The AA is warning motorists not to neglect car maintenance as people are postponing new car purchase.

With new car sales down by 65% so far in 2009, many thousands of motorists are keeping their cars longer than they originally planned. The AA warns that as cars get older, the need for maintenance and the risk of breakdown increase markedly.

“Drivers of cars over 4 years of age are three times as likely to call out the AA, than drivers of cars under 2 years old” says Senior Engineer Tony O’ Connor. As our vehicles get older we expect to see an increased number of call outs for age-related problems, and we are just beginning to see those effects now”.

Batteries have a finite life span and would normally need to be replaced after four to five years. AA attends 150,000 call outs per year with battery and electrical problems between them, accounting for nearly half of all incidents. The risk of battery failure is twice as high for a four year old car as for a one year old car.

Tyres will usually last no more than 40 to 50,000 kilometres before they need to be changed. It is important to check them thoroughly to make sure that they are not damaged or worn and that they are inflated correctly. “Age related car breakdowns are on the increase and not just because of the economy” says Tony. The top year for car sales was 2000 when there were 235,000 new registrations (there won’t be a third of that this year. Those cars are still out there, a population bulge of vehicles that are now nine years old.

The AA advises that older cars can give perfectly good service provided they are cared for, but you must not neglects servicing and should have cover in case they do break down which is inevitable eventually.

The AA recently asked motorists what they paid for their last service in an email questionnaire which received 10,000 responses. The typical price is between €200 and €250.

That is a significant bill to pay and the temptation is to neglect it says Tony. “A lot of us treat the car service the way we treat the dentist – we know we are meant to go regularly but we put it off until we have a toothache”.

This approach can be a false economy leading to more expensive repair bills in the long run. The recommendation is that you stick to servicing at manufacturer’s recommended intervals. This usually requires a service every 16,000 to 18,000 kilometres, which for the majority of people means once a year.

Article courtesy of AA Ireland.