A reliable car, truck or SUV is worth giving thanks as Thanksgiving rolls into Johnsburg November 22. On this day, if you’re traveling to the home of family members, you want to know your vehicle will get you there without any problems. Or, if family is driving to your place for Thanksgiving Dinner, you want to know that they’ll arrive without their car, truck or SUV breaking down on the road out in the middle of nowhere.

Of course, reliable transportation is a good thing anytime you leave your Johnsburg home. Whether you’re driving near or far, you want to know your car, truck or SUV will get you there, and then bring you back home. Breaking down miles from home is a frightening prospect. Breaking down close to home is, at the very least, a major headache.

Your car, truck or SUV may take you where you want to go so reliably that you’ll begin to take it for granted. The problem is that your vehicle is reliable right up until the day that it isn’t.

Usually, your car, truck or SUV will give you clues that there’s a problem growing somewhere under the chassis, under the hood or somewhere else in this mechanical apparatus. You may notice that the brakes feel spongy, that the engine is running rough, that the vehicle has trouble starting. You may smell something about the vehicle you haven’t smelled before.

When those clues appear, it’s time to bring your vehicle into a Johnsburg area auto repair shop you can trust. But, sometimes, the clues aren’t as apparent; the first time you know there’s a potential problem is when you’re stuck on the side of the road.

The way to achieve the kind of reliability we all want from our vehicles is to stay on top of things. If you become complacent about maintaining your car, truck or SUV, it may give you a reason to regret your complacency.

If you bring your vehicle in for scheduled maintenance, qualified auto repair technicians will usually notice problems that are developing. They’ll let you know about problems so you can take care of them before they strand you somewhere. And, that’s a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.