Regular services are important for keeping your car running optimally, but what should be the ideal car maintenance schedule?
When it comes to taking care of your car, it’s important to stick to your car service schedule. All log book servicing is based on a milestone and time factor and comes down to whichever comes first. This is designed to protect the vehicle and its components if it isn’t driven often, without exception.
It is also critical to familiarise yourself with what the manufacturer classifies as “extreme condition driving”, as this can bring the vehicle to an even more stringent service schedule. This is left to the owner to determine according to the unique circumstances (vehicle, driving habits, climate etc.). We can certainly help you determine this and answer any questions.
If you’re regularly travelling long distances and really raking up the kilometres, you’ll be needing more frequent services, but for your average ‘round town car, getting a service every six months or when the kilometres tick over (whichever comes first) is optimal. While such frequent services may sound over-the-top and costly, in the long run, it can wind up saving you a lot of money (and time without your car) by picking up any small issues early. This means they can be fixed easily right away, rather than waiting until they become bigger (and more expensive!) problems further down the track.
One of the most important aspects of regular servicing is having a repairer you trust. If you’ve been going to the same local mechanic for the past 20 years and know that you can rely on them for quality work and honesty (especially when it comes to the bottom line), it’s worth sticking with them – even if you’ve just bought a new car from a dealership with 12 months of “capped price servicing” thrown in. This type of deal can be misleading, as often only the very basic facets of the service fall under the capped price, and you might therefore find “extras” being billed that they don’t count as a part of the service.
Fear of voiding the manufacturer’s warranty on a new car is one of the biggest reasons many people choose to return to the dealership for service, even if it works out to be more expensive than their local independent mechanic. It’s worth noting that while this idea is drilled into consumers upon purchasing a new car, it is often misleading.
In fact, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says that almost all manufacturer warranties in Australia do not require that a new car is serviced by authorised dealers during the warranty period in order to maintain the validity of the warranty. Providing any work is performed to the manufacturer’s standards, you are free to choose where the work / servicing is carried out.
We are committed to ensuring you receive the best service and value for money, and we are always happy to have a chat with you to discuss your car’s servicing and maintenance options.
Until next time, safe driving!