When it comes to taking care of your car, typically you rely on your vehicle’s check engine light to have you covered. However the check engine light should actually be considered more as a final warning towards you car’s health and reliability. In fact, according to a recent survey, the research found that an estimated 77% of the cars are currently in need of maintenance or repairs. While some people may brush off regular maintenance in order to save some cash, it really is only benefitting you in the short term and is s very short sighted decision. Such a decision can put your own well-being at risk, and as with the nature of car accidents, put others into unnecessary dangers as well.

Approximately 50% of premature car battery failures are caused by the loss of water due to the lack of maintenance, evaporation from high under-the-hood heat, or overcharging. Car batteries are not only costly, but vital to your car’s ability to function. This just goes to show that refusing to do regular maintenance and upkeep with your vehicle can –and most definitely will– cost you more in the long run. If you bring your car into an auto shop on a semi regular or scheduled basis, even if just to get your oil changed, you will not only be happier with your vehicle’s performance, but safer overall. Mechanical failures are a factor in 12% to 13% of all auto accidents. That is a large amount of completely preventable accidents.

It is worth mentioning that a check engine light should never –under any circumstances– be ignored. As a licensed driver it is your responsibility to also be a safe driver. With that responsibility comes several expectations, one of which is keeping your car in working order. Ten percent of all drivers have a check engine light on at any time, and even worse, 50% of those drivers ignore the light for more than three months. Please be considerate and try your best not to become a part of this concerning statistic. The best way to avoid this from happening is to simply keep up with your car and its functions, perhaps even invest in a tune up service.