One should ideally treat your vehicle as an investment and look to reduce the cost of ownership. In order to assure a good resale price for your vehicle when the time comes, you have to maintain the vehicle well. Both the vehicle’s exterior and interior should be taken care of regularly. The following practices will allow you to retain the value of your vehicle:
Watch the mileage
Try to maintain the mileage of your vehicle as low as possible. Avoid using your vehicle when not necessary as buyers will correlate the mileage on your vehicle as an indication of the wear and tear in the engine.
Regular servicing
Take your vehicle for regular services. Ensure that the engine is checked regularly for optimum performance and all necessary oils and fluids are maintained. This will allow the engine to run smoothly and reduce wear and tear.
Maintain documents and records
Keep all documents related to the vehicle in order from the day of purchase. Also keep your service records and replacement part bills/warrantyfiled to assure the buyer of the service history and authenticity of parts fitted.
Clean lights
Most owners forget to or are unaware about cleaning the lights on the vehicle. Over time the lights begin to fog and are exposed to scratches, which reduce the intensity of the lights as well as give an old look to the car. Use specialist cleaning material to clean them.
Keep the interior clean
The inside of your vehicle is as important as the outside, so avoid eating drinking and smoking inside the vehicle. Note that car leather treatment is important in maintaining the look of the car. Stained and badly aged seats can make the vehicle look and feel old. And equip the car with a nice smelling air freshener.
Protect the wheels
With regular use the wheels are often damaged through curb side scratches, affecting the look of the car. To avoid such issues, you could maintain a separate set of wheels or install parking cameras to help avoid damaging them.
Avoid DIY
In the case of any scratches, small dents or engine trouble avoid attempting to fix it yourself. As you could damage it further in the process or void the company warranty. Instead take your vehicle to a certified auto repair shop.
Wash and wax regularly
To take care of the paint and give the vehicle a new shiny look, wash and wax the car at least once a week. Apply some product with an oleophobic coating after washing. While cleaning, be sure to wash off any trapped salts and oil the undercarriage to prevent any rust formation.
Avoid/minimize accidents
One major issue which drives the value of a vehicle down is accidents. This is due to the reliability of the newly fitted parts and any issues which might get carried forward even after repair.
Park the vehicle safely
When parking your vehicle at a public place or home, ensure that you park it in a safe place to avoid any scratched or substances falling on it.