Car repair shops dot the landscape housed in big-box stores, professional-looking multi-bay corporate garages, and smaller local mechanic shops ready to perform required vehicle maintenance or repairs. But do you still have to worry about car repairs if you keep up with car maintenance tasks on a recommended schedule? What’s the difference between vehicle maintenance and car repair?

Vehicle maintenance typically occurs on a schedule. Think of it as preventive maintenance that keeps your car running and operating to the best of its ability. Ideally, car maintenance tasks occur at a convenient time and place for the owner. 

Regularly scheduled vehicle maintenance tasks include routine oil changes, replacing windshield wipers, rotating car tires, and more complicated tasks like replacing worn shock absorbers, aligning the vehicles’ steering components, and replacing the engine’s belts and hoses. Ideally, performing routine preventive maintenance keeps your car in running order and prevents a trip to the repair shop.

On the other hand, car repairs typically involve a failure of one or more parts of your car. Repairs often happen randomly without warning when maintenance services occur on a schedule that fits (somewhat) within the car owner’s timetable. For example, taking your vehicle in for preventive tire services on a warm Saturday afternoon of your choosing is maintenance. 

But a tire blowout when you’re running late for work that tears a brake line in half requires a tow truck dispatched to move the vehicle to a repair shop and an unexpected repair bill is a repair.

Sometimes, like maintenance, a repair offers a chance for a convenient schedule. For example, a tire that loses a few pounds of air every week during routine checks needs repair, but taking the tire to a shop without delay may prevent emergency services. 

According to iDriveSafely, there are some maintenance services you can perform yourself with only a few tools and others that are best left in professional hands unless you’re capable. 

Typical car repairs include replacing oxygen Sensors, emissions control equipment, ignition coils, and thermostats. Repairs to brakes and steering components are also common. Since car repairs usually happen without time for planning, it’s a good idea to find a mechanic you trust by taking your car in for routine maintenance. 

As discussed, maintenance often reduces the need for more expensive repairs. However, sometimes there is a fine line between the two tasks. In any case, whether your car’s behavior requires a simple maintenance task or a repair, getting it taken care of as soon as possible often prevents more extensive problems later on. 

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