Is it a keeper?

We have the privilege of taking care of many cars and we are fortunate to meet some wonderful people along the way.  We are truly thankful to the many wonderful customers that entrust us with their vehicles every day!  Many of our customers keep their cars for years, and safely drive their old “steeds” with hundreds of thousands of miles on their odometer.

Our customer, Lee, holds the record at the Tutt Blvd. shop with his 2002 Honda Odyssey that has over 540,000 miles, but we have many others that have cars with over 200,000 miles on their odometer.   Woody, from the West shop, has over 600,000 on his 1990 Honda Civic!

What is the “secret” to car longevity?

The “secret” is proper and consistent maintenance.  Frequent oil changes, monitoring fluids and condition of hoses and belts, maintaining the brake system, tire rotations and replacement, following the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance schedule…all these things go a long way to keeping your car on the road safely, without unexpected breakdowns.

When you are faced with an expensive automotive repair bill, you may be wondering whether you should fix your car, or put the old horse out to pasture?  Is it time to buy a new or a new-to-you used car?  Here are a few things you may want to take into consideration:

• Do you want to keep your car for sentimental reasons? Did someone special buy you the car, or was it your first car? Or do you just feel comfortable in your ride?
• Have you faithfully followed the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance schedule? Is your car “happy” and, mostly feeling good?  Replacing a known entity for a used car with unknown history may give you more than you bargained for, with unexpected and sometimes expensive, surprises.
• Are you at a point where recommended repairs cost more than the value of the car? Not necessarily a deal breaker, but food for thought.
• Is the car safe for you and your passengers, or has it been “rode hard and put away wet” without consistent maintenance and repairs?

Our Colorado Springs auto repair Service Advisers can make solid recommendations based upon what has been repaired or replaced in the past and what it will take in the near future to keep your car in good running order.  It is not uncommon for our advisers to tell a customer an expensive repair is not in their best interest, if there are too many other repair items that will need to be addressed on their car now or in the future.

Every day, we help people make the decision to keep or replace their car.  Our Service Advisors are experts on prioritizing the work needed to keep your car running safely.  If your vehicle is “past the point of no return” and the repairs would cost significantly more than the value of the car, we will probably recommend selling your car and starting with a new or used car.

Tune in to next week’s blog, where we will address the associated costs of new vehicle ownership as opposed to the repair and maintenance costs that will be required to keep your current vehicle safely on the road.