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When you buy a car, you go into it knowing that you'll have to put up with some maintenance. No vehicle stays in the same condition after it leaves the dealership. If you're a first-time buyer, however, you mightn't know what kind of car maintenance you should focus on.

You wouldn't have owned a car before, so it's only natural that you wouldn't know much about a vehicle maintenance routine. While some tasks might be relatively obvious, quite a few won't be. Overlooking this could prove to be a mistake.

You'll naturally know to have regular check-ups with a mechanic. Beyond that, you'll need to do a few things to keep your first car running smoothly.

Car Maintenance 101

Keep Your Battery In Check

Your battery is one of the few car maintenance tasks that are pretty easy to overlook. That’s primarily because it shouldn’t develop many obvious issues. Regardless, you’ll need to replace it at least once every three years.

Within that time span, they can develop faults or even become flat. Since batteries are one of the more common causes of breakdowns if they’re not replaced enough. That makes it more than vital to keep on top of it.

Have An Eye On Your Tires

Your vehicle will only make contact with the road through its tires. Because of that, they’ll suffer from a great deal of wear and tear. You’ll need to make sure that you keep an eye on them because of that. Once they become worn-down enough, they’ll need to be replaced.

When you’re doing so, it’s worth going for high-quality options that will last longer. Many retailers also offer notable deals on their products, such as lifetime tire rotations, among other things. Taking advantage of these when you can is more than recommended.

They’ll save you a significant amount of money in the long term.

Top Up Your Coolant

Many people think that their coolant - typically a mix of water and antifreeze - will only be needed for the winter months. That’s not the case. Your car’s engine will need to use it year-round to stay at an optimal temperature.

While this will primarily focus on the winter months, it’ll also need this coolant for the rest of the year. How often you should refill your car’s coolant can vary from model to model. You should check your owner’s manual to determine how much your coolant needs to be changed.

Once you do, you'll see fewer issues develop with your engine.

Wrapping Up

First-time car owners will naturally want to be careful with their vehicles. That’s the same with anyone and their new car. Most of this will focus on driving carefully and being overly cautious when avoiding potential accidents.

You’ll also need to perform regular car maintenance tasks. You could be surprised by how much is involved in this. Once you’ve certain things looked after, however, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

Outside of the above, you should take your car to the mechanic regularly. That’ll make sure that many issues don’t develop.