'I run a car garage – drivers must know five warning signs or risk paying thousands'

Owning and driving a car, be it new, used, or nearly-new-used, is an expensive task. Not only does one have to pay for the fuel, but also the insurance, and various taxes. Depending on someone’s salary, this can all be manageable over the course of a year.

Where it can get unpalatably expensive is when something goes bang. Whilst we all hope a car during its tenure with us will not break, inevitably something always goes wrong, whether it’s a tyre, oil leak, or the front left suspension shattering.

Whatever befalls someone’s car, the result is normally a three, four, or five figure bill. However, there are ways drivers can reduce the risk of a catastrophe or prevent one altogether.

According to one garage owner, Rebecca Pullan, there are five warning signs that drivers can look out for to head off the risk of paying thousands of pounds to repair their beloved, or necessary, four-wheeled chariot.

The first sign recommended by Rebecca, Managing Director of The Motor Ombudsman-accredited Carmaster Garage is squealing brakes. These can be a sign that the brakes are wearing out and becoming less effective.

According to Rebecca, new brake pads can be around £130-£150 per axle, but a fix later, which involves new pads and discs, can be up to £350-£400 per axle. She warned: “What starts as a simple pad replacement can quickly damage other parts of the system if left too long. Think of it like a smoke alarm for your car – your ears are often the first warning something isn’t right.”

The second warning sign is the steering wheel vibrating at higher speeds, which could be down to uneven tyre wear or out of balance wheels. A simple wheel alignment or tracking fix can cost just £20-£40 at the right garage.

However, Rebecca said that prolonged non-fixing of this issue could lead to tyre replacements and suspension damage, and a bill of high three figures. She said: “It doesn’t feel like a major problem, but left unchecked, it can put stress on your suspension and steering.”

The third sign is warning lights on the car’s dashboard. These warning signs are there to alert drivers that something is wrong, if they are ignored, then issues could be faced later on.

The fourth warning sign is the tyres on one’s car starting to go bald, also known as wearing out. In the UK there is a legal limit for how worn a tyre could be, which is 1.6mm of tread depth.

The cheapest option is to replace the tyre, and a more expensive situation could occur in the form of a fine if the authorities find the tyre doesn’t have enough tread. Worse, less tread means less grip and an increased likelihood of an accident, especially in wet conditions.

The fifth warning sign is clunking noises when driving. According to Rebecca, this could be broken suspension. Unfortunately, suspension repairs are normally expensive given the nature of the stresses the components take.

However, the longer these noises are left, the bigger the repair bill can be. Rebecca said: “Ignoring these sounds risks breakdowns and huge repair costs. Learn your car’s normal noises - early action saves big.”