Top 50 Tips

Take care of your used car the way it was meant to be; be smart about it and you’ll get so much enjoyment out of your car or truck.

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• If your car comes equipped with cruise control, make sure you use it, especially on long trips. Edmunds.com’s study revealed that using cruise control at highway speeds offered an average fuel economy savings of 7 percent.
• Every car has a rating symbol between 1 and 27; the higher the rating number, the more costly the insurance premium.
• Most of us were taugh to pump the brakes in slippery conditions to avoid a skid. However, with Anti-Lock Brake Systems (ABS), firm and continuous pressure - not pumping - is required to activate the ABS feature.
• Your headrest should be placed high enough (near your ear level) and far enough forward to touch your head, not the neck. (This gives whiplash protection if you’re hit from behind.)
• Use smaller, thinner tires for the best performance and fuel economy. The greater the tread surface, the most resistance it’ll create…giving you even less fuel economy. 
• Replace your air filter. This is one of the biggest reasons why your fuel economy may be so poor. (Other than gas prices) Your engine needs a strong flow of air - a clean air filter accomplishes this. Simple test: Lift your filter up to the sun - no light? Get a new one.
• Insurance companies provide additional dicsounts for items such car alarms, wheel locks and fingerprint readers - be sure to ask how much your discount can be with add-ons like these.
• If you have a manual overdrive button on your shift knob (like in most SUV’s) overdrive should always be on in normal driving conditions.
• Swith your O/D off if towing something, or carrying a full load in the vehicle, while driving up a hill - this will help lengthen your transmission’s life.
• If your check engine light is on, and your car was just serviced, check your gas cap. Sometimes extra air gets sealed in when you’re finished.
• Stop idling…vehicles with larger engines waste more gas, when sitting at idle, than small vehicles.