Car-proud individuals leave no stone unturned so that their cars are always turned out in their Sunday finery. Thus they have trendy stick-ons, upholstery matching the dashboard and carpets where the feet sink. But car maintenance is much more than having a gleaming façade. Car maintenance should be an all-encompassing routine covering both the exteriors and the interiors.

Car maintenance and repair should feature in the daily itinerary of every car owner. Tend to your car daily so that in the long run, you do not have to face major hold-ups or breakdowns. Car maintenance need not be drudgery or an expensive proposition, for there are numerous DIY car maintenance tips that can be practiced with ease and without having to tow your vehicle to the garage.

The one car maintenance tip that you should swear by is the regular checking of the tires. You should replace them immediately if you find any sort of cuts and protruding on them. Unevenly spaced out wears and tears suggest disproportionate tire balance. Rotate the tires every 7,500 miles and pump up the tires only up to the prescribed level.

One car maintenance tip to abide at all times is to lookout for seepages from any part and clogged pipes and mufflers. Always use the recommended varieties of oils and fluids for car maintenance is not a stopgap solution.

As you go about your DIY car maintenance regime, make sure that the antifreeze level always sticks to the norm and that you use only a 50:50 mixture of antifreeze and water.

Jammed brakes are the nuisances of every driver. Ensure that you are not running short on brake fluid but stop short of overfilling.

Transmission fluid, power steering fluid and motor oil checks should be an integral part of every car maintenance and repair regimen. Put the transmission fluid through the rigors of a reality check by rapidly changing gears so that any possible chinks in the armor are exposed. Change the motor oil every 3 months or 3,000 miles.

A highly recommended car maintenance tip is to periodically check the shock absorber by actually putting the car through bumps and grinds. Shock absorbers should always be replaced in pairs.

The windshield washer fluid reservoir should always be full. One oft overlooked car maintenance and repair job is to regularly clean the wiper blades and replace them yearly, if not broken or chipped by then, so that when the skies open up, you are not stuck with rusty blades.

Finally, do not wait for the car to send warning signals. Any car maintenance and repair job might be too late then. Instead, periodically check the belts and hoses, exhaust clamps and supports and replace them whenever deemed necessary.

These car maintenance tips and tricks are not meant to be broken like the New Year resolutions. Go about your car maintenance job diligently. Each car maintenance tip, practiced rigorously will ensure your car looking radiant, running like well-oiled machinery and the engines purring happily.