Most likely, you rely heavily on your car. You’re in your hometown that doesn’t have reliable public transportation, so a vehicle is a necessity to get to the grocery store, kids’ school and doctor office. However, from gas to repair and maintenance, owning a car can be expensive.
Here are some simple tips that will keep your car in the best shape, making driving more pleasant, and ultimately saving you a few bucks along the way.
Cover the Windshield During the Winter
During the warm temperature, use a shade to prevent the smoldering sun heating up your car’s interior. You can do the same thing in the winger, expect put a blanket or a plastic tablecloth over the outside of your windshield to protect it from snow and ice. This way, you will also prevent your windshield wipers from sticking to the glass.
Use Clear Nail Polish to Repair Windshield Cracks
Have you ever heard of the old trick where you put clear nail polish on pantyhose to stop a run from going all the way down your leg? Guess what, the same theory works on small cracks in your windshield. Instead of waiting for the windshield to completely crack, many experts advice to put nail polish on it as soon as you notice a small fracture. It is a great temporary fix until you can get your car to the shop.
Trashcan Solution
Did you finish your cereal this morning? Instead of throwing out the box, use it as trash in your car. Place a trash bag inside and you’ve got an inexpensive way to keep the trash in your car under control.
Clean Your Windshield With a Razor
When your windshield becomes caked with bugs, pine needles, leaves and other stuff that the car wash simply does not take off, grab a razor blade. Very carefully scrape that hardened and stuck-on gunk off the window to enjoy a clear view again. After scraping it, spritz it with window cleaner and wipe it off with a dry cloth to reduce any streaks the razor may have made.
Lighten the Keychain and Protect Your Ignition
A heavy keychain does more than weight your pocket down; over time, it can also weight down the ignition, causing premature wear. Lightening your load on your keychain might just lighten the life your vehicle’s components. Strip the keychain of everything but the basics.
Clean Your Engine
With the right household supplies, cleaning your engine is simple and takes only a few minutes before starting, be sure to cover your battery and air intake with plastic. After those are covered, pour some dishwasher soap on the engine, give it a quick scrub with a soft bristled brush and rinse it with a soft rag.
Toothpaste For Cloudy Headlights
Believe it or not, toothpaste (especially whitening) can clean foggy headlights. Simply apply toothpaste to the plastic lens cover with a cloth and thoroughly rub it all over the lens. After a few minutes, rinse off completely with clean water and dry. For further protection, use furniture polish or car wax with UV protection.
Use Pool Noodle to Protect Your Doors
If you own a car, you have banged your doors in the garage walls at least once. To prevent it, cut the pool noodle in half and either glue, nail, or bolt the tube at the specific height your door meets the wall. This is a cheap and effective way to stop having to worry about how to close your door is to the garage wall when getting in and out of your car.
Park Your Car Facing East to Defrost Windscreen in the Morning
This simple hack will save you a lot of time in the morning. If you don’t have a garage and live in a place where frost is a big problem on winter mornings, make sure to park your car facing east. As the sun rises in the east, it will defrost the ice on your windscreen rather than you having to stay outside in the cold and scraping it off yourself. Who doesn’t want a little bit of added comfort on a cold winter morning?
Use a Plunger to Remove Small Dents
This trick is fairly self-explanatory. If you have a small dent on your car’s panel, you can use a plunger to try and get it out. When pulled back the suction of the plunger also pulls the dented part of the panel forward and back into place.
Use Wet Newspaper to Get Off Your Registration Sticker
What can be more irritating than taking off the expired registration stickers? Next time, instead of destroying your nails trying to scratch the sticker off, let the wet newspaper do the trick. Soak the newspaper in warm water and place it over the sticker for 10 minutes. The warm water will penetrate the sticker and it will easily come off.
An Unusual But Effective Way to Cool Down Your Car
Instead of blasting the air conditioning, try rolling down the driver’s side window. Then, go to the passenger side, and open and close the door for a few times. This forces the hot air out of the car, cooling it faster than simply relying on the air conditioning.
Dich the Air Fresheners
Instead of wasting money for those car fresheners trees that you hand from the rearview mirror, simply use an herbal tea bag. Wrap it in a breathable cloth, and hang it on the mirror. Tea bags are much cheaper to replace, and there are plenty of soothing scents to choose from. Moreover, unlike car fresheners, herbal teabags do not contain any chemicals.
Red Mountain Funding provides much more tips and tricks for getting the most out of your car wash. For more than 20 years, Red Mountain Funding has worked with drivers in the Valley of the Sun. They understand how important it is to have a reliable means of transportation and want to do everything in their power to help keep Arizona drivers on the road in beloved, reliable vehicles.
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