The website uses cookies to enable it to perform properly, remember your browsing history and to arrange content to match your preferred interests more quickly. Details of the cookies Ford use and instructions on how to disable them can be found in the Ford Cookie Guide Ford Cookie Guide. By clicking Accept button, you agree to our use of cookies.
Ford Thailand| Car Maintenance
Car Maintenance
Thank you for your attention and use of Ford cars, and we expect that you can enjoy the driving. Cars of different brands have different operation and structural characteristics. Based on past experiences, we find that some complaints or dissatisfactions are generated due to not understanding the design and structural characteristics of the car or incorrect operation skills. To avoid these misunderstandings, we specially prepare this car use guidance, which introduces some key function characteristics and some general knowledge on car use. We would like to remind you that the information in this guide is only for your reference and this guide cannot replace the Car Owner Manual. We recommend you to carefully read the Owner’s Manual. You can get detailed information of your car from the Owner Manual, especially the information about standardized operation of the car and driving safety.
It is expected that this car use guide can help you to know more about Ford cars and become a car use expert.
Importance of regular maintenance
A car is made of tens of thousands of parts, which are made of different materials, including metal, glass, rubber and various petrochemical materials. After the car has been driven for a long period under different working conditions, all parts will be worn or deteriorated with the increase of mileage, use time and due to the impact of the use environment. If these parts further work without maintenance, they may exceed their service life and gradually degrade car performance. Gradually, problems will be extended to other components from specific parts and even cause an accident. Therefore, the regular maintenance is very important, which is related to the service life of cars and driving safety.
As the saying goes, "70% of a car's service life depends on maintenance and 30% depends on repair". The regular maintenance can extend the service life of a car. When a car broke down, its repair cost is several times higher than the regular maintenance cost. After an overhaul, it is difficult to restore the performance of the car as it used to be.
The regular maintenance is important because it can repair and replace normally worn and torn parts and components of a car, identify and solve potential troubles and failures in time through comprehensive car detection, and ensure that car components and the whole car are in normal condition.
-
Correct use method of a wiper
![correct use method and maintenance method-1]()
Correct maintenance operations of a wiper blade
Before the front windshield is cleaned, hold the connection part between the wiper arm and the wiper blade with your thumb and forefinger (as shown in the figure) and lift the wiper arm upright.
![correct use method and maintenance of a wiper-2]()
Improper operations to damage a wiper
Do not suddenly release the lifted wiper onto the front windshield.
Do not twist the wiper blade or block the blade under the hanging and brushing state.
Reasons and handling for frequent invalidity of a wiper
![Battery Maintenance-1]()
Horizontal stripes
Slim horizontal stripes affect the view.
Reasons The adhesive tape of a wiper blade includes some unexpected object or the edge of the adhesive tape is damaged.
Handling First, clean the edge of the adhesive tape. If the problem remains unresolved, please replace the wiper blade.
![Battery maintenance-2]()
Vertical stripes
A wiper gives out an abnormal sound, jumps up and cannot turn smoothly.
Reasons
The glass includes some grease or wax, or the adhesive tape is distorted.
Handling
First, clean the glass. If the problem remains unresolved, please replace the wiper blade.
![Battery maintenance-3]()
Spots
After the blade is brushed, some spot water stains are left.
Reasons
The adhesive tape is distorted.
Handling
Please replace the wiper blade.
![Battery maintenance-4]()
Flake areas
The adhesive tape does not adhere to the glass surface and cannot uniformly wipe and brush.
Reasons
The adhesive tape face or the blade framework is distorted, which leads to insufficient pressure.
Handling
Please replace the wiper blade.
Clean the lip of the wiper blade
Handling method when a wiper blade is not used for a long period
When your car will not be used for a long period (generally more than 2 days), please support the wiper arm (40 x 40 x 60mm) by using the foam shown in the diagram to prevent a wiper blade from directly touching the front windshield and reduce compression deformation. In addition, keep your car from the water dropping area or under a tree, and avoid bright sunshine.
Or directly take away the wipe blade, store it in your trunk for use in future, and place foam support blocks under the wiper arm.
Please first take away the supporting block when using the car again.
