by Kaeli Gardner
VehicleMD Contributing Writer
Originally published in Spring 2012 Issue

When it comes to vehicle maintenance, most of us know the broad strokes: oil changes, tire rotations and the like. Today, though, I want to spend some time on a few pieces you may not think about—but you should. The devil’s in the details, after all.  

Belts. Your vehicle may have any number of belts under the hood, especially if it’s an older car. You may remember seeing a tangle of the things in your family car growing up. Most newer cars, however, have simplified the whole mess down to two belts: the serpentine belt, or S-belt, and the timing belt.  

The serpentine belt provides power to almost everything in your engine: the air conditioning compressor, power steering pump, cooling fan and air injection pump, to name a few. S-belts can fail as they age, particularly as they approach 50,000 miles, so if you haven’t had yours seen to, there’s no time like the present. The S-belt is about an inch wide, black, and has little ridges running along the side. Your technician will look for little cracks in the belt—those happen naturally as the belt wears, and can weaken it. Replacing it is easy, and a pretty affordable piece of preventive maintenance that could save you a bundle down the road.  

The timing belt is even more critical. It’s a belt with lots of little plastic notches on it, which allows the crankshaft to turn the camshaft. In other words, it makes your engine “go.” If the timing belt fails, your engine stops dead—which can cause catastrophic damage. That sounds pretty scary and, well, it is, but the good news is that timing belts are pretty resilient little guys. Still, they do wear over time like any other moving part, and should be checked, if not replaced, around the 50,000-mile mark.  

Hoses. Much like belts, your vision of engine hoses, much like mine, probably involves a tangled mess of black rubber in your family car growing up, and things here haven’t simplified as much as belts. There are still a bunch of hoses, but thankfully you can ask your technician to check them for damage and weak spots. Your technician will lightly squeeze the hoses and feel for “squishy” spots, especially near the clamps. The hose should be firm, but not completely hardened either. They’ll also visually inspect the hoses for cracks. Replacing a hose before it fails saves inconvenience and potential further damage to your engine.

Finish. Yes, that means the outside. Keeping your finish properly maintained means more than just looking good. Your finish is your car body’s one and only defense against the enemy of everything metal—rust. I asked one of our trusted AskPatty.com Certified Female Friendly professionals to spell this one out for you:
  “Rust will spread through your car like cancer if you don’t protect your finish. It’s critical to have your car washed and waxed regularly to avoid corrosion. Keep your vehicle’s underside as clean and dry as possible, as well. Keep a look out for foreign materials including salts, road oil, tree sap, bird droppings and chemicals, and remove them as soon as possible.”

This tip comes from Domenico Nigro of Nigro’s Auto Body in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He repairs damage caused by rust and takes steps every day to protect against its advance.

I hope this article has illuminated a few of the more forgettable areas of vehicle maintenance for you—without scaring you too much. If your vehicle hasn’t had its belts or hoses checked lately, ask your technician to give them a good once-over.

  KAELI GARDNER lives in the beautiful Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee where she works as a writer, artist and web marketing manager for Ask Patty, helping to empower women nationwide to take control of their own vehicle repair. You can read more of her wisdom and wit at the AskPatty.com blog.