Motoring was a different ball game 20 years ago. Speed checks didn’t exist. Tax and insurance costs were one zillionth what they are now and there was only a fraction of the cars on the road. Sounds glorious, doesn’t it? But the truth isn’t quite so idyllic. More people were dying on the roads then than now, the roads were in appalling condition and the cars were just dreadful. Front wheel drive was in its mainstream infancy and it’s safe to say the road manners of these cars was nothing like it is today. Modern cars are a world apart in terms of running costs and reliability.

Back then, if you didn’t know your way around an engine bay, it was only a matter of time before you got caught out. Any motorist worth their salt knew how to dry out the distributor cap, push-start and jump start a car, get a flooded engine to turn over, replace a fan-belt, dip for oil, adjust the choke, gap a sparkplug and plug a leaking radiator. Today, it’s all we can do to put petrol in them. Cars are now telling us when they’d like to be serviced, so what is there to know about modern car maintenance?

Well, you’d be surprised. If you keep an eye out, you’ll see the odd older car that still looks like new, and it’s down to simple car care. Your car will look better and drive better, sell quicker and be worth more money to you too, come resale.

The first thing any buyer will notice and probably the toughest to maintain is the exterior. We Irish are notoriously hard on cars, so step number one is to take it handy in town when driving through narrow spots and busy roads.

Secondly, think about where you park it. Don’t park it in a dark place and never in a place drunken oafs or vandals are likely to damage it. If you have to park it in town, do simple things like parking it in spaces that are wide enough to allow other cars to get in and out. Tuck it close to solid objects like walls, and fold in the mirrors every time you leave it in a public place. It only takes a second, but even a Fiesta electric mirror will costs you the bones of €200, not to mention the damage a flapping mirror will do to the door.

Scratches are normal, but bad scratches can be buffed out using a rubbing compound. If the scratch is deeper, clean the area thoroughly, buff it down and use proper touch-up paint bought from a dealership, rather than the motor-factor touch-up paint. They’re not that expensive and are an exact match - just be sure you use a pencil brush.

Apply as little paint as possible to cover the scratch and have a rag and a small amount of petrol nearby to wipe it all away if you apply too much. Let it dry thoroughly and gently apply some compound to take out any lumpiness. In a few days you’ll have forgotten where it was.

Dents are a bigger worry because, traditionally, there were only two ways to fix dents: fill the hole with body-filler and spray paint the whole panel, or replace the entire panel which can prove very costly. Neither should ever be tried by you in an attempt to save money because the result will be catastrophic. Even professionals will tell you a filled panel is never as good as a new panel. Anyone can spot it once they look at the panel at an angle, and such repairs instantly makes future buyers think you’re a cheapskate and have scrimped on maintenance. There’s another, relatively new service on offer now, too.

If the dent isn’t too big, there are dent-removers out there who do a phenomenal job of removing dents. (These guys are different to panel-beaters. Dent-removers use specific tools to coax dents out - no painting or fillers. Panel beaters generally replace or bang out and fill damaged panels.)

Ask around the local garages to find out who’s best in your area and even though they might charge a few euro for the service, there’s no replacing panels or matching paint finishes. It really is the way to go. Of course, avoiding the dent is the best possible scenario, so park nose-to-tail where possible and avoid shopping centres and car parks like the plague.

Servicing

Most people realise the need to service their cars regularly, but there are ways of saving money and getting a superior job done.

For a start, try an out-of-town garage. They tend to be less busy and offer a more personal touch making it well worth the longer journey.

Take an hour off work, if possible, to allow yourself time to chat with the service staff and tell the service manager about any small problems your car might have. Give him (or, occasionally, her) your phone number and ask if they wouldn’t mind calling you if anything serious turns up.

Similarly, when you come to collect the car, allow a little more time than perhaps you're used to, so they won’t feel under pressure to get the car out to you and you can have a little chat with the mechanics about the car. Don’t get in their way or bend their ears for an hour. It’s simply the case that if you show an interest in your car, so will they.

If you’re happy with the service, return to the same garage again next time. If you’re not, put it in writing and let them know. Customer service is fast becoming a BIG thing with dealerships here. Hopefully you’ll be looked after well and you can build up a relationship with your garage. You’ll be amazed how much stress it takes out of servicing and repairing your car and if they know you, they’ll be less inclined to charge you for every little thing.

With service intervals further apart than ever, a lot of wear and tear can occur in the intervening period. For example, tyres can wear, bulbs can blow, fluid levels can deplete, and these are all things you can put right yourself, saving on servicing costs and keeping the car as safe and healthy as possible in the process.

The owners’ manual will tell you how to top up water reservoirs and check oil levels, while bulb replacements only take a few minutes and often require no tools whatsoever. Just drive to a motor factors, pull out the blown bulb, walk in, buy an exact replacement, stick it in and be on your way. A €2 bulb can cost €5 to replace in a garage when you add in overheads and labour.

It’s vital to be prepared when cold weather comes as low temperatures are notoriously hard on cars. Getting stranded on a busy road in a wet winter’s evening, for example, can be avoided by having a winter check done on your car. The cold air, plus the increased use of heaters, demisters and lights, can kill weak batteries and burn out tired alternators. A check-up will spot this, though, and will also ensure your radiator is in good health and its antifreeze is topped up to prevent a burst radiator, water hose or even a cracked engine block. Many garages offer winter checks and as it only takes an expert a few minutes, they’re generally fairly inexpensive.

The approach to winter is also a good time to replace old wipers. Don’t go for cheap refills, though. Get a whole new wiper arm because old ones become loose with age and don’t allow the rubbers to wipe properly.

A garage check will also ensure that the screen washers aren’t clogged and that the bottle is topped up with a suitable winter additive. While you’re at it, get your front and rear lights checked to make sure all are working, and just as importantly, properly aligned.

Tyres, too, need to be checked and replaced if necessary, and even though the minimum legal tread is 1.6mm, tyres have lost 80% of their wet-weather effectiveness by then and should be really replaced at 2mm. Scrimping on tyres really is false economy. Stopping distances on good tyres double in the rain, and when roads are icy they can increase tenfold.

The RAC recently decided to do a series of spot check on some cars in the Dublin area and what they discovered was rather startling. If this small, random cross-section is to be used as an indicator as to the condition of Irish cars in general, then the majority of cars on our roads have faulty tyres, lights and brakes.

More than 400 motorists availed of the offer to have their cars subjected to a free 26-point examination by qualified mechanics from the RAC in various car parks around the city and county. Alarmingly, more than 60% of cars failed the check in at least one area, with a quarter of the cars tested were found to be on faulty, damaged or worn tyres, followed by 18% of cars having low oil levels. 16% of the cars tested had faulty lights, usually the rear, while 14% of cars had wipers and washers that were not functioning properly.

A shocking 11% of cars had brake problems, including low brake fluid, worn pads and badly adjusted handbrakes. Around a quarter of the cars tested were from 2000 or later and exactly 50% of those were found to have at least one fault.

The advice is simple. Keep an eye on your car, listen for unusual sounds, check it over once in a while and fix faults as they appear. A small fix now could save you a big fix later and above all, it keeps your car safer and more reliable.