High MN gas prices have hit most of our budgets here in St. Anthony. If increased fuel costs are consuming a bigger portion of your budget, you may be tempted to skimp in some other areas – like scheduled maintenance.
According to MN news reports and industry studies, you're not alone. Nine out of ten personal vehicles on the road have at least one maintenance or repair item that hasn't been . Some of these items are serious safety concerns. Others are just more likely to affect the cost of operating your vehicle.
In this area, we can take a lesson from professional vehicle owners in the St. Anthony area: fleet owners and operators like trucking companies and St. Anthony delivery services. Because their livelihood depends on it, they have gotten scheduled maintenance down to a science. And the last thing they skimp on is regular maintenance.
Why is that? Well, for one thing they know that routine maintenance prevents repairs and costly breakdowns. They also know that a well-maintained vehicle uses less fuel. For them, even a small decrease in fuel economy may mean not being profitable.
Here are some services that could potentially save you some gas in St. Anthony:
Fuel system cleaning, transmission service, differential service, wheel alignment, oil change, tune-up. Ring any bells? Is there at least one thing on the list that hasn't been done? Let's suppose you chose to spend $150 at Murphy's Service Center and get caught up on some of these services and that they combine to improve your fuel economy by 15 percent. What would that mean to your pocketbook?
Well, the average personal vehicle in MN is driven about 12,000 miles a year. If you get 20 miles per gallon, over the course of one year you would pay for the $150 worth of service and save an additional $165 if gas is $3.50 in St. Anthony. If gas is $4.50, you would save $255. And you'd rack up savings of $345 with gas at $5.50.
From this you can see that the more fuel costs in St. Anthony, the more it pays to take care of your vehicle. Some of us St. Anthony drive trucks for work or recreation – or want a large SUV for family needs. A 15 percent improvement in fuel economy can generate huge savings – $660 a year if gas is $4.50 a gallon at your St. Anthony gas station.
So catch up on those services at Murphy's Service Center in St. Anthony. Talk with your friendly and knowledgeable Murphy's Service Center about your vehicle's needs. Get a couple done now and a couple next time. Chances are you'll save a lot of on fuel this year – and a lot more on repairs in years to come.
Give us a call.
Murphy's Service Center
3501 29th Ave NE
St. Anthony, MN 55418
612.781.4489
At Murphy's Service Center we install quality NAPA replacement parts.