- Services
- Famous 20-Point Full-Service Oil Change
- Full-Service Supreme
- Other Maintenance Services
- Air Conditioning Recharge
- Air Filter Replacement
- Automatic Transmission Flush
- Cabin Air Filter Replacement
- Cooling System Flush
- Engine Flush
- Fuel Filter Replacement
- Gearbox Fluid Service
- Light Bulb Replacement
- PCV Valve Replacement
- Power Steering Flush
- Serpentine Belt Replacement
- Wiper Blade Replacement
- Additives & Treatments
- Fleet Services
- Henry's Hints
Are You a Severe Driver?
Preventative maintenance is the best, most cost-effective way to ensure your vehicle operates safely and efficiently and lasts longer.
Yet according to a recent AAA Car Care Month study, "more than half of all motorists follow the wrong maintenance schedule" for their vehicles.
What's to blame? It could be confusion regarding the maintenance service schedule. The vehicle owner's manual usually includes two service schedules, one for "normal" service and one for "severe" service. Most motorists assume they drive under "normal" conditions.
"When polled by AAA," the survey states, "only six percent of motorists felt they did most of their driving under severe service conditions. But when asked about the actual driving behaviors that create severe operating conditions, 62 percent of motorists admitted they drive their vehicle that way all or most of the time."
Take the AAA survey to see which type of driver you are. Do you frequently:
- Drive on short trips of less than five miles in normal temperatures or less than 10 miles in freezing temperatures?
- Drive in hot weather stop-and-go traffic?
- Drive at low speeds of less than 50 miles per hour for long distances?
- Drive on roads that are dusty, muddy or have salt, sand or gravel spread on the surface?
- Tow a trailer or transport items on a roof rack or in a car-top carrier?
If you answered "yes" to one or more of these questions, you're a severe driver. And that means you should follow the severe service schedule detailed in your vehicle's owner's manual.
"Manufacturers provide differing sets of recommendations for severe driving conditions because of the increased wear they put on vehicle components and fluids," said John Nielsen, director of AAA Approved Auto Repair and Auto Buying Services. "With increased traffic congestion and longer commutes becoming more common, many motorists do not realize what they think of as normal driving is actually severe when it comes to wear and tear on their vehicle."
AAA explains that, "Maintenance schedules for severe driving conditions typically recommend having the vehicle's fluids and filters changed on a more frequent basis, and more frequent inspections of some components."
