No sensible motorist would enjoy the prospect of having to scrap their car before its time. Nevertheless, the vast majority of motorists are guilty of the kinds of bad habits that kill cars needlessly quickly.
Not to mention, increase the likelihood of potentially serious accidents.
There are countless bad habits perpetuated by millions of drivers, which have a marked impact on the lifespan of their vehicles. Even if it isn’t apparent at the time, there’s a world of damage being done behind the scenes.
Make no mistake about it – every single motorist on the roads is guilty of breaking the rules from time to time. Nevertheless, taking a more proactive approach to our everyday driving habits is a great way of protecting our vehicles, along with everyone else on the roads.
To put things into some kind of perspective, here’s a brief rundown of a few examples to illustrate the point:
- Tailgating
According to a recent study, more than 30% of drivers regularly drive far too close to the vehicle in front of them. Despite the fact that this is considered the single most dangerous driving habit of all. Driving too close to the vehicle in front means often having to slam the brakes on and take evasive action to avoid a collision. All of which can cause significant damage to your vehicle. In addition, driving too close to the car in front is the single most common cause of cars being written off in an instant.
- Accelerating aggressively
You might be in a rush, but is it really worth jeopardising your safety and the lifespan of your car to save no more than a few seconds? Not only does aggressive acceleration put unnecessary strain on dozens of key automotive components, it also significantly increases the risk of losing control. In fact, an alarming proportion of accidents are blamed entirely on loss of control due to excessive acceleration.
- Braking aggressively
Unsurprisingly, the same is also true at the exact opposite end of the spectrum. Driving too quickly or carelessly and subsequently been forced to brake aggressively can and often does cause irreparable damage. Not to mention, potentially catastrophic accidents. It takes just one bad move at the wrong time to see your car spinning out of control and taking out countless other vehicles in the process.
- High-speed cornering
This is one of the best ways of doing a number on your tyres, your suspension and your likelihood of arriving at your destination in one piece. Again, you’re taking unnecessary risks and giving your car a battering, simply to arrive at your destination a few seconds earlier. High speed cornering is one of the most common and potentially deadly of all bad driving habits.
- Overlooking tyre pressures
Last but not least, driving with under-inflated or over-inflated tyres is a great way of destroying your tyres in record time. Not only this, but tyres that are not inflated to the appropriate level also constitute a potentially deadly road safety risk. Given that it takes just a few seconds to test and adjust tyre pressures where necessary, it’s another risk that simply isn’t worth taking.
For more information on any aspect of car scrapping and recycling, contact a member of the team at Take My Scrap Car today.
