A car is made to be driven, but not all driving habits are good for its long-term health. Some people prefer leisurely cruising, while others are a bit more aggressive.
So, what are these value-hurting vices, and what can you do to stop them? Stick around as we share 12 everyday driving habits damaging your car’s value!
Driving Aggressively
A heavy right foot is a sure ticket to damaging your car’s value. The reality is that most cars simply weren’t built for aggressive driving, which exerts more wear and tear on the car’s mechanical parts and the consumables (tires, brake pads, oil) while also increasing maintenance bills.
Some parts can be exchanged and renewed, but that’s not always financially feasible. Even if you do change all of the parts that need changing, some potential buyers will be wary of a car that has been through “too many” repairs in its life.
Ignoring Maintenance
Most motorists these days are aware that you simply can not drive a car throughout its entire lifespan for it not to break eventually. Maintaining a car simply means lowering the overall chances of needing major repairs while also ensuring your car’s value is being as safeguarded as possible.
Blatantly neglecting essential car maintenance tasks like oil changes, filter replacements, or brake pad upkeep can damage a car’s value and even the vehicle itself.
Ignoring Dashboard Lights
While driving with your car’s dashboard lit up like a space shuttle looks cool, but it may tank a car’s resale value. This goes hand in hand with our previous habit, which means that following up on any issues that may arise sooner than later will allow you to retain value as much as possible, and prevent minor issues snowballing into terminal ones.
This will keep the car in its healthiest possible state. Plus, when it comes time to sell a car, a dashboard free of warning lights offers solid reassurance to potential buyers who will be less likely to lower the price.
Using Wrong Essential Car Fluids
What are considered to be the car’s essential fluids? Most people believe engine oil, brake oil, and coolant are the only vital fluids. Yet, in truth, we also have to mention transmission fluid, window washer fluid, and power steering fluid.
Cars are designed to use specific viscosity levels for each, which means that using the wrong fluids can drastically change how a car feels, drives, and eventually, sells.
Overloading a Car
Overloading a car strains the suspension, the brakes, the driveline, the tires, and pretty much everything in between. It is sure to make a car feel not at its best, and drive maintenance and repair costs up, which will eventually eat into resale value calculations.
Even if, on paper, a car’s resale value seems decent, it’s not all that decent when considering that all of the above have been replaced. Consulting the owner’s manual typically allows owners to properly gauge what they can and can not carry, which consequently avoids overloading.
Frequent Short Trips
This point mostly has to do with diesel-powered vehicles, but it also applies to gasoline, hybrid, and even EVs to a lesser extent. This is because cars are meant to reach an optimum operating temperature to use the least amount of fuel and to lower overall wear and tear.
This means that short commutes have a disproportionate effect on a car’s wear and tear and are more likely to lower a car’s resale value compared to longer trips. Highway cruising helps to lower the number of times a driver shifts gears, uses the brakes, and does excessive steering inputs, all of which minimizes wear and tear.
Short trips in diesel engined-cars can also accumulate particulate matter in the cylinders which can require some major surgery to clean out.
Parking in Direct Sunlight
Parking a car in direct sunlight for extended periods will likely lead to problems with the exterior paint, trim, and sometimes even the interior. Paint tends to fade away if exposed to intense sun rays for a long time, while plastic pieces of trim can unglue themselves or even change shape.
As to the interior, this issue is often more noticeable with uphosltery, as materials like leather and vinyl can noticeably distort and crack. Regardless, it’s always a good idea to minimize sun exposure, especially during very hot summer months.
Riding the Clutch
This point is reserved for cars with manual gearboxes since automatic gearboxes usually don’t have interactable clutch mechanisms. As such, whenever the driver rests on the clutch pedal, it creates friction between the pedal and the flywheel, which is colloquially called “riding the clutch.”
This will shorten the lifespan of the clutch and will require repairs. Since the clutch pedal is usually a relatively expensive repair for most cars, this will hamper a car’s value considerably.
Resting On the Gear Lever
While on the topic of manual gearbox troubles, we also have to mention that resting a hand on top of a gear lever may eventually cause the selector fork to break or bend. This will lead to more difficult shifting or major transmission problems, which aren’t kind to value retention.
As such, it’s always best to invest a bit more in an armrest since these will stop selector fork-related depreciation while also making the car more appealing for second hand buyers.
Driving Over Potholes
Misaligned wheels are a reality of modern-day city motoring. Since roads are constantly overcrowded, they are more likely to develop potholes and other unwanted surface undulations.
Whenever a car goes over a substantial pothole, it can cause wheel misalignment. Misaligned wheels will lead to uneven tire wear which will both drive maintenance costs up while lowering a car’s overall resale value.
Crashing
Once a car is involved in anything more than a minor fender bender, it will affect its resale value. This is because people are likelier to choose a no-accident vehicle than one with damage history, even if that means spending a bit extra.
This is especially the case with salvage titles or rebuilt cars which can lose large sums of value after a big incident, even if repaired completely and according to the manufacturer’s specifications.
Not Cleaning the Car
A dirty car will never be as attractive as a clean one, which makes a massive difference when it comes time to buy one.
Not only does a clean car convey a sense of security that its keeper has been meticulous in maintaining it and shows it in its best light, but regular cleaning helps to maintain pristine paint condition, prevent discoloration of headlightlights, and even rust.
It’s the same story with the interior, as tidy, clean surfaces are more likely to retain proper textures and that very-welcome factory-fresh appearance.
Successfully Avoiding the Depths of Depreciation
Retaining a car’s resale value is beneficial not only to the first owner but also to everyone who buys the car afterward. Even though cars are “just” pieces of metal, they are not immune to improper treatment.
If you are the type of driver with a heavier right foot, chances are your car’s value is slowly being chipped away. The same goes for skipping a recommended maintenance schedule. Some people meticulously document their car’s upkeep book as carefully as they file their tax returns, while others don’t even have one.
All of these habits should also be avoided to reduce the chances of major repairs, expensive breakdowns, and, most importantly, car accidents.
