Four car myths you should stop believing

There are a lot of popular myths in all walks of life.  Myths can be fun to believe but they can be problematic, too. You can imagine how troubling car myths are. If you believe in a car myth, you could end up draining your bank account and wind up stranded along a roadside.

Here are four car maintenance myths, though we guarantee that there are many more out there. See if you’ve fallen for any of them.

Car myth: Your car’s regular maintenance must be performed at your dealership – if you want to keep your factory warranty valid.

The truth: The reality is that your car’s regular maintenance does not have to be done at your dealership. Now, you may want to keep your receipts or ask your Milex Complete Auto Care mechanic for your car’s maintenance records if something goes wrong.  You can take your car into the dealership for a problem in order to prove that you have been getting your regular maintenance done – but, no, you do not have to have your maintenance done there. Your dealership would like you to think so, however.

Car myth: It’s better to go to a big brand name gas station than a small independent.

The truth: While it is fine to get gas at a big-name brand like a Mobil, Shell or BP, you aren’t hurting your car if you go to a mom and pop gas station down the corner. As Business Insider recently pointed out, the big brand names may have extra engine-cleaning additives in their gas, but gas is gas, and going to a generic gas station doesn’t mean your car is getting fuel that will hurt the vehicle. There are all sorts of ways you can inadvertently damage your car, from not getting the oil changed to never putting air in your tires, but getting cheap gas at an off-brand station is not one of them.

Same deal with premium gas. If you think you’re getting better performance from premium gas than regular unleaded, you probably aren’t, according to Consumer Reports. If your car’s manual specifies that you need premium gas, then, sure, get it. But otherwise, you’ll save money, and your car will be just fine, if you get regular unleaded.

Car myth: You can use laundry detergent or dishwashing soap to wash your car.

The truth: What’s good for your clothes or skin, oddly, is not good for your car. Those soaps are more abrasive than the types of soap designed especially for car washing. If you take dishwasher soap, put it in a bucket and wash your car, maybe the first time, you’ll be okay. Maybe even the second time. But you can hurt your car’s paint and break down the wax. It also isn’t all that great for the rubber on your tires.

At Moran Family of Brands, we think a lot about a car’s paint job and protecting it, and incidentally Alta Mere offers some amazing paint protection packages. Maintaining your car’s appearance often leads to greater diligence in the car’s maintenance schedule.  But leave the dishwashing soap and detergent inside your home and don’t bring it out to the driveway.

Myth: If you run over a nail, you should replace your tire.

The truth: Well, that sounds logical. A nail can really do a number on your tire. But before you panic, know that you can often get a hole patched pretty easily and cheaply.  Take your car to your local Milex store and we’ll be happy to take a look.  We can’t promise that you won’t have to get your tire replaced, but often, a nail is not a death sentence for a tire.

You don’t always have to replace four tires, though many times it is recommended to replace two, so you have two tires side by side with the same tread depth. But sometimes you can get away with just one. You’ll want to talk to your Milex mechanic to knowyour options. That’s the thing about car maintenance myths. They aren’t always wrong, but they’re often not right, and if you fall for those myths, it can cost you.

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