WREX.com – Rockford’s News LeaderYour Money: Saving Money on Car Repairs

Your Money: Saving Money on Car Repairs

By Dave Rivelli

LOVES PARK - Sometimes we tend to not worry about our cars until something goes wrong and we foot the bill.

"We all know we're going to spend money on our vehicles whether we like it or not," said Ted Tackeberry, of Tuffy's Auto Service. "Now the question is how much are we going to spend."

Many of the cars Tackeberry says he works on could cost drivers a lot less if they were more observant. He says one of those observations people need to take into account are warning lights.

"We make our customers aware of it and they tell us 'Oh yeah its been on for about six months'," said Tackeberry. "We ask them if they have had it checked out and the majority of the time the answer is no."

He also says don't just leave that car manual in your glove compartment. Open it and find out when parts need to be replaced. Tackeberry says that can save you a lot of hassle and money.

Tackeberry says, you have to ask whether you want to pay a maintenance bill or a repair bill.

According to Marcell Iverson, assistant manager of Auto Zone in Rockford, those maintenance costs include three things changing your oil, the air filter and the fuel filter.

"Those key things will leave the vehicle running for a good 200,000 miles easy," said Iverson.

Iverson says it's also a good idea to regularly check your car's fluids.

 "If that fluid does breakdown it puts more strain to shift the gears in the transmission," said Iverson.

"Unfortunately there is a large majority of us because of our time and schedule we don't do that costs big then," said Tackeberry.