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Air Filter: A survey conducted by AAA found that dirty air filters are the most common preventive maintenance problem. The AAA survey also revealed several other common preventive maintenance problems:

Low Tire Pressure: Tire pressure should be checked at least once a month to ensure tires are not under or over-inflated. Tire pressure levels should match recommended levels on the tire or the owner manual. Low pressure in the tires can increase wear and fuel consumption. Having too much pressure may reduce traction. Keeping tires properly aligned will also help ensure longer tire life and improve fuel economy.

Worn Wiper Blades: Rigid, cracked or torn wiper blades can greatly reduce visibility when driving in rain and snow. Wiper blades should be examined and replaced once a year or sooner if streaking occurs.

Low or Old Engine Oil: Old or dirty oil reduces engine protection and increases engine wear, while low oil levels can lead to overheating. If the oil level drops too low, lubrication will be lost and severe engine damage can result.. Regular oil changes will extend engine life.

Old Transmission Fluid: Changing automatic transmission fluid at the intervals recommended by the vehicle manufacturer will keep the vehicle shifting smoothly and extend the life of the transmission. At Auto Doc we can flush the transmission with a flush machine that exchanges old fluid with new fluid. This does a much more complete job than a simple drain and fill but it does not change the filter.

Low Coolant Level and Weak Antifreeze: The coolant level should be maintained at the full mark on the reservoir, and the strength of the antifreeze should provide freezing protection down to -25 degrees Fahrenheit.

Worn Tires: Minimum tread depth should be 3/32 inch. Tires should be replaced if the wear bars are flush with the surface of the tread.

Identifying the cause of a puddle of fluid under your vehicle may save you serious troubled down the road. Fluids can be identified by their color and consistency:

Yellowish green, pastel blue, or fluorescent orange colors - indicate an overheated engine or an antifreeze leak caused by a bad hose, water pump, or leaking radiator.

Dark brown or black oily fluid - means the engine is leaking oil. The leak could be caused by a bad seal or gasket.

Reddish brown oily spot - indicates a transmission or power steering fluid leak.

A puddle of clear water - is usually no problem. It may be normal condensation from your vehicle air conditioner.

PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE FOR YOUR VEHICLEPreventive maintenance is a necessary expense to keep your vehicle in good running condition. Following the scheduled maintenance recommendations in your owner’s manual, checking fluid levels regularly and changing the fluids and filters periodically can minimize the risks of breakdowns and prolong the life of the engine, transmission, cooling system and brakes. So if you are driving a "maintenance challenged" vehicle, you need to pay closer attention to your fluids and filters.

Motor Oil

The most important fluid of all is the Motor Oil. It not only lubricates the engine, but also cools, cleans and protects it. But the oil itself can not do all of these jobs without some help. Nearly half a pint of various additives are added to the typical quart of oil to improve the oil’s ability to resist heat, friction, oxidation and contamination.

Short trip driving is especially hard on oil because the engine never warms up enough to boil off the moisture that accumulates inside the crankcase. The moisture comes from combustion gases that blow by the piston rings (the older the engine, the greater the amount of blow by). Most of these gases are removed by the Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) system. But in a cold engine much of the moisture condenses and ends up in the oil. Water reacts with oil to form sludge and acids, and the result is accelerated engine wear.

The only way to get rid of the accumulated moisture, acids and sludge is to change both oil and filter. The filter only removes suspended solids such as dirt, carbon and metal particles–not moisture, acids or sludge.

The oil and filter change intervals recommended by the vehicle manufacturers vary depending on the vehicle application and how the vehicle is driven. For "normal service" (which means mostly highway driving, NOT short trip city stop-and-go traffic driving), the scheduled maintenance intervals for changing the engine oil and filter range from 3,000 to as much as 7,500 miles, with the time interval being up to one year.

But if you study the maintenance recommendations closely, most vehicles come under the "severe service" schedule, which generally calls for oil and filter changes every 3,000 miles or six months, whichever comes first.

Auto Doc recommends the 3,000 mile or six months interval to all of our customers.

Turbocharged engines likewise require more frequent oil changes because of the high temperatures encountered in the exhaust where the turbocharger gets its power from. A turbo can spin at a tremendous speed (over 100,000 rpm in many instances). Without proper lubrication the bearings in the turbo will fail. Because of this, our recommended oil change interval for most turbocharged engines is 3,000 miles or six months.

The motor oil should be "turbo-approved" for such application, or a synthetic motor oil could be used

Transmission Fluid

Automatic transmission fluid is rarely changed for preventive maintenance, yet is often the cause of premature transmission failure, considering how expensive a transmission is to replace.

Most vehicle owner's manuals do not specify a change interval for automatic transmissions fluid, unless the vehicle is used for towing. The vehicle manufacturers say their fluids can go upwards of 100,000 miles under normal driving conditions. Yet most transmission experts say regular transmission fluid and filter changes every 25,000 to 30,000 miles can significantly prolong the life of the transmission.

At the very least, the transmission fluid level should be checked periodically. On most vehicles, this should be done after the vehicle has been driven and the fluid is hot. The dipstick is then read while the engine is idling and the transmission is in park.

Manual transmissions use a different type of fluid and the way is is checked is different on every vehicle and this should be done at every oil change.

Cooling System

The antifreeze in the coolant performs three very important jobs: it prevents the coolant from freezing during cold weather, it raises the boiling temperature of the coolant to prevent overheating during hot weather, and it fights corrosion. If the coolant system is low and needs additional coolant, make sure you use the correct type of coolant or a type that is compatible with the coolant that is already in the system.

Cooling system antifreeze needs to be changed every two to three years or at anytime the fluid becomes contaminated or discolored.

Brake System

The brakes system on your vehicle is the most important thing on the vehicle. It doesn't matter how new or old, or how it looks, or how good it travels down the road, if you are not able to stop the vehicle it is danger traveling down the highway. Brake inspections are a very important preventive maintenance service, and should be preformed at every Oil Change.