![Handling method]()
-
Generally the battery size is measured by electric capacity. The electric capacity indicates the capacity released when a fully charged battery is continuously discharged under certain current till the termination voltage. Generally it is represented by AH. When the battery is replaced, a battery, for which AH is smaller than that of the old battery, shall not be used.
![Battery Maintenance]()
To extend the service life of a battery, you shall develop a good driving habit and remove unnecessary electric appliances from your car. In the case of short daily mileage or the long-period night driving, the battery shall be charged regularly. In addition, a battery jumper wire shall be placed on the car. If the engine cannot start, you can start the engine via a jumper wire.
In addition, if it is difficult to start or the lamp light is not sufficient, the battery shall be specially detected at a 4S shop and the battery shall be taken out for full charge maintenance. Otherwise, if the battery operates under the lack of electricity state for a long period, the battery will be damaged, thus the battery’s service life is reduced much.
Key: Do not use the sound system and lights when the engine does not start. After parking, make sure that all doors and the trunk are closed and prevent interior lights or the trunk lights from consuming the power of the battery. Lock the car in time and make the car enter the sleeping state, which is the most power-saving mode in anti-theft monitoring.
If you travel outside and will not use your car for a long period, it is recommended to remove the cathode of the battery and prevent slow discharge from full power loss.
If the battery loses power, the battery will be damaged.
-
![tyre maintenance]()
Frequently the air pressure is too high or the driving conditions are too rigorous Frequently the air pressure is too low Defects in pulse vibration absorption Defective wheel suspension and steering size (toe-in, camber angle, etc.) Full braking (wheels are stuck) Black areas: Indicates the wearing traces of tyres
The above figure shows the tyre wearing traces under various conditions. If these traces are discovered, you can determine the problem of your car according to traces.
In addition, too high tyre pressure will reduce comfort. On the contrary, too low tyre pressure will increase the oil consumption. If the left and right tyre pressure is different (one is high and another is low), it will lead to running deviation of the car.
The tyre pressure gauge is adhered to the center pillar of the left front door.
The excessive use of tyre, incorrect driving habits and improper braking will wear down all or partial tyre treads. If improper solvents are splashed onto the tyre, it will lead to deterioration and expansion of tyre rubbers. Damage and cutting of side tyres will severely affect the basic functions of a tyre. If these cases are discovered, it is recommended to check or replace the tyres at 4S shop.
Before a car is used, generally tyre conditions shall be checked. Front and rear wheels are exchanged properly according to recommendations of a 4S shop in daily maintenance. The four-wheel positions shall be detected and regulated regularly. The tyres with too shallow tyre treads shall be replaced. The best tyre function can be kept based on above maintenance and you can use your car without any worry.
In addition, a spare tyre can only be used in case of an emergency and cannot be used for a long period. The car speed shall be controlled and shall not exceed 80km/h under normal circumstances.
![tyre maintenance 1]()
-
If the hub surface of a car is not cleaned for a long period, it will be coated by some dust and greasy dirt. When a car drives at a high speed, the hub will become hot. After a long period, the area around the hub will turn yellow due to the dust, greasy dirt, and high temperature.
- Prevention methods
1) You can wash the front of the hub with clean water every week;
2) If some visible dusts or stains are found on the front of the hub, you can wash the hub with clean water;
3) Owner can have the car cleaned regularly at a professional carwash.
- Owner can clean the car by using the following methods:
Prepare clean water, cotton cloth, and washing powder. Put some washing powder into the water and mix well. Wipe the yellowing part with the soaked cotton cloth, and do not wipe the hub surface with a hard object, so as not to damage the surface paint of the hub.
A coarse rag is recommended to be used to wipe the yellowing parting, and it is recommended to wear working gloves. You need to repeatedly wipe the part with great strength. After wiping, wash it with clean water.
- Others
1) Paint the primer, colored paint and transparent paint for the aluminum alloy hub, which can avoid rusty rim body and corrosion due to external substances. After cleaned, the hub can be restored to the original radiance.
2) The hardness of hub paints shall comply with national standards or industrial specifications, but hard objects such as stones and sheet irons will still damage or scrape paints.
