Clark's Big Book of Bargains (33 page)

• Internet •

• www.tirerack.com
  

• www.consumerreports.org
  

* DETAILING *

You might be surprised to hear me say this, but I think detailing a car is one of the smartest things somebody can do. Spending $60 to $100 to have a car thoroughly cleaned up may seem frivolous, but I don’t think it’s a waste at all.

We get rid of our cars because we’re bored with them, not because the car is no good anymore. If you treat yourself once a year to having your car thoroughly detailed—shampooed and polished inside and out—you’ll drive off with your car looking almost as good as it did when you first got into it. It makes people feel great. If detailing makes you fall in love with your car all over again, you’ll keep it longer and avoid expensive payments for a new car.

It’s kind of like getting all dressed up and going on a nice date with your spouse every so often. It puts the zing back into the relationship.

Now, some people overdo it, and have their car detailed once a month or more. That does seem wasteful. But if you do it once or twice a year, that’s perfect.

If you have a leased car, make sure to have the car thoroughly detailed before you turn it in at the end of the lease. If there’s anything broken, get it fixed. And take pictures of the car, so you can prove you returned it in excellent condition.

There’s no good way to know if a detailing shop does a good job. Ask friends or co-workers who they use. If you like the job a place does, use them again the next time. Otherwise keep searching until you find one you like.

As far as routine washes, the automatic car wash is fine. I go through automatic washes because they’re so cheap, but my wife, Lane, gets upset with me because she thinks it’s harmful to the car. A lot of people agree with her, but it isn’t true. We called ten auto repair and painting shops, and the consensus was they don’t see much damage from car washes. Occasionally an antenna breaks or a mirror is broken. A couple of car models reportedly have had design problems that have made them susceptible to such damage. But paint problems are rare and occur mostly with older cars, when the paint is starting to peel anyway and the pressure from the car wash is too great, or on cars that have a manufacturing defect in the paint. Every one of these experts said they take their own cars to an automatic car wash.

• Tips on Detailing •

• It’s a good idea to have your car thoroughly cleaned once or twice a year, well worth the $60 to $100 it costs.
  

• If you have a leased car, make sure to have the car thoroughly detailed before you turn it in at the end of the lease.
  

• Experts say an automatic car wash is fine for routine washes.
  

* OIL CHANGES *

I don’t think there’s anything I’ve done in the last few years that caused more controversy than a TV piece I did about how often you should change the oil in your car.

I am not a mechanic, but the oil change business lives on getting you to change your oil more frequently than you need to change it. The truth is, it’s absolutely fine, barring some kind of unusual driving pattern, to change your oil only as much as required in the owner’s manual for your car. The manufacturer’s specifications may call for you to change the oil every 5,000 miles, every 7,500 miles, maybe every 10,000 miles. It depends on the car. But those are the three most common numbers. If your owner’s manual says to change your oil every 7,500 miles, that’s what your car needs.

The oil-change industry was furious at me for the story I did. Industry people said I was ignoring several factors: that many people drive in harsher-than-average conditions, such as lots of stop-and-go driving or a lot of short trips, which don’t allow your car a chance to get warmed up; and that some people drive in very dusty areas. Under such conditions, they say, you should change your oil more frequently than the manufacturer recommends. They also say that, because most people now fill their gas tank themselves, few actually check their oil when they fill up. The argument is that if people don’t change their oil for 7,500 miles and don’t check their oil, their car might lose oil over time, and their engine might end up with no oil, which would destroy it.

But that’s nothing more than a scare tactic. Most cars today don’t burn or leak oil, so the danger of burning up your engine is remote. But here’s the book answer on how to make sure that doesn’t happen. Every other time you fill up your gas tank, check the dipstick to see if the oil level is okay. If you notice a few drops of oil where you park your car, in your garage or at work, you definitely should check the dipstick every other time you fill up. If your car has a minor oil leak, you may have to add oil between oil changes.

Even if you’re changing your oil as often as the oil-change places want you to, which is every ten minutes, act immediately if the oil light on your car ever comes on. Pull off the road and stop right away. Do not try to drive to the nearest gas station. They call them “idiot lights” because you’re not supposed to ignore them.

For most people, there’s absolutely no benefit to changing your oil more often than the manufacturer recommends. You’re just wasting money, and if you drive 15,000 miles a year, that could be the difference between two oil changes and five. At $20 a pop, you could save, or waste, about $60.

I take my car in for a routine checkup every 15,000 miles, including an oil change. In the intervening cycle, because my car needs to have the oil changed every 7,500 miles, I go to one of the independent oil-change places. I go to the same one every time, so that if there’s ever a question, they can’t point fingers. And because I take my car in to my regular service center, I don’t buy any costly extras—like getting the coolant changed or windshield wipers replaced—at the oil-change place.

Don’t rely on the oil-change place to tell you what oil your car needs. It takes two seconds to look in that owner’s manual and see what oil should run in your car. Tell the oil-change place what to use. For example, my hybrid gas/electric car takes “0W,” which is a very rare kind of oil. Most cars use 10W or 5W oil. Usually it’s 10W40 or 5W40. The 40 means it’s for hot weather conditions, while 30 would be more likely for a winter oil change.

People used to change their own oil, but not many do it anymore. Disposing of the oil is one problem, and the space is so tight under the hood in a lot of cars that it’s harder for people to get to the oil filter.

• Tips on Oil Changes •

• Don’t change your oil more frequently than your owner’s manual says you should.
  

• Every other time you fill up your gas tank, check the dipstick to see if the oil level is okay.
  

• Get your routine maintenance done by a mechanic once a year. If you go to an oil-change place for oil changes, don’t buy any of the extra services, like getting the coolant changed or windshield wipers replaced.
  

* REPAIRS *

Unless you’re a mechanic, taking your car in to be serviced or repaired can be scary. A lot of people worry that an auto repair shop will rip them off. That’s why it’s important to find a mechanic who knows what he’s doing and treats you fairly.

I’ve been using the same auto repair shop since 1987. My father-in-law, who uses the same shop, feels even more strongly about their work. Believe it or not, when he went shopping recently for a new car, he refused to consider buying any car other than a Honda or Acura—the brands this shop specializes in repairing. He didn’t want to deal with the unknown of having his car repaired somewhere else. The mechanic’s name is Gordon, so we call that the Gordon Rule.

Many independent shops specialize in fixing certain brands of cars, and this is true especially with the Japanese and European brands, which represent a big chunk of the car market. Normally you get to talk directly with the mechanic who’ll be doing the work on your car. That’s much better than the system at a typical dealership, where you talk to a service writer who then has to relay to the mechanic your comments about what’s wrong with your car. It’s easy for something to get lost in the translation. You may not necessarily pay less at one of these independent specialty shops than you do at a dealer, but with car repair price isn’t as important as finding someone who is honest and knowledgeable.