When you buy a car, you’re making one of the biggest investments of your life, usually second  only to a house. After spending all that money, you want to make sure it lasts and you get your money’s worth, right? Putting thousands of dollars into repairs, maintenance and problems along the way ruins your investment. Proper routine maintenance and regular oil changes go a long way. Finding a trusted auto repair shop who will maintain your vehicle rather than just fix it will help you spend less and drive more.

A recent article from AutoBlog discusses the five worst car investments. By spending money on maintenance and some upgrades, you can improve your car’s reliability and overall life expectancy. It may help you avoid costly, major repairs instead. Their top five worst investments include:

1. Buying aftermarket wheels. Sure, they may look sporty or luxurious, but they can come with a price tag of thousands of dollars and really don’t add much value to your vehicle. Instead, maintaining your tires and keeping them properly inflated and aligned will help your vehicle drive better as well as the rest of your components. Plus, they say when you install larger wheels, the low-profile tires reduce the cushion between the car and the road. As a result, you can expect to feel more vibration as your travel over cracks, potholes and road debris.

2. Custom paint jobs. You may look original and cool, but it will cost you thousands of dollars to do. Then, there is the resale. It may be hard to find someone who wants your “one-of-a-kind” piece of… art.

3. Dark tint. We’ve all seen people who spend hundreds of dollars for dark tinted windows. You add privacy but not resale value or equity. You may be reducing the sunlight, but some shops will do it too dark and it ends up being against state laws. You may end up having to pay extra money to have it fixed.

4. Custom seats are also one of the worst investments because they cost a lot and could change the car’s weight. It could also be a safety issue. Modern cars come with sophisticated safety features to protect drivers from all sorts of different collisions. Often, the seats contain important sensors and electronics that activate airbags and other safety devices. Removing the factory seats can diminish the effectiveness of potentially life-saving technology.

5. Changing out the exhaust system. Installing a different exhaust system can be risky because some of these don’t meet the same quality standards as the vehicle’s manufacturer. Poor-quality exhaust systems can emit excess heat and corrode prematurely. Failing an emissions test due to a poor-quality exhaust modification can be very costly.

Want to make a good investment? Preventative maintenance and regular visits to your auto repair shop are the best ways to spend less money on repairs and more time enjoying your vehicle. Come see us and get on a service interval schedule so that we can maintain your vehicle rather than fix it.