-
It is recommended to regularly maintain the car paint. The following recommendations will assist you to keep the car paint under the best state.
- Car cleaning
Regularly clean the car, especially in coastal area and areas where salt or chemicals are included in air or on roads.
Please clean the car with warm water or cold water.
If it is difficult to clean sap, insects, guanos, stains or pitch on the road with clean water, please use diluted soapy water or proper detergents and wash with clean water.
- Automatic car cleaning
It is recommended to use a brushless automatic car cleaning device. Some water may rush into the car during the operation of a high-pressure automatic car cleaning device. Before the car enters an automatic cleaning device, fold the outside rear view back.
- Manual car cleaning
After the car detergents are used to wash a car, please wash the car with enough clean water and wipe the car by using soft leather or other soft wiping materials.
It is recommended to completely clean and check the car chassis regularly (especially after the rainy season) where the corrosive materials (e.g.: salt) are rich.
Before any detergent or polishing agent is used, please carefully read the operation instruction and all warning information on the product label.
Gasoline drops splashed onto the body paint or guano dropped onto the body surface shall be cleaned or removed as soon as possible. If these adhesive materials are not cleaned, they will damage the paint surface.
- Waxing and polishing
Before a car is waxed and polished, it shall be cleaned and dried. It is recommended to increase waxing and polishing frequency properly where industrial dusts, dusts, heavy rains, salty air, insects, and guano are frequent or when a car is frequently parked under a tree.
- Scrape
It is recommended to prevent objects such as keys, watches, rings, belt buckles, branches, or stones from directly scraping the body paint and damaging the paint surface.
- Others
If your car will be parked outdoor for a long period, it is recommended to cover and protect the car body using the dustproof cover. When a car is parked outdoor for a long period, the car body may be coated by dust. It is recommended to clean the car with water and then slightly wipe it with a clean rag to prevent sand and dust on the paint surface or cleaning material from rubbing with the paint surface and leading to tiny wiping stains or scrape on the paint surface in case of body cleaning.
-
1) Car interiors shall be maintained in a timely, regular and long-term manner.
Timely - when interiors are dirty, some measures shall be taken for suppression and cleaning in time.
Regularly - at least one time every month.
Long term - maintenance for a long period can keep the interiors in a good condition, and reserve and increase the value of car in case of resale and lease.
2) Interiors are made of different materials, so proper maintenance methods shall be selected for different materials.
3) Some areas susceptible to stains such as steering wheel, safety belts, central console and side door plate of drivers shall be focused.
4) When the space inside a car is cleaned, doors and skylights shall be opened for ventilation.
5) Some cleaning agents on market may be harmful to car decorations or surrounding environment (contact or inhalation toxicity, flammability and strong acidity and alkalinity). Before they are used, carefully read and obey operation instructions. A hidden area made of materials same as the dirty area shall be tested to confirm that cleaning articles will not damage materials.
The following chemicals are not recommended：
When a detergent or polishing agent is used, it shall be confirmed that it does not include organic solvents or strong acid or alkaline liquids such as methylbenzene, gasoline, kerosene, ethanol and methanol
6) Do not clean the dirt on the surface of interiors by using blades, hard brush or other sharp objects.
Textiles (ceiling, chairs and door trim)
1) Remove dust and loose filths by using soft brushes and vacuum cleaners.
2) For some hard or large stains, first slightly wipe with a rag to absorb stains as much as possible, soak the rag with pure water or soda water, wring it dry and completely wipe it (note: The rag shall be wrung dry).
3) Remove stains from the edge to the middle area.
4) If some hard stains cannot be completely removed, some mild soapy water can be used to repeat the above steps (the concentration of the soak water shall not be too high and the concentration can be gradually increased).
5) Clean with pure water to remove residual soapy water, remove residual water by using a vacuum cleaner or dry rag, and keep decorations dry.
6) Safety belt - Safety belts can only be cleaned and maintained with neutral sap liquid and clean water and kept clean and dry (bleaching and dyeing will damage the strength of safety belts and drying temperature shall not exceed 80℃).
Carpet (car carpet)
1) The car carpet is integrated with the car body, so it is not convenient to clean the car carpet, so moving foot pads are recommended.
