Commonly Replaced Car Parts And When To Change Them

Modern cars are robust and sturdy and designed to last many, many years. But even the best of cars driven by the most careful of drivers will suffer from wear and tear, and in due course, will require servicing and a replacement of some parts. All cars require consumables for their functioning. Consumables, as the name suggests, are ephemeral. Replacement of parts over the lifetime of a car is what constitutes its ownership cost – an expense that many car buyers tend to overlook when purchasing a new automobile.

Let’s take an inventory check of car parts that require periodic replacement, arranged in order of how soon they might need replacing:

Oil And Oil Filter

Your car’s engine oil requires frequent replacement at intervals ranging from three to six months (or 10,000 to 15,000 kilometres). Engine oil plays a vital role in the smooth functioning of the engine by providing lubrication as well as cooling. The oil filter plays the supplementary role of keeping engine oil clean by filtering out impurities and particulate matter that if allowed into the engine, might damage it. If you drive a Ford car, you can easily keep monitoring your car’s health, including tyre pressure, oil life, fuel level and much more, using the FordPass app on your smartphone. FordPass is the company’s connectivity solution that comes as a standard feature on all its cars, irrespective of the variant of your choice.

Wiper Blades

The humble windscreen wiper blade, by keeping your windscreen clear on a rainy day, serves a critical purpose. Visibility is perhaps the most important condition for a safe drive, and the wiper blades afford this. These blades have a life of one to two years, depending on the climate. You should periodically check if your wiper blades are working well. If not, replace them immediately; you never know when you might need them.

Air Filter

Your engine works best in a sealed, controlled environment closed off to all dirt and debris. Various filters help keep it this way, with the air filter being one of the most important. It cleans the air that the engine sucks in – and in doing so, it gets clogged over time. Air filters should be replaced at intervals recommended by the manufacturer of your car; if you often drive in a dusty environment, you should change it more frequently.

Brake Pads

Brake pads are front-runners in the what-part-suffers-most-wear competition. Performing one of the most critical functions in an automobile, brake pads literally grind themselves every time you slow down or bring your car to a halt. Your manufacturer will recommend an interval for changing them. Still, the actual time will depend on several factors such as your driving style, the usual payload of your vehicle, the condition of your tyres, etc.

Battery

Your battery is responsible for starting your car and keeping all its various electrical systems running. While car batteries recharge themselves as the engine runs, they have a limited lifespan, defined by the number of charge-discharge cycles they can sustain. On average, car batteries can last anywhere between 3 and 5 years, depending on the usage pattern. Replace your battery when it shows signs of being unable to hold a charge for long.

Tyres

Always carrying a heavy load while rolling on rough asphalt, tyres really do have their job cut out for them. Tyres wear out over time and should be replaced when they still have a bit of useful tread left. Driving with worn tyres increases the risk of a blowout while also decreasing your vehicle’s traction on wet or otherwise slippery roads. Maintaining the pressure recommended by the manufacturer ensures that the tyres perform optimally. It also helps save fuel and keeps you safe on the road. It is equally important to know how to handle a flat tyre if no help is available. You can also check out how to change a tyre on Ford India’s YouTube channel

Exterior Lamps

Picture Courtesy: Mohammad Danish Mazhar

Exterior lights – headlights, taillights, and turn indicators – make your car visible to others on the road. As such, they are indispensable for ensuring your safety. Bulbs have a limited lifespan, defined by the number of hours they can run. Over time, some of them are likely to go out. Enlist a friend to stand outside your car and check if all its lights are working as you switch them on and off one at a time. Do this at least once a week.

Spark Plugs

Spark plugs provide the sparks that cause the controlled tiny explosions inside your car’s engine to drive the pistons. They function in environments that are inhospitable – to say the least – and are constantly exposed to high temperatures and hot exhaust gases. So they become weaker over time until eventually, they are unable to spark at all. Running a car with damaged spark plugs can cause your engine to misfire, thereby affecting mileage and acceleration adversely.

Conclusion

This list is by no means exhaustive, and it might even scare some people. After all, replacing parts regularly cannot be cheap, can it? Well, if you own a Ford, it actually can! Ford has invested considerably in its Indian after-sales program, working with suppliers to ensure that ownership costs for a Ford car never burn a hole in anyone’s pocket.  Check Ford’s Service Price Promise to know our surprisingly affordable maintenance costs.

In the 2020 Edition of Autocar’s Annual Vehicle Maintenance Study, Ford cars & SUVs have been rated as the most affordable to maintain in their respective segments, for the third year in a row. Ford Figo, Ford Aspire, Ford Freestyle, Ford EcoSport, and Ford Endeavour – boast the lowest ownership cost in their respective segments, both for spares and service/labour. At Ford, we marry performance and economy so that you can have the best of all worlds!