How do I care for my car and avoid big repair bills?

Fortunately, the answer is simple: Establish and follow a maintenance plan.
A maintenance plan is essential for protecting your automotive investment — and maximizing the reliability and safety of your vehicle. The best place to start is by reading your owner’s manual, where you’ll find the manufacturer’s recommendations and maintenance schedules based on your driving patterns and habits.
In my opinion these maintenance schedules have changed over the years without significant advances in automotive technology. The manufactures are removing items from these schedules so it appears their cars need less maintenance than the competitors. This is not a great decision for the consumer in the long run. They could significantly extend the life of their cars following the maintenance schedule from just a few years ago. Carbon buildup inside these modern engines seems to be a problem again. The carbon may cause rough running engines and poor fuel economy which often results in a phone call to me that sounds a bit like this: "I think my car needs a tune-up, how much do you charge?" I try to explain to the caller that modern day cars don't have anything to "tune". Very few cars require a valve adjustment these days and long gone are the days of adjustable ignition timing/ points and tinkering with carburetors. A biennial induction and fuel injection clean by BG can do wonders for your car.
Find a shop you can trust, build some rapport, go there for all your services, oil changes too. Don't let anyone else touch your car. Let them advise you on your maintenance. They should keep the following in mind: maintenance history, frequency of visits and driving habits. If done correctly, tires will last longer, you will have fewer breakdowns, less expensive repairs and you will enjoy driving more. Wouldn't that be nice! Get it detailed once in a while, it will look and smell like new!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wENWM8024TI