2).If a foot pad is not too dirty, it is recommended to beat it outside the car. If the dirt on a foot pad cannot be easily removed, refer to cleaning and maintenance method on the basis of its materials.
3) If a carpet susceptible to stains, remove dust by using a brush and a vacuum cleaner prior to washing.
4) After the dust is removed, spray detergents properly (mild soapy water and soda water, clean it with a brush, and finally absorb residual detergents by using a clean rag.
5) Specially notice that a carpet shall not be soaked in water for brushing. Otherwise, binding of several layers of different materials will be destructed and the carpet will not be dry for a long period, which will affect use effect.
Leather (leather seats, etc.)
1) Remove dust by using a soft rag dipped with water.
2) If some stains are left, a soft rag dipped with some mild soapy water is used to wipe.
3) After the stains are removed, the leather shall be naturally dried.
4) Leather detergents and brush polish on sale for leather maintenance may lead to non-uniform leather gloss or affect specific touch of leathers, so it shall be carefully used.
Plastic (dashboard, central console, body, etc.)
1) Remove dust by using a soft rag dipped with water.
2) If some stains are left, a soft rag dipped with some mild soapy water or soda water is used to wipe.
3) Such materials are extensively used for dashboards, central consoles and bodies. The dashboard and central console include plentiful electronic elements, circuits and wire connectors. Care solutions shall not seep and lead to short circuit in maintenance.
4) Many parts of a dashboard are uneven and are difficult to reach with rags, sponges, or soft brushes. Heads of some wood chips with different thickness shall be cut as oblique triangles and be packed in clean rags to clean the dashboard.
5) Generally, plentiful cleaning and maintenance agents on sale for such materials can increase dashboard. Increased gloss will lead to reflection of the windshield, so it shall be carefully used.
Peculiar smell
1) Generally, sterilization and deodorization are used as the final work procedure for car maintenance. Perfume or air freshener can only temporarily suppress and cover peculiar smell and cannot completely remote it.
2) Active carbon can be placed inside a car as decorations, or a small bucket of clean water can be prepared and some white vinegar is dropped into the water when a car is not used. After several days, the peculiar smell can significantly decrease till it is removed. Water is mixed with white vinegar in a ratio of 20:1 (the ratio can be properly increased) to wipe window glass and interior panel in the compartment.
-
![a shell of melon seed]()
Prevent unexpected materials/drinking from entering the safety belt lock catch during car use. Otherwise, they may lead to blockage of safety belt lock catch/lock failure/short circuit, as shown in the figure.
Because a foreign matter (a shell of melon seed) falls into the safety belt lock catch due to ignorance, the safety belt blockage/lock is stuck or cannot lock.
-
![impact of non-origin]()
The structure and assembly mode of interior lights installed on a car are strictly designed and validated. Refitting and disassembly of interior lights without permission will lead to abnormal conditions and affect its service life, as shown in the figure.
Refitting of lamps (LED) without permission will lead to abnormal conditions.
-
The brake disc is made of cast iron. If your car wades or is exposed to open environment for a long period (especially in rainy conditions), residual water or rain drops splashed onto your brake disc may lead to slight rust outside the brake disc. We recommend you:
1) After purchasing a new car, if the brake disc is slightly rusty, it is recommended to remove rust by driving and braking. If a foot pad is installed at the main driving position, enough movement space shall be reserved for different pedals to avoid interference between the pedal and the foot pad or insufficient space.
2) Occasional braking noises are normal and generally unnecessary to be worried. The system may occasionally or intermittently give out sharp noises or creak in case of braking during normal operation. Generally these noises are caused by environmental conditions, e.g.: coldness, heat, humidity, road dust, saline-alkali soil or muddy roads. After a car wades or drives at a field, please wash the car and remove residual water stains by using a cloth or driving
3). If you travel outside for a long period, try to park your car at an indoor parking or cover it with a car cover to avoid rusty brake disk.
4) It is normal for the brake disc to have rust or slight groove after a heavy rain or parking for a long time.
5) Please regularly maintain the brake system according to recommendations in the Owner Manual.
Find Dealer
Connect nearest dealer to help you.
