While you may be very familiar with all the ways you should regularly maintain your car, those rules can change once you move to an area where you are now dealing with extreme weather conditions. Most people imagine that extreme cold weather is the real problem for cars, but extreme heat can also be just as bad and even worse in some cases. Here are 5 ways you can protect your car from too much heat and coldness:

1: Park your car in a protected area

You should park your car in a garage when the temperature outside is very hot or very cold. However, if the car is being kept in the garage to protect it from the bitter cold, then you may want to make sure you add a bit of heat to the garage or else parking the car in there won't really do anything since the garage will be the same temperature as outdoors. However, you will be protecting it from rain and snow in the garage, if these are some concerns.

2: Keep up with the fluids

When you are in an area where it is very hot out then you want to check all of the car's fluids more often and make sure you fill them back up when they get low. You want to especially keep an eye on the water. Don't forget to check the cells in the battery and add water if needed. When in a very cold area, you may want to use a thinner motor oil in the car during winter months. Keeping the garage heated will help to prevent major issues with some of your fluids freezing up on you.

3: Protect your paint

Both excessive heat and cold weather conditions including snow can be damaging to the paint on your car. The hot sun radiating on the paint over time can cause the paint to fade and to even look bleached out and rough. The damp cold weather can lead to rusting and paint chipping. When you can't park your car in the garage, you may want to park under a tree when it's hot, but avoid trees in the snow because the brakes can break and cause damage to the car.

4: Protect your brakes

You always want to make sure you do all you can to keep your brakes in good working order. The first thing you want to do in very hot areas is to make sure you are keeping an eye on that brake fluid and refilling it as needed. In very cold areas, you should make sure you test your brakes a few times before you head out on those busy streets to make sure they aren't going to give you problems due to being iced up. Also, take your car in to get the brakes inspected at the first sign of trouble such as any sounds or if the pedal starts to feel different when you press down on it.

For more information, talk to a professional like Alaskan Auto Center Inc.