Your luxury car is your pride and joy, and you want to keep it looking like new for as long as possible. The tips in this post will help you protect your vehicle’s appearance and value.
Get to Know Your Car
The owner’s manual is a good place to start to learn about the features you have and how to use them properly. They also give you best practices for maintaining your car. But it’s also a good idea to go online and check out forums made for fellow owners of your vehicle. There you’ll find out about common issues, what worked and what didn’t to help you avoid potential pitfalls. You might need to know the difference between EV1, EV6, and EV14 fuel injectors or even how often tires tend to wear down on a specific EV car model.
Shelter Your Ride
Keeping your car sheltered as much as possible reduces the risks that come with two major concerns of luxury vehicle owners: theft and the weather.
Not only does shelter shield your car from the potential harm of hail, falling tree branches and other weather events, but simply leaving your vehicle in the sun and changing temperatures for long periods of time is harmful to your paint, the leather in your interior and rubber on your tires.
The ideal storage space for your car would be a climate-controlled structure with moisture, free, showroom-like conditions. There are storage facilities that offer that service. Otherwise, a regular garage will do as long as you ensure it’s clutter-free, there’s plenty of space around the car, and there’s no shelving, or items on your shelves, that could come tumbling down on your car. Consider using a dehumidifier in your garage for moisture control.
If you must keep it outdoors, consider installing a metal carport on your driveway and keeping your car covered. When you do take your car out, always use valet car parking whenever possible.
Be Diligent With Maintenance
The dealership you buy your car from will give you a maintenance schedule for your vehicle. Don’t ignore it or forget to go to the service appointments. These schedules are designed to proactively address known issues with your vehicle before they become major problems and help you maintain your car’s value.
While servicing your vehicle is crucial for keeping it protected, maintenance also means keeping it clean. Even if you enjoy cleaning your car yourself, you’ll want to have it professionally detailed, at least occasionally, depending on how much you drive it.
Keeping your car clean protects the interior from dust, salt and anything else you bring into it with you on the bottom of your shoes. Cleaning the exterior and under-carriage removes dirt, grime, salt, etc., and keeps them from building up and potentially causing rust and mechanical issues. Keeping your car clean also helps it keep its value.
If you do clean your car yourself, be sure to keep it waxed as, no matter how carefully you drive and park your car, it is constantly under attack from stones, gravel and road debris as you drive.
Make Sure You Have the Right Insurance
The last thing you want is for the worst to happen – an accident, vandalism or your car getting stolen – and finding out your insurance won’t cover it.
Most insurance companies offer exotic/luxury vehicle auto insurance and, if you don’t purchase it, you run the risk of them denying your claim. With luxury cars, even a small fender-bender is costly to repair as it’s not just luxury body parts and paint, but there are all types of sensors around the vehicle installed in those parts.
