenance. Even so, you can avoid doing further damage by gradually accelerating and driving at a fixed speed when possible.

Shifting Gears While in Motion

If your car isn’t completely stationary when you shift gears, you could put heavy strain on your transmission and even contribute to its premature failure. This is especially true when you shift from forward to reverse or vice versa while driving.

Riding Your Brakes

Some motorists have a habit of constantly applying slight pressure to their brakes as a way of reducing speed. Thismay seem harmless, but the consequences are anything but. Doing this can affect the well-being of your brakes and brake fluid.

Instead of riding your brakes, try braking in quick bursts or changing gears to reduce your speed.

Waiting to Refuel

You might not think when you refuel matters, but this isn't the case. Waiting until the last minute to fuel up can make life harder for your engine, leading to more frequent maintenance for your fuel injectors, filter, and pump.

To avoid this situation — and the risk of getting stranded with an empty tank, for that matter — be sure to get gas well before you’re at risk of running out.

Insufficient Use

Some cars aren’t used as often as others, but this can also cause problems related to maintenance. An automobile’s various components can eventually lose their effectiveness without regular use.

Fortunately, avoiding this issue is simple: just make a point of driving your vehicle once a month. Even a trip around the block can be enough to keep your car in good working order.

Driving Habits and Oil Change Scheduling

Any one of the driving habits listed above can negatively affect your car’s preventive maintenance requirements. But the way you drive can also determine how often you need the simplest, most crucial car maintenance service of all — oil changes.

Under normal circumstances, even high-quality motor oil will become less functional over time. When it gets to a certain point, your oil will be unable to do its job. That’s why oil changes are an inevitable part of any auto maintenance schedule.

Despite this, the rate at which you need an oil change service isn’t set in stone. Many factors can require you to get your oil changed more often than usual or allow you to go longer between oil changes, such as the type of oil you use and the age of your vehicle. Certain driving habits can spell trouble for your motor oil, too. These habits include:

• Driving in extreme heat
• Regularly taking short trips
• Often hauling or towing heavy loads
• Traveling in stop-and-go traffic
• High-mileage driving

Get the Best Car Maintenance Tucson Has to Offer

Having driving habits that negatively affect your car’s preventive maintenance needs isn’t the end of the world. However, this does mean you’ll need to find a good auto shop for car maintenance. Tucson residents deserve preventive maintenance from a business with a strong reputation, qualified workers, and great prices.

If you’re looking for a car shop that checks all these boxes and more, give BRAKEmax Tire & Service Centers a try! Since 1997, we’ve been Arizona’s one-stop shop for preventive maintenance, thanks to our ASE-certified mechanics and opportunities to save.