A Car Dealer’s Secrets For Keeping Your Ride Forever

“I’m going to keep this car forever!”

It’s often said, and rarely true. Love is often a spurious thing for most folks who own a car. It can be new, or just new to them. But as a long-time car dealer, I often see the most beautiful of vehicles slowly turn from splendor, to mediocrity, to a rolling piece of scrap.

Why does this happen? I hate to say it, but more than 90 percent of the time, it’s the owner’s fault.

Nearly everyone ignores the little cosmetic issues. The three D’s: Dings, dents, and dirtiness are almost always left on a vehicle as an unwelcome reminder of where the car has been, and likely heading over the ensuing years.

The paint fades. The high-quality parts that came from the factory get replaced with the cheapest replacements that can be found online, And those little issues, such as leaks and suspension wear, start to become big ones with corresponding large-dollar repair costs attached to them.

On average, most cars are kept a little less than six years before the car buying process starts anew, far before the machine itself wears out. Sometimes all it takes to keep your vehicle fresh is to take care of those little things so that they never have to become big things. 

My current daily driver, a 21-year-old Jeep Cherokee, can still get the job done and even gets a nice compliment or two along with the all too flattering, “Are you planning on selling it anytime soon?”

The short answer is no. Even with a chassis that was first developed over 30 years ago, it rides too nice and I genuinely enjoy the ownership experience.
What do I do to keep it fun and interesting? Surprisingly, it doesn’t really take too much.

I keep the inside clean: It’s not immaculate mind you. But I go out of my way to make sure that the seats and floor don’t become convenient garbage cans. When I come home, it all goes out.

I spray it: In the South I don’t have to worry about the rustworm paying me a visit, but I do have to worry about the sun. So I use a nice spray-on wax at the beginning of the month and go through everything. (Put on “Cartalk” and you’ll finish the show and the job in about the same time.) I also condition the plastic and rubber exterior trim as well as the dashboard and door panels. 

My fluids are bright and beautiful!: I drain and fill my transmission fluid once a year because it’s easy to do. I change my oil with synthetic every 10,000 miles, and all the other fluids and filters get changed at the 30,000 mark. When I stop off for gas, I’ll raise my hood and check the fluid levels. This way, if there is a little issue, it never becomes big.