An automotive servicing includes a series of procedures is a series of maintenance procedures carried out at a set time interval or after the vehicle has travelled a certain distance. Regular maintenance is to ensure safety, reliability, comfort and longevity of a car. The car manufacturer provides you with the dates and details of car servicing; you are also provided with a comprehensive short booklet which helps you to understand the maintenance needs of your car.
This maintenance booklet help owners avoid unnecessary confusions and give a general idea of what should be expected at the time of servicing. Generally, the first car servicing should come at about 15000 miles after purchasing your car. Car makers recommend the servicing schedule based on impact parameters such as:
- number of trips and distance traveled per trip per day
- extreme hot or cold climate conditions
- heavy stop-and-go vs. long-distance travel
- towing a trailer or other heavy load
Car services are categorized into three parts:
1) Engine Oil changing service: The engine oil is changed at regular intervals. To know when to get the oil changed in your car, you will need to consult the car owner guide or ask your car service centre technician.
2) Interim car service: Interim service is done after every six thousand miles or six months. In this the service centre will perform all the work mentioned for the oil change service and can also provide additional services to keep the car safe.
3) Full car service: In a full service, all the work mentioned in the oil and interim service is conducted. In addition to this the following work is also done. The wheel alignment test, wheel bearing check, belt check and brake fluid condition is checked. In the case of a diesel vehicle, the fuel filter is replaced. In the case of a petrol engine, the spark plugs may be replaced.
Common car maintenance tasks include:
- Car wash
- Inspection or replacement of windshield wipers
- Checking/ replacement of fuel filters
- Checking/replacement of engine oil, fuel filters, and oil filters
- Inspection of tires for appropriate pressure
- Inspecting tire balance, tire rotation and wheel alignment
- Inspection/replacement of brake pads, brake fluid, transmission fluid
- Replacement, rebuild or repair of automatic transmission
- Car battery: Check hydrometer, terminals and cable puller of your car battery at the time of servicing.
- Inspection of engine coolant, spark plugs, air filter, timing belt etc.
- Lubrication of locks, latches, hinges
- Checking steering wheel, lights, Anti-lock braking system or ABS
- Proper checking of headlights, tail lights and glasses
Maintenance jobs like a tune-up used to mean getting the engine's performance back on track. Today embedded software takes care of it by constantly checking thousands of sensor signals, compensating to repair or rebuild automatic transmission, worn-out spark plugs, clogged filters, etc. A proper car servicing which is done on regular interval of time would certainly increase the life of the vehicle; it makes the car more reliable as well as fuel efficient.