I have found that the biggest challenge to vehicle longevity, in New York, is corrosion due to road salt. The salt corrodes the underside of the vehicle, damaging suspension, exhaust and steering parts as well as the body and chassis. Three things that slow corrosion down are:

1. Regular car washes including the undercarriage blast. If you are hand washing the vehicle take the time to spray off the undercarriage and the wheel wells.

2. Park in a garage, if available. Many people have a garage but don’t use it. It is obvious which cars we work on get garaged, the corrosion issues are almost always less than on sama age vehicles that don’t get garaged.

3. Touch up any scratches on metal parts of body. Have the undercarriage checked for damage to paint/undercoat and have it touched up as needed.