Younger Nissan of Frederick

Jan 17, 2024

The holiday season is over, but winter is just beginning. We still have several months of winter weather ahead of us, and as many of you know, ever-changing and harsh weather conditions can be hard on your vehicle. That’s why it is important to keep your Nissan in tip-top shape with regular maintenance. The past couple of months have been pretty busy for all of us. Whether you’ve been running around getting gifts or traveling for the holidays, right now is the perfect time to pop open the hood and see what kind of condition your ride is in. Below you will find a maintenance checklist that is perfect for your ride’s checkup! However, if you don’t know much about your vehicle or you don’t have time to roll up your sleeves, don’t stress! Our team of certified technicians can get your vehicle back into tip-top shape in no time! Just head over to our website to schedule your service appointment now!

Check and change the oil:

  • Regular oil and filter changes will keep your engine’s life running longer
  • Nothing will destroy an engine faster than neglecting oil-level checks or fresh-oil changes.

Flush and change the cooling system:

  • A 50/50 mix of coolant and distilled water will keep the cooling system in good shape and prevent corrosion and deposits from building up inside the cooling system.
  • Be sure to change your coolant once a year

Change out transmission and differential oils:

  • While not requiring frequent service, these fluids must be changed according to service intervals.
  • Before topping off fluids, be sure that it is the proper oil and transmission fluid needed for your vehicle 

Clean it up:

  • Washing your vehicle is obvious, but when it comes to cleaning the vehicle’s underside many of us fall short.
  • Everything the vehicle ran over can also get stuck to the underside, hosing off winter salt and road grime is a good idea to keep from corrosion or build up. 

Grease it up:

  • Everything with moving parts needs grease to survive, make sure the proper vehicle parts remain greased as needed

Wax on, wax off:

  • Nothing keeps your vehicle’s paint looking good and protected like a coat of quality wax.
  • Wax should be applied every six months.

Keep Driveline components Lubricated: 

  • Driveline components such as u-joints also require regular lubrication

Protect it from harmful UVs:

  • Protect the interior plastic by parking the vehicle in the shade, harmful UVs can deteriorate the plastic
  • On sunny days, be sure to use a window deflector screen
  •  Applying a UV protectant to prevent the plastic and vinyl from drying out can also help

Keep your wheels fresh:

  • Inspect, clean, and repack wheel bearings with wheel bearing grease according to service intervals
  • This is a pretty cheap task so you won’t break the bank doing so. 

Top off your brake fluid:

  • Brake fluid   moisture, which causes components to corrode and fail
  • Replacing the brake fluid and bleed system once a year will keep from damage happening 
  • Brake fluid is pretty cheap