How To Refresh Your Car’s Appearance and Handling
If you’re one of the many people holding off on replacing your vehicle, you don’t have to wait months or years to drive a car that you love.
Choosing to make simple or more involved improvements can make a difference in your car’s appearance and handling. Consider these tips that make your car look and feel better.
1. Replace Electrical Components and Filters
Basic maintenance makes a difference in the performance and longevity of your vehicle. A tune-up might not be the flashiest move, but it definitely improves your vehicle’s performance. Replace spark plugs, ignition wires, and ignition coils as needed. Replace the engine air filter, cabin air filter, oil filter, and fuel filter regularly.
Your vehicle’s belts and hoses wear down over time and can crack or break; have these inspected and make timely changes for a safer and smoother ride experience. Protect your vehicle with fluid service for oil, brake fluid, transmission fluid, and power steering fluid. You can perform common maintenance tasks yourself or take your car to a shop for service.
2. Get It Professionally Detailed
The next thing that makes your car look and feel better is getting it professionally detailed. If you’ve never had this service done, you’ll be amazed by the thoroughness of the process. Car detailers generally give the car’s exterior a wash, polish, and wax. They can also clay the exterior, a process that uses a clay bar to remove contaminants from your car’s paint.
Car detailers clean the inside of the car thoroughly, removing chairs and applying vacuuming and steam-cleaning methods. They’ll clean your car’s leather, plastics, fibers, and vinyl. You may already keep your car clean, but professional detailing works so deeply that it will make your car feel new again.
3. Update the Infotainment System
An infotainment system provides drivers and passengers information and entertainment. Every year, car manufacturers improve their tech offerings, but you don’t have to feel left out of the progress. The average age of cars on US streets reached over 12 years old in 2021, which means there’s a growing demand for infotainment upgrades. Updating your system will give you smoother and safer access to in-car apps and live traffic reports, among other things.
4. Change the Wheels
One of the most striking changes you can easily make to the exterior of your car is to upgrade the wheels. While you should definitely replace your wheels if they have damage on the rims, you can change the wheels to enhance their style, too. You have a lot of design options to consider when choosing the best wheels for your car.
Before making a selection, compare wheel sizes, including the diameter and width. You will also need to decide between steel and alloy materials. Whether you want a dramatic or subtle style, changing out your wheels will help your car stand out and feel new to you.