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| Thread ID: 146462 | 2018-08-09 06:01:00 | Car mechanics not sticking to the maintenance schedule? | Nomad (952) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1452465 | 2018-08-09 06:01:00 | I try to do some stuff myself to save some money but there is always that voice that says but is it really essential . Before I got involved with this we always just rely on a mechanic for everything . OK . We don't specifically ask for a service, but we take it there for the WOF and any issues that come up, we have used various mechanics for a no . of years . They might had moved, retired, etc . Things I have noticed: 1 . reusing oil filters . 2 . using 20w40 oil on any cars . we asked them what they used and that was what they wrote down for us . 3 . not advising customer to change the air filter or fuel filter or anything like that . 4 . not advising fluid flushes ever . 5 . not advising belt changes until the drive belt squeaks or the refuses to start up . Is it much harm at all using sort of OK stuff but things that is not to spec? Your average motorist buys a cheap 8-10yr old car and uses it for 10yr right then it's literally worth nothing . It's not a Jaguar or some collectible . That said, I know people who bought a used car, used it for another 10yrs and the brakes and trans were never flushed and it worked for that time . Even if a drive belt had an issue, it was like one afternoon and it's back on the road . Your views? :) |
Nomad (952) | ||
| 1452466 | 2018-08-09 06:10:00 | we always just rely on a mechanic for everything. we take it there for the WOF and any issues that come up :) LOL, that's about as good as trusting a real estate agent. Or used car salesmen. Or the nice men from Nigeria that email you. Look up what your car should use for oil. Look up it's recommended change periods, for instance mine has an oil change every 7000 Km Filters less often, but I sure don't reuse them. Fluid flushes? Like what? They're probably right, other than oil. Cheap 8 yr old car then it's worth nothing? Hmmm, are you rich or from overseas? Because 20 yr old cars are common in NZ. I paid $3000 for my Corolla, 996, still driving it, and there is nothing wrong with it. Does not use oil, nor water. Has been maintained properly and still is. Has needed spark plugs and 4 tyres since I bought it. Worth nothing? It's only on 207000km now. Sons went for 428,000km, husbands ute did 650,000. I think tossing a car because you may have owned for a certain period shows ignorance of cars.,..it's about mileage, not years. My mum does about 1000km a year in hers, should she toss it now cause they have owned it for 8 years? |
piroska (17583) | ||
| 1452467 | 2018-08-09 06:22:00 | Fluid flushes? Like what? They're probably right, other than oil. Cheap 8 yr old car then it's worth nothing? Hmmm, are you rich or from overseas? Some of them say well at least the Haynes book from the library says 2yr inspect / change the brake fluid. Well, OK, the trans the manufacturer does not mention it, some might even say is is lifetime on the dipstick. A 10yr old $6-8k car might be worth $1-2k after another 10yrs. Some people might think, for a car that's only worth $1,500 why spend $800 for 4 tyres or $1,000 for a cambelt service. Or if the radiator or the alternator or fuel pump goes that's a $500 bill. Your average motorist prob puts in 12,000kms per year. Edit. I know people who bought a 8yr old car and still using it after 10yrs and still on the original cambelt. Puts in 12k distance PA. |
Nomad (952) | ||
| 1452468 | 2018-08-09 08:00:00 | I go with the manufacturers recommendations. We have a friend who is having a brand new engine fitted courtesy of Mazda NZ because her local dealer used the wrong oil and it ruined the engine, she took it to court and lost due to being 200km over the recommended serving. She threatened with Fair go and Mazda NZ stepped up. | gary67 (56) | ||
| 1452469 | 2018-08-09 09:26:00 | I wouldn't ever return to a place that did an oil change without replacing the filter. That's just plain lazy and cheap. There's sod-all to car maintenance these days. New oil and filter every 10K is a tiny expense in the whole scheme of things, especially if you DIY (get a cheap filter wrench and the only challenge is minimizing the mess). I tend to ignore the suggested date based oil replacements and just go with the 10K change. As for coolant flush... in our increasingly PC world is it still OK to just drain and flush onto the lawn? If not... where do you take it (glycol) for disposal? |
Paul.Cov (425) | ||
| 1452470 | 2018-08-09 10:03:00 | I wouldn't ever return to a place that did an oil change without replacing the filter . That's just plain lazy and cheap . As for coolant flush . . . I talked to a few friends and it's actually quite common with mechanics, we've certainly seen 2 or 3 diff ones cos they move, they retire and they don't stick to the manufacturer schedules . Didn't some cars like Hondas said every 2nd oil filter change . As for the coolant, most cars are using long life coolant now right, so one could just get that done when you see the mechanic for a cambelt change . |
Nomad (952) | ||
| 1452471 | 2018-08-09 11:09:00 | Oil change is now every 15000km on my diesel ranger according to Ford | gary67 (56) | ||
| 1452472 | 2018-08-09 21:55:00 | Your average motorist buys a cheap 8-10yr old car and uses it for 10yr right then it's literally worth nothing. ..... and they generally dont care about maintainace , except maybee an oil change once a year , if that. The only go to the local garage when something is broken. I suspect some mechanics have given up trying to tell customers to replace things that arnt yet completely broken. I just spent $1000 getting my 27year old car back up to warrant spec. Was it worth it, on a $1000 car. Nope, but still cheaper than replacing it with another cheap car that needs the same amount of work done. New owners of the local garage are pretty anal with their WOF checks. |
1101 (13337) | ||
| 1452473 | 2018-08-09 23:23:00 | she took it to court and lost due to being 200km over the recommended serving 200km? Sure that is probably the letter of the law, but to me it's more the arbitrator being past his/her use-by date. |
WalOne (4202) | ||
| 1452474 | 2018-08-10 07:49:00 | Was it worth it, on a $1000 car. Nope, but still cheaper than replacing it with another cheap car that needs the same amount of work done. New owners of the local garage are pretty anal with their WOF checks. I can see where you are coming from. A car enthusiast who spends so much is a bit like a computer enthusiast. The average person just needs it to get them from A to B and maybe 1 or 2 road trip per year. An average person most probably just needs a laptop computer these days to get online, e-shopping, social media, watch Youtbe and Netflix, if they have kids they can still play games on a reduced video resolution than fork out for an expensive video card - ie for the games part, a $1,000 new system with the freebie video card builtin. I know families who has a Compaq or something desktop from Noel Leeming and it plays OK. Spending so much on car maintenance with a old car is like saying that (not for games), 10yr old PC still works and it sure does. How many people would do that. I was at a local community club the other day, and they were still using a Intel might had been a Celeron with 2GB RAM and Windows 7 with a 17" LCD or something. |
Nomad (952) | ||
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