With supply issues, new car sales have fallen. This may mean you'll have to keep your used car longer than you intended.

New car sales dropped in 2020 with COVID and have yet to recover. But it wasn’t just the pandemic that brought on the slump in sales; access to the essential computer chips have reduced production of automobiles, at least complete production. 

If you drive past a new car dealer and take a gander at the lot, you’ll quickly notice that the lots are not as full as they used to be. This has a lot to do with the supply chain crisis, too, as parts are not arriving to keep assembly lines running.

The net result is that a lot of people are making do with used cars they might have replaced with new cars, if not for the current state of affairs in the auto industry.

Maintenance is more essential when you keep that car longer

When you trade that used car in on a new vehicle, any problems with the old car are no longer your problems; those are problems the new owner of the vehicles has to contend with. Scheduled maintenance is their problem, not yours. But if you keep the car …

Wear and tear are a constant factor in the ownership of a car interrupted only by replacement. As long as you own the vehicle, it’s up to you to make sure it’s maintained in reliable condition.

The more miles you put on the vehicle, the more wear it experiences. The more likely are parts to break. 

When a new car rolls off the assembly line, it’s inspected to ensure that all the parts are properly installed and in proper condition. The auto manufacturer wants to make sure the vehicle is safe and reliable before they sell it to a consumer. Inspection doesn’t end when the vehicle is shipped to a dealer.

And inspection doesn’t end when a new-car buyer drives the vehicle off the lot. Inspection is the essential way that we ensure vehicles continue to provide safe and reliable transportation.

When you inspect a vehicle, over time, it’s inevitable that you’ll find evidence of wear and tear. Inevitably, you’ll also find parts that have broken and require replacement.

If you’re keeping that car longer, you need to continue to do the inspection and maintenance that will ensure safe and reliable transportation. In fact, the longer the vehicle is on the road, the more essential the inspection and maintenance.