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5 New Year’s resolutions you should make for your car

New Year is a time when almost everyone makes little changes in their lives.

Usually, these changes involve some kind of fitness resolution, or a vow to begin afresh with a clean eating regime. They could be smaller, personal changes to be kinder or to seize every day. Or sometimes, the changes are big ones: people decide to finally start a family, or to embark on a new career.

But petrol heads everywhere will make sure to tailor their resolutions around their passion: their car. Here, we bring together our favourite motoring resolutions, to make the most of your car this year. Better late than never!

1) Quit those bad phone habits

Are you one of those people who will send a quick text in a traffic jam? Who’ll call their partner on the drive home to let them know they’re running late? Even if you’re stopped in traffic – and yes, even on handsfree – it is illegal to use your phone while driving, and your relaxed attitude to road safety is putting yourself and other road-users in danger. Use this fresh start to stamp out your bad habits.

2) Keep it clean

There’s nothing worse than seeing an otherwise well-loved car covered in dust and mud. A surefire way to ruin an otherwise beautiful motor is to fail to keep up with its everyday maintenance. Not to mention, it can look pretty scruffy. In Russia, you can be fined for having a dirty car – yes, it’s an actual crime!

While time or cost may have been preventing you from getting it done in 2014, use the New Year as a way to ensure cleaning your car becomes part of your weekly or biweekly routine. There’s no need to fork out for professional valet services: use this guide to show you how it’s done quickly and to the shiniest level possible.

Don’t forget that interior!

3) Check up on the little things: FLOWER

Ok, we admit it: checking tyre pressure levels, oil and water isn’t the most exciting of jobs. However, each is important to the smooth running of your car: for both safety and economy.

The AA recommends six basic regular checks, plus one more for good measure. The six are Fuel, Lights, Oil, Water, Electrics (battery) and Rubber (tyres) – remember this by the acronym FLOWER. Checking each one could prevent a big unexpected bill this year.

The extra thing to check is engine coolant – the level needs to stay the same to ensure there isn’t a leak and that the engine won’t overheat. It is recommended to be checked weekly – check how here.

Tyre pressure changes most drastically during warmer weather, so use the run-up to (hopeful!) Spring heatwaves to get into good habits.

4) Upgrade!

If you’ve been meaning to for a while, there’s no better time than New Year to finally upgrade your car. Whether your current motor is starting to feel a bit worn, or there’s another model you found yourself lusting after for half of 2014, you should begin your fresh start as you mean to go on. Think about selling your old car outright instead of part-exchanging, as this could save you money upfront.

To encourage you into action, it might be helpful to understand how much your existing car is worth by using the variety of car valuation tools that are now available.

Freshen up your appearance, tick off a big buy from your wishlist and make the most of your New Year re-budget! If not now, then when?

What are your car-related resolutions? Are there any we’ve missed?

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Denver Burke .