Lack of maintenance killing cars

Jackmydad

I have the servicing done these days, used to do it all myself, but idleness set in.
Do the checks weekly or before a long journey though.
I'd rather spend a couple of minutes doing that and possibly catching the fact that the engine's started to use fluids, than deal with a loud scroinking noise from the front, followed by a loud bang and lots of smoke.
Tyres I check less often, but I walk round and and make sure the wheels and other bits are still nailed on when I check the fluids.

ETA. Anyone who can remember the 1960s might remember an Alan Whicker (?) documentary on America, which showed piles of perfectly good scrapped cars and white goods which had been thrown out simply because people had bought new replacements.
The cars (as I remember) were mostly the 50s "tailfin" models so they'd have been ten years old at that time.
The idea was amazing to us at the time I remember.
Now we do the same here.

TheMoonandBack

I am a qualified mechanic and have previously serviced all my cars despite leaving the motor trade 20 years ago.
My present car is serviced by a VW specialist garage with an excellent reputation which I personally have faith in.
I could easily do the servicing myself, and considered doing so, I calculated I would save £150 a year. For me I’d rather not get my hands dirty, and knacker my knees in for £150. It’s no fun servicing a car on the drive anymore for me. Also that extra money gets a decent service history which makes it easy/more valuable to sell or trade in.
The garage know me and the car, so if I pitch up in a rush with a puncture or other problem they see me as a valued customer and do their best to keep me on the road.
Car gets serviced every 10,000 miles, I check the oil and other fluids and tyre pressures once a month.

WobblyDog

Although I fairly diligently check fluid levels and tyre pressures, I find they rarely need unexpected attention. In 20 years of Fiesta driving, I've never needed to top up the oil between services.


The thing that tends to kill cars in my experience is body rust, and I'm not sure what I can do about that, other than keeping the car in a dry heated garage, and trying to treat rust spots early (not that it seems to help).

fred246

When I was at work I had two twenty somethings tell me within the space of a couple of weeks that they had been driving along when the car broke down. It turned out that they had no oil in them and the engines had seized. I was surprised by the way they were telling me because I would have been a bit embarrassed to let that happen to my car. Neither of them checked their oil levels and they acted as though their only responsibility in car ownership was to drive it.

It's interesting that a few years ago if you googled "car servicing standards" there seemed to be lots of reports showing shoddy standards. The reports seem to be pretty dated now. Have car servicing standards improved? I don't see why they would. The often quoted Which report is in the text of this discussion:

https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_subjects/95556-anyone-had-poor-service-from-garages

motorguy

fred246 wrote: »

When I was at work I had two twenty somethings tell me within the space of a couple of weeks that they had been driving along when the car broke down. It turned out that they had no oil in them and the engines had seized. I was surprised by the way they were telling me because I would have been a bit embarrassed to let that happen to my car. Neither of them checked their oil levels and they acted as though their only responsibility in car ownership was to drive it.

It's interesting that a few years ago if you googled "car servicing standards" there seemed to be lots of reports showing shoddy standards. The reports seem to be pretty dated now. Have car servicing standards improved? I don't see why they would. The often quoted Which report is in the text of this discussion:

https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_subjects/95556-anyone-had-poor-service-from-garages

A previous manager of mine used to say - "dont bring me problems, bring me solutions" and i think that is quite apt here - you're highlighting (alleged) problems, but not offering viable solutions?

On one hand you're saying that its a problem that people dont maintain their cars, but on the other hand you're suggesting they shouldnt go to garages? :eek:

Surely the correct answer is as i and others have said which is to find a recommended reputable garage and if in doubt "trust but verify"? Its not hard to check if oil has been changed, or ask for evidence of work done. Also, many of the bigger garages give you a video report of any work recommended or completed and any advice / recommendations. I know Mercedes did with our A45.

Things have come a long way since 2005 as now so many businesses are rated via social media, etc, so reputation is much more important. Its also quite easy now with social media to find specialists in particular brands.

If in doubt, ask around first on social media or through friends.

stator

My car is 17 years old but with 70,000 on the clock.
Should I bother servicing it with annual oil changes and doing the cambelt every four years?
Or should I just stick to the basics like brakes and fluids, since it's 17 years old.

Richard53

EssexExile wrote: »

As others have said, cars don't need much checking now & they last longer than they used to. My early cars needed the battery, coolant & oil topping up regularly, belts re-tightening, nipples greased, tyres pumped up, etc. Now I check the oil, coolant, brake fluid & tyres once in a while but can't remember the last time I actually had to top any of them up.

We used to check the car once a week and top things up as needed. Now, it is usually just a check that things are as they should be and no further action. But you shouldn't ignore the checking - regular checks will show you when things are starting to go wrong before they get serious.


Case in point: my Mondeo used no coolant or oil between weekly checks, none whatsoever. One day, the coolant was down a small amount. Alarm bells. Next week, it was down further, so I took it to my mechanic. Cracked water pump housing, cheap and easy fix, back on the road in a couple of hours. If I had not been checking regularly, that could have been a wrecked engine and a long walk home.


Just because modern cars don't need frequent maintenance doesn't mean they don't need frequent checking.

edde

stator wrote: »

My car is 17 years old but with 70,000 on the clock.
Should I bother servicing it with annual oil changes and doing the cambelt every four years?
Or should I just stick to the basics like brakes and fluids, since it's 17 years old.

Depends if the car breaks tomorrow can you go buy another car which is the same as yours now.

Is you don't service reliability will drop. An you survive with that risk?

If you cannot or don't want to spend why not just go get a newer car now?

fred246

motorguy wrote: »

A previous manager of mine used to say - "dont bring me problems, bring me solutions"

The solution is to DIY if you can. Regular checks and regular servicing. Perfection and money saving. If you can't then regular checks and take it to a garage. You just have to understand that it may not be done well at a garage. To improve garages regulation is needed. Mechanics should take a test of competence. Once passed they should be registered. After a service you should be provided with a checklist signed by a registered mechanic with his registration number. If a mechanic has signed something that you feel hasn't been done then you complain to the regulator and they check the work out. Just like the Gas Safe Register.

motorguy

fred246 wrote: »

The solution is to DIY if you can. Regular checks and regular servicing. Perfection and money saving.

Unlikely to happen for 98% of the population and naive to think that will change, which leads us to my solution....

fred246 wrote: »

If you can't then regular checks and take it to a garage.

And if you think theres a risk of

fred246 wrote: »

You just have to understand that it may not be done well at a garage.

then "trust but verify" rather than write all garages off as "bad".

fred246 wrote: »

To improve garages regulation is needed. Mechanics should take a test of competence. Once passed they should be registered. After a service you should be provided with a checklist signed by a registered mechanic with his registration number. If a mechanic has signed something that you feel hasn't been done then you complain to the regulator and they check the work out. Just like the Gas Safe Register.

I genuinely have had little issue with mechanics / garages / dealerships provided you take the approach of seeking recommendations from friends, family or neighbours and checking online reviews where possible first. I've recently changed garages to a local one that was recommended by a family friend and so far hes done whats been asked correctly, in line with how long i expected him to take, and i've evidence the job was completed. I am hopeful that will continue.

I wouldnt hold my breath for regulation, however theres the motor ombudsman and many garages sign up to their code of practice.

https://www.themotorombudsman.org/

They also have a rating system there too.

Far better, surely to promote the above approach rather than scare mongering about how bad all garages are in your experience and quoting nigh on 20 year old surveys as "evidence", which IMHO is going to do little other than make people less likely to maintain their cars?