What’s the point you may think? You usually don’t oppose one to the other, do you? But if you think deeper you may find that repairs may often result from owner’s negligence and timely maintenance, on the other hand, can save you from a potentially serious breakdown. If I told you to go replace the axle seals on your car you would probably wonder why. Why would you want to fix something that’s not even broken yet? – you may ask and here we come to the point.
In case of a mechanical breakdown consequences may vary A LOT depending on what part of a car dies. Some breakdowns may cause little trouble while others can cost you much more than you would have to deal with by treating the problem before it takes place. Like if a tire explodes at a high speed the outcome is unpredictable. Staying alive would be luck already.
We all like to save money but some parts of your car are just not worth saving on. Timely maintenance does not mean going crazy replacing every single part of your car every now and then. Some parts of your car will actually have little to no influence on your safety or other parts but you HAVE to see the difference between what’s really important to maintain and what can be left for later. If you are not sure whether it’s time to replace a particular part you should consult a professional or at least your car manual (if you don’t have one HERE you can find an alternative).
So, if you think it’s about time you changed that shaggy old timing belt or axle seals or got rid of those bold tires or changed engine oil or did whatever it’s time for, DO SO, don’t neglect safety. And by the way you can still save money if you shop online. Big online autopart stores like Autopartswarehouse, Autozone, Advance Auto Parts or CarParts4less if you are in the UK often have serious discounts or simply sell the same parts cheaper than you will find at your local stores. Check them out, compare the prices buy what you need. Drive safely.
