It doesn’t matter if you own a luxury car or a sports car, they each need attention and respect to prevent problems. For those times when there isn’t a dilemma big enough to splash out, we’ve rounded up the best vehicle hacks for everyone who owns a car.

Vehicle hacks are quick tips to improve the quality, practicality and appearance of your car. With age, and wear and tear, every car experiences dents, scratches and general annoyances, but that doesn’t mean you have to live with them.

In addition to vehicle hacks, there are things that everyone can do at home to improve the life-span of their car. Begin by changing your car’s oil filter and air filter regularly. Replace them periodically to save money and hassle at your next service. Cheap and poor-quality filters can damage your engine in the long term, so ensure you purchase ones designed for your model.

How you drive affects how long your car lasts. Rather than putting your foot down and tugging on the steering wheel, be a little gentler with your vehicle. Drive at a constant speed if possible, and improve your driving style by accelerating and applying the brakes gradually. Doing so will reduce the wear and tear on your car, and also save your fuel. Take a long drive once a month and pick up the speed more than usual to help to flush out emissions in your exhaust.

Top up your car’s fluids often, before they are drained, or you can face dire consequences. Every fortnight, open the bonnet and check your engine oil levels. Dark, dirty oil should be replaced. Check the other fluids fortnightly too, including the coolant reservoir which might need topping up with 50 percent water and 50 percent antifreeze. It might be tempting, but don’t use washing-up liquid for screenwash as it’ll create problems.

Tyres are one of the most important safety features on your car, and failing to check them once a week could put your life in danger. Under-inflated tyres will increase your consumption, so keep them topped up to the recommend pressure listed in your handbook. Remember, the pressure might be different for the front and rear tyres. Some experts suggest rotating your tyres to even-out wear and tear to prolong their life.

We’ve created a list of the best vehicle hacks to make your life easier and safer. Follow these guidelines to help improve the longevity of your vehicle, as well as improving its appearance.

Are you prone to forgetting where you’ve parked in a car lot? If so, it’s hard to find your car amongst thousands of others. Head towards the brief zone you know you’re based and hold your key fob under your chin. It’s a proven fact that the fluids in your body extend your fob’s wireless signals. Press the key fob’s button and watch out for your car’s flashing lights. This is one of our favourite vehicle hacks because it comes in handy when you least expect it.

Whether you’ve bought a car which has a bumper sticker, for a cause or place you want visited, you might wish to remove the sticker. Tastes change and people get bored easily, so it’s common to want these taken off. But, we all know how frustrating and difficult this can be. Instead of scraping at the label for a while, dampen a sheet of newspaper and lay it over the remaining sticker. After 15 minutes, the sticker will soften, making it easy to wipe away. Scrape off the sticky leftovers, ensuring you are gentle to not scratch off any paint.

Have you ever been in a predicament when your windshield wiper blades have suddenly become damaged whilst driving and are on the verge of breaking? If you’re driving through terrible weather conditions, you can’t afford to take them off, and not all of us are prepared enough to carry a spare in the car. Continuing with broken wipers can scratch your window. So, use a pair of women’s stockings to protect them from damaging your window. Wrap them tightly around the wiper, and they’ll also clean off debris until you get a new set of wipers.

This is one of our favourite vehicle hacks, because it’s difficult to find a product that cleans your car’s headlights without leaving them cloudy. Dirty lights can contrast against a clean body, and make the car appear older than it is. Instead, take a thin layer of toothpaste and apply it to a microfiber cloth. In circular motions, wipe the cloth on the headlights to remove debris. Your headlights will look clear again, and smell minty fresh!

The best vehicle hacks keep your car in safe condition during times of need. Small stones and debris from the road can easily leave cracks and chips in your car’s windows. Often, it isn’t until it’s too late that you realise you need to fork out for an entire window replacement. As soon as you spot the early signs of a crack, don’t leave it to grow. Instead, fill in the window damage with clear nail polish. As the polish dries, it will look invisible whilst sealing the crack and preventing it from growing.

We’ve all experienced an annoying dent that’s suddenly appeared on our car. If the dent isn’t large enough to worry about, but small enough to annoy you, we’ve got a hack you’ll love. Take a household plunger over the damaged area. When you pull back, the suction from the plunger pulls the dented part of the panel forward. This might not work the first time, depending on the severity of the damage. For stubborn dents, heat up the area with a hairdryer first to soften the panel. Repeat several times with the plunger until it’s removed. Depending on where the dent is on your car, you might be able to pop it out from the inside, after using the hairdryer.

Air fresheners are great, though they don’t always last. Avoid the disappointment and money, by creating your own car fresher. Grab some wooden clothes pegs and sprinkle some drops of your favourite essential oils on top. We recommend lavender, rose or vanilla for a beautiful scent. Attach the wooden pegs to your car vents, and each time you turn on the heating or air conditioning, your car will smell fresh and pretty. Top up the wooden pegs every couple of weeks to keep them smelling great all the time.

Driving isn’t just about transportation, but the experience too. Many of us love the time out to listen to our favourite music, but it’s disappointing when the quality is muffled. This is one of our favourite vehicle hacks for any music lover. Choose the highest quality file for your music. Don’t settle for streamed music, and explore the audio quality in the settings of your music app. Next, upgrade your car speakers to revolutionise your music experience. Component speakers provide better sound quality than budget speakers, but you don’t have to replace the back speakers in your car if you rarely have passengers. If your car is missing bass, add a subwoofer to your factory system. Powered subwoofers are simple, but adding an amplifier and a subwoofer gives you more flexibility and options.

There’s nothing wrong with servicing your car yourself in addition to a garage. For car-obsessed individuals, you might spend a lot of time cleaning the interior and exterior, but rarely under the bonnet. Every year or so, take an old toothbrush with warm water and soap and clean around the engine. Wipe away any debris with a cloth. This is a great habit to have because when you look under the bonnet to inspect the health of your car, you can clearly see, as opposed to a dirty engine.

Everyone wants to reduce their fuel use for the sake of convenience, the environment and money. We don’t recommend turning off your engine when stopping at lights, unless you have an electric car which enables you to switch the engine into idle mode. Always pay attention to what’s happening in front of you, and leave plenty of space ahead of you. This gives you more time to slow down, rather than slamming on your brakes and wasting fuel. Always accelerate gradually, rather than suddenly, as this’ll save fuel and also keep your car running better. For those longer journeys, opt for cruise control. This keeps you at a constant feed, rather than inconsistently adjusting the speed with your foot.  

Tired of owning an untidy car all the time? Use a mesh bungee net to hook to the jacket handles to use as additional storage. As most car roofs are curved, it’s strong enough to hold items such as a jacket, book or laptop. Keep your prized possessions off the floor and out of sight for a mess-free car all the time.

We hope you enjoyed reading the above vehicle hacks for all spectrums of the car world. We’ve devised each with simple instructions so you don’t have to be a car enthusiast to know how to employ them.

Do you have some vehicle hacks which we haven’t mentioned above? Let us know in the comments to simplify and improve someone’s life.

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