Breaking down can be a major inconvenience. Below are the top reasons people's cars breakdown and what you can do to reduce the risk of it happening to you.

1)  Flat Battery
A flat battery is by far the biggest reason breakdown services get called out. To reduce the risk of this happening to you, you should check your battery every month and in the winter every week. Most new batteries are sealed, however, if you have one that is not you should check the water level and fill it up with distilled water when ever the level drops.


Three common reasons why your battery could fail
1 Old Age - You will need to replace the battery
2 Lights, radio etc left on - Recharge the battery or a jump start
3 Alternator not charging the battery - You will need to get your alternator checked
3 Flat Tire or Tire Blowout
About 10% of call outs are related to type damage. Things to look out for:
Tread Wear - Check weekly, the legal minimum tread depth is 1.6mm.

2)  Tire pressure
If a tire is under inflated extra strain is put on the tire wall which can lead to failure. Other dangers of under inflated tires include longer stopping distances, reduced handling characteristics and increased wear on the tread of the tire.

Damage to tires - This can be caused by hitting something or running over something sharp. You should check all your tires every week.

Foreign objects - Check for nails, screws etc

3)  Keys Locked in Vehicle or Lost
About 4% of all call outs are due to either locking your keys in the car or losing your car keys. Another more recent problem is drivers calling out the breakdown services because their remote alarm that opens the doors is not working. Although you may not be able to drive off if this happens you will still be able to get into the car. A good tip is to keep a spare alarm battery in your car.

4)  Electrical Fault (including EMS Engine Management System)
Electrical faults account for about 4% of breakdowns. As cars become more and more complex, electrical faults are responsible for a greater number of breakdowns. There is little you will be able to do if your car breaks down due to an electrical fault. The best way to help prevent this type of problem is to make sure you get your car checked out when the first symptoms of a problem show up, if you start to get an intermittent fault or starting your car becomes a problem, get it looked at straight away don't wait for it to fail completely.

5)  Transmission (including Clutch)
Most owner manuals say it isn’t necessary. Yeah, right. That’s why transmission shops are making a fortune replacing burned out automatic transmissions. For optimum protection, change the fluid and filter every 30,000 miles.

6)   Running out of fuel
Need I say more? Check your gas gauge!

7)   Cylinder Head Gasket
There are three basic reasons for cylinder head gasket failures:

Poor engine design
Improper gasket installation
An overheated engine

As a car owner, you can only control the third reason for gasket failures. Replacing a bad head gasket is the first, and immediate step, but it’s also important to diagnose and correct the cause of the overheating to prevent a future failure.

8)  Starter Motor
There are certain factors that can cause the starting system to malfunction.
1. Battery charge.
2. Excessive heat.
3. Excessive vibration.
4. Corrosion, dirt, and dust
5. Improper use of starting fluid.
6. Defective solenoid.

The object of preventive maintenance is to identify and correct potential problems before they occur.
There are two preventive maintenance procedures that can greatly enhance the efficiency of the starting system’s functions. These two procedures also represent the initial steps you should take when fully diagnosing (i.e. troubleshooting) a problem in the vehicle’s starting system.

Engine operating condition
Keeping the engine in good running condition is essential to ensure efficient operation of the starting system. Simply put, an engine in poor condition is harder to start, and this shortens the life of the starter motor. An engine that starts easily results in fewer turns of the starter motor, and therefore, a longer life for the starter.

Wires and cables
For any type of vehicle electrical system, it’s important to keep all connection points clean. Road dirt and grease create resistance that interferes with electrical current flow. In order to get the necessary power from a unit the size of a starter motor, there must be little or no resistance between the batteries and the starter motor. In the same vein, you need to make sure that wires and cables are clean, properly tightened, and of the proper size. Any loss of current due to poor connections will reduce power of the starter motor. Clean all connections on a periodic basis.

Engine problem

The best way to prevent engine problems and mishaps is to stay on top of your cars maintenance schedule. You know your car and its sounds and ride. If anything looks, sounds or smells different don’t ignore it and get it checked by one of our ASE certified mechanics.