MOTORISTS ARE BEING encouraged to focus on taking care of their cars in 2012 after a poll by AA Rescue showed that men and women often neglect simple tasks to do with car health.
The poll showed that for most of the tasks, women were more likely than men to neglect things like checking tyre pressure (37 per cent of women neglect it compared to 32 per cent of men) and checking their oil dipstick (50 per cent of women check it; 63 per cent of men said they did.
“Oil is the lifeblood of your car and without the proper level, your engine can be severely damaged. Try to check the oil level on the dipstick every couple of weeks when your engine is cold and before any long journey,” advised Noel Keogh, head of AA Rescue.
Although women scored lower than men when it came to car checks, a significant proportion of both genders surveyed admitted to not carrying out basic checks – 29 per cent of participants said they hardly ever check if their lights are working, something that is particularly important in the winter.
The AA poll also identified the checking of coolant levels as the most overlooked regular vehicle maintenance check, as 56 per cent of those surveyed said it’s not something they really bother with.
Of these, 67 per cent of females compared to 48 per cent of men stated that they tend to forget about it altogether – even though the AA advises motorists to check their coolant levels roughly once a week.
More than 12,300 people took part in the poll, which the AA says “indicates that a significant portion of the Irish motoring population routinely neglect to check their car’s fluids, tyres and lights”.
To view a full car maintenance checklist, visit the AA site.
Read: Budget 2012: Motor tax hike of 7.5 per cent for most vehicles>
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