Top 5 Maintenance Tips for New Electric Vehicle Owners
Highlights
- We list out important maintenance tips for EVs
- Maintaining EVs is easier than maintaining ICE cars
- Electric cars have lesser moving parts
Electric car maintenance is no rocket science. In fact, it's much easier than the maintenance you'd have to do on your regular petrol/diesel-hogging vehicles. That's mainly because instead of engines, such cars run on electric motors that have very few supplementary components. This is also the reason why some of them offer extra boot space, but we digress. Here are 5 tips for ensuring that your electric car remains in top running condition between service appointments.
Check the battery at regular intervals
The battery, apart from storing energy for running the car, is also used for powering the car's interior lights, door locking mechanisms, the navigation system, the instrument cluster, and more. Get it checked at regular company-mentioned intervals for degradation and if you do find something wrong, take the car to an authorised service centre to replace it before it cause problems.
Change fluids regularly
Electric cars have a thermal management system, which means one component of traditional cars that EVs do come with is the coolant. This fluid, as well as the brake fluid, needs regular attention. Their containers are easy to access, so no hard work required. No need to mention that you need to add windshield wiper fluid to your car at regular intervals as well.
Keep an eye on the tyres
This is one aspect that is similar to internal combustion engined cars. All you need to do is check your tyres for basic wear and tear. Keep an eye on tyre pressure as well as the presence of any unwanted objects lodged in them.
Look after the brakes
Looking after the brakes is one of the most important aspects of electric car maintenance. Granted that the use of regenerative braking puts lesser strain on the braking mechanism than traditional vehicles do but they still need replacement once the life of the brake pads come to an end. So do remember to have your electric car's braking system properly oiled and inspected by a mechanic when servicing. Also, the brake pads need to be checked as well.
Get the motor checked by professionals
The electric motor is the heart of your car. And while it's true that it contains far fewer parts than an engine it's important that you get it checked from time to time. Doing it yourself is unsafe owing to the possibility of getting an electric shock so it's always advisable to ask a trained mechanic to see if everything in your car's electric motor is in proper working order.
Following these simple electric car maintenance tips, will ensure your car runs smoother for longer. They could also save you major repair costs, adding to the savings you are making by not having to pay for petrol or diesel every.