The American love affair with their cars and trucks is the stuff of movies and legend. Despite this, everyday drivers across the country do things that cut short the lifespan of a vehicle. For example, the Subaru motto is “Love. It’s what makes Subaru, a Subaru” The problem is people often show their Suburus the same love and can do things to kill Subaru performance. Here are a few tips to help your car healthy and happy:

1. Use the parking brake. Sometimes people erroneously refer to this as the “emergency brake.” Thinking it is just for emergencies, they never think or engage it when they are parked. Anytime your car in on an incline, using this can do a lot to save your transmission. When you are parked, there is a pin in place that keeps the entire car steady. This is not considered to be one of the Subaru performance parts for cars but is crucial. Keep it in good shape by using your parking brake.
2. Do not go from reverse to drive while moving. Most of us are in a hurry when we are going just about anywhere. When you do not take the time to stop before making that switch, you do more to reduce your Subaru performance than you probably know. In fact, that simple mistake can add months of wear and tear to your car in just seconds. This is also bad for your drive shafts. Just do not do it.
3. Keep your foot off of the brake when you go downhill. If you are going down a rolling hill, it may seem like a good idea to ride the brake as it can keep everyone safe. The problem is this is terrible for your brake pads. If you are on a long enough hill, by the time you reach the bottom, you may need to head to the auto store for replacement parts for those brake pads you just wore out on the hill.
4. Change your oil as needed. While most drivers know that they should change their oil at least every 5,000 miles. By waiting until your “check oil” light pops up on your dashboard, you have done a lot to dimish the Subaru performance as the oil needs to be changed even before you see that light.
5. Do not power wash your car’s engine. The desire to have a super clean car engine makes some sense but this is one place where dirt belongs. The high-pressure spray can do a lot of damage to sensitive parts of your car’s engine such as the electrical parts, hoses, seals, and other parts. If you really want to wash your engine, a plain garden hose will work.
6. Take your time when starting your car. You may think that this is so simple a task that no one can possibly screw this up but you would be wrong. People tend to start up the engine and then immediately start with the heat, the AC, the sound system, or other applications. Keep in mind that your car is just waking up and, like you, needs some time to open its eyes and wake up. If you give your engine a minute or two before you expect it to be operating at full throttle, you will prevent some wear and tear.
7. Listen to your car. If you take the time to pay some attention, you will find that your car will talk to you. Pay attention to the sounds it normally makes and then you will be in a better position to hear any that are not so normal. If your brakes are squeaky, you may need to change the pads. If you want to keep your Subaru performance up, you will pay attention to the noises it makes.
8. Fill up your car before it hits empty. Some people think that you need to go all the way to empty to get any sediment out of your tank. That is no longer true in newer cars. One problem is that this can negatively impact your fuel pump.

Keeping your car in good shape requires changes to many driver’s driving habits. These eight things can make your car happy.