Is Your Gas Cap Damaged? It Could be Costing You Hundreds Every Year

There are over 250 million cars on highways and roads across the country, and sometimes it can seem that we spend as much time fixing our cars as we do driving them. The average life of a motor vehicle in this country is about 11 years, and the auto repair business bills over $55 billion to its customers every year.

The biggest risk to drivers lies in waiting too long to fix problems. Many cars have computerized diagnostic systems and will flash a “check engine” light on the car’s dashboard when it is time to bring the vehicle in for servicing.

Surprisingly, although about one in 10 drivers’ cars is flashing the “check engine” light at any given time, about half of those drivers wait for more than three months to bring their car to local auto repair shops.

Experts recommend performing regular maintenance on a vehicle in order to keep it running in top shape. Tire rotations, oil changes, car battery replacement, and tire inflation and rotation should all be done on a regularly scheduled basis. A local auto repair shop can advise as to the correct timing, based on the make and model of the car.

Even small repairs can save drivers money: if every driver with a damaged gas cap were to replace them, almost 150 million gallons of gas would be saved every year. Auto repair shops should be able to replace gas caps the same day, and may also be able to deliver a car repair quote for other repairs that the vehicle may require.

More than one out of every 10 accidents is caused by a mechanical failure, but experts say that many of these accidents could have been prevented. About one out of every 100 accidents is caused by something that is easy to prevent: under-inflated tires.

When consumers take care of car repairs in a timely fashion, many vehicular accidents that seem inevitable may become preventable. Putting the time and effort in to fix cars at local car repair shops may extend the life of a car by many years.
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