Your car should be serviced at the intervals recommended by its manufacturer to keep it at its best - this is often every 12 months or every 10,000 miles, whichever milestone comes first.
To find the intervals for your car check the owner’s manual, the service book, ask a franchise dealer, or look online. If you look online, ensure you find a credible source of information such as the owner’s club.
Whatever the intervals, consider servicing an investment in your car’s future rather than a cost. It may be expensive at the time, but there are countless benefits that make it worthwhile long term.
Benefits of car servicing: minimise wear
Servicing your car minimises wear and tear and helps to keep things working as efficiently as possible. An oil change, for example, is part of every service and helps to lubricate and cool a wide range of critical parts. Among many other things, this maximises their lifespan and new oil is more effective than old.
Benefits of car servicing: keep it safe
When the vehicle is serviced the mechanic will spot any dangerous faults. Examples include damaged tyres that might fail at high speed, leaking shock absorbers that compromise the handling, and heavily worn windscreen wiper blades that make it hard to see the road. Any such problems can then be fixed to make the vehicle safe.
Benefits of car servicing: mechanical efficiency
Servicing your car helps it run efficiently. For example, an air filter’s job is to catch debris in the air to stop it getting into the engine’s cylinders. Over time, the filter gets saturated which makes it hard for air to pass through to the engine. The engine needs the right amount of air to run efficiently. A new air filter is clean and causes no such problems.
Benefits of car servicing: keep the warranty
Typically, a car must have full service history for any manufacturer warranty to remain valid. The warranty reduces the cost, hassle, and stress if the car develops a fault and can be worth its weight in gold. If the warranty is invalid, you pay the total cost of every repair. To ensure there are no issues, have your car serviced by a franchise dealer at the suggested intervals.
Benefits of car servicing: maximise trade-in value
Full service history maximises your car’s value when you trade-in at a dealership, or sell it privately. It could be worth significantly more than a similar car that has not been maintained.