Bangernomics - how much to spend on servicing? £50 kwik-fit oil change?

Sportacus

Just got a nice 18 year old car for £350. It has a full main dealer service history. What would be the smartest way to maintain it going forward?

I can see kwik-fit do a £50 service where they just change the oil and filter, and do a few other checks. Perhaps just doing this every year or 10,000 miles, and replacing consumables as needed is the best way to go. I would change the oil myself, but it'd probably be £30 for the oil and filter + the hassle, so kwik-fit's £50 change looks simpler.

I'm not sure how much the timing belt replacement cost is, but it could be more than I paid for the car, so not sure whether to chance it when it comes time to do that.

Honestly, all I need to do is get a two months out of this car and I'll have spent less than typical monthly payments for a new car, so if I get a year out of it I'll be doing great. On the other hand, if it's a good car that I'm happy with and want to keep, why not pay for proper servicing?

motorguy

If its due a service then get the oil and filter changed. If you take it to Kwikfit, expect them to be over it like a rash telling you all the things it "needs" done immediately that are safety issues and MUST be done that day.

Other than that, unless its a really cheap t/belt change, i'd drive on at it and take your chances.

tacpot12

I would suggest you pay for servicing by a garage that knows the make of car well, i.e. a specialist, rather than a generalist garage like KwikFit. But the Kwikfit price for the oil change is fair. Of course, they will try to get you to have any repairs they find are necessary done by them. If you are happy you can resist any hard-sell, then Kwik-fit could be a viable option. Why not try it, and let us know.

Depending on the kind of repairs they find, I would then send the car to a specialist garage for jobs that need specialist tools and a cheap, local generalist garage for simpler stuff.

With a £350 car, you should be looking to spend the minimum on repairs, there would be no benefit to going to a franchised dealer if there is an independent specialist in you area.

Are you sure the car has a belt? Some cars have chains and chains that have a much longer lifespan. If the car has a belt and has been reliable, I would replace the belt; on the basis it is better to have a car that you know than one whose history is uncertain. I would replace the belt at the recommended interval; do not leave it any longer. The cost should be less than £350.

bigjl

I would just do the oil and filter change yourself.

I have used KwikFit for oil and filters in the past but I do suspect that as already mentioned they will use it as an excuse to try and upsell.

I wouldn't leave the oil in there for 10k either but that's just me. And does partly depend on the sort of usage.

I personally feel lots of urban driving is severe service and change the oil more frequently for that reason.

If you post up some vehicle details somebody can confirm if it has a chain or a belt.

stator

Oil change is to prevent wear on the engine from build up of debris. If the car is on it's last legs don't bother. But if you'd like to keep it going as long as possible then get it done by someone cheap. There are some garageless car mechanics who will come to you and do a basic service for cheap.
Personally I prefer to take mine to an independent, non-franchised garage and get the service and brakes checked at the same time, 6 months after the MOT.

Sportacus

Thanks everyone, it's a Honda accord 2 litre auto. On the subject of oil changes, you do hear of people who have not changed it for 30000 miles (and wrecked the engine), so in bangernomics you could argue it's not worth changing the oil and filter at all, and save the money for buying the next banger? It seems crazy and goes against all my 'looking after my stuff' instincts, but I suppose it is the obvious result of the car industry's success in convincing so much of the British population that they need a brand new car every three years.

daivid

Or replace the oil and filter yourself (every penny helps) to keep things ticking over nicely and perhaps eke out an extra year or two from the car. Not to mention improved efficiency and performance so costing you less and reduced likelihood of failing MOT emissions test.

s_b

take it to a local independent garage who friends or family recommend
ask garage to give it an oil and filter but also a cursory look round for future problems and safety related issues
i looked at a car only this week for a worker on the local industrial estate and frankly i wouldnt drive it further than the scrapyard with all the issues i found and he paid good money for it only 4 months ago think £350x3

straighttalker

I've just been on the website for National Tyres and put in my reg details for an oil and filter change. £42 for fully synthetic oil for a 3.0 petrol engine. That's pretty cheap to me. Your banger might be even cheaper depending on the engine size and spec of oil required. I'd go with that.

takman

I would change the oil, oil filter, fuel filter and air filter once a year on a car like that. It will only cost about £50 to do it yourself and then you know it's done properly. You may save £50 a year from not doing it at all but this will increase fuel consumption and cause problems on a car that you never know may last quite a while.

Gloomendoom

straighttalker wrote: »

I've just been on the website for National Tyres and put in my reg details for an oil and filter change. £42 for fully synthetic oil for a 3.0 petrol engine. That's pretty cheap to me. Your banger might be even cheaper depending on the engine size and spec of oil required. I'd go with that.

I've just stuck my car's reg in and it's come up with £40

I thought not bad for a filter and 10 litres of synthetic oil. Then I noticed that the price was based on supplying "up to 5 litres of oil". 5 litres less than the car needs for an oil change.

I think I'll stick to the main dealer.