There’s a lot of cars that are brought into our auto repair shop in Chicago that could have been avoided needing repair if the owner knew what to look out for.

With that in mind, we wanted to share 3 simple things to look out for to avoid having to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars in repairs. Of course, if you can’t avoid it or want to maintain your car, we still encourage you to bring it in.

3 Simple Tips To Avoid Costly Repairs When Taking Your Car To An Auto Repair Shop In Chicago (or anywhere else)

1. Follow the recommended maintenance and repairs – when you bring your car to an auto repair shop, they often tell you what your car needs to be running effectively. Of course, if you don’t have a trusted auto repair shop, that may be hard because it may feel like they’re just trying to sell you more services. Assuming you do trust your auto mechanic though, remember that they know what they find under the hood which is why they make recommendations for further repair or maintenance. A good example of this is your oil change schedule. Many people see the sticker on their windshield but often go over the recommended mileage or date that is written on the sticker which can cause expensive problems with some cards if ignored for too long. Make sure you consider these recommendations and ask how urgent they need to be addressed.
2. Remember many small annoyances ignored lead to expensive repairs later – If your car is making noises, trembles or does anything unusual, that’s a sign that something isn’t right. A customer came in for brake repair services since his brakes were scraping really loud and we had to not only replace the brake pads but the rotors as well. If he would have waited any longer, he may have had to replace brake lines and calipers too which can double or even triple the price. This was because he took to long to address the small annoyance of noise from his brakes.
3. Create an easy to manage maintenance checklist – having a checklist allows you to track when and where you got your car repaired. There are certain things that need to be done with you car at different intervals and having an easy place to reference what you’ve done with your car over time is a great thing. Do you know when you last rotated your tires? If not, you may be wearing them out quicker than necessary. Having an auto maintenance checklist or journal helps you do what needs to be done when it needs to be done so you can avoid bigger issues with your car.

Are these tips helpful? If so, make sure you share these tips with your friends and family using the social buttons. We love offering helpful tips to save you money on your auto repair.

If you don’t have a trusted auto repair shop in Chicago, be sure to call us or bring your car in to get great service at affordable prices.