Servicing Your Vehicle: When, How and Where?

Perhaps you’ve heard the expression: “everything is fine, until it’s not”

We don’t mean to neglect certain things in our life but with all the challenges and demands pulling us in different directions every day, it’s easy to take the things that are fine right now for granted. Our own health is an obvious example, postponing things like the dentist until we have a toothache severe enough to force us into that dentist’s chair. But by the time you realise something is wrong, it’s often progressed from minor inconvenience to major (and painful) expense. Your car is no different and while the temptation is to just keep driving while everything is fine, cars are extremely intricate machines with many parts and processes that, without diligent care, can go wrong in a big way.

This is where regular servicing comes in. Having your car examined by an expert who knows what potential trouble to look for while making sure all the fluids and such are freshened, can save you a lot of pain and money down the road. Car service is always preferable to car repair—don’t wait until the SRS light comes on or you start hearing strange noises while driving to bring it in.

So today we’re going to look at when you should have your car serviced and what type of service you need. Most importantly, we’re going to debunk a popular myth about where you need to go for your service.

When should you get your car serviced?

There are two ways to answer this question, one is in terms of time and the other is in terms of distance travelled by your car. Whether you go by months or kilometres, both measurements are relative to how your car is used and what the make and model is.

A rough rule of thumb says to get a service every six months or every 10-15 thousand kilometres, whichever comes first. But if your car sits in the garage six days a week and only goes to church on Sundays, it could take well over a year to get anywhere close to 10,000km. So is it safe to wait? A little, but not too much. Sure, there’d be very little wear and tear on your car that would need servicing but an unused vehicle can have its own issues. Certain fluids and components can still deteriorate over time and some issues can specifically come about through your car sitting inactive for long periods.

Conversely, intensive usage will have an impact too. Regular driving in heavy traffic with lots of stopping and starting can cause extra wear on brakes, while driving on dirt roads or even off-road can cause certain filters to need replacing earlier and your suspension can take an abnormal amount of punishment.

All of these factors can affect how frequently you’re bringing your car in for a service but if you have a vehicle that’s still under warranty, you’ll want to adhere to the service schedule laid out in the terms of that warranty.

What sort of service do you need?

There’s a distinction between a minor service and a major service, and alternating between the two can be a safe bet.

A minor service usually involves an oil and oil filter change, all fluids checked along with belts, lights, hoses, brakes, that kind of thing. It’s a basic once-over for your car.

A major service is much more comprehensive and takes longer, involving a deep investigation into the majority of your vehicle’s processes to inspect common areas of wear and tear, replace certain parts and identify any potential issues that may require further attention and work.

There’s also a very specific service for cars under warranty, and that’s a logbook service. This is a service set out by the manufacturer of your vehicle and is unique to your particular car. Routine logbook servicing is performed on the manufacturer’s terms and is essential for maintaining your warranty and being able to sell your car at the highest possible price. But there’s one particular term manufacturers set that isn’t as true as you might think it is.

Where do you get your service?

Manufacturers often say you have to return to them or their selected mechanic for your logbook service to be considered legitimate but this isn’t true. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says you have the right to choose any mechanic who will do the service to the manufacturer’s standards. This is important because it’s often significantly cheaper to go to your local trusted mechanic rather than the dealership.

At SVS Autocare, while our master technicians are specialists with European cars, they’re skilled at servicing all makes and models in accordance with manufacturer standards. We’re even able to accommodate full fleet-car servicing. We have the latest diagnostic equipment, access to official and third-party replacement parts and most importantly, we’re dedicated to keeping drivers in our local Sunshine Coast community on the road, running smoothly, at the lowest possible cost.

So whether your vehicle is due for a minor service, a major one or a full logbook service at manufacturer standards, book in with the team that saves you money while still offering a five star service—SVS Autocare!