Mines not had a service in 2 years, probs done 12k in that time. Local garage charges £150+vat, I have had it in mind to do it myself, but I know nothing…is it more than an oil and air filter change + £50 per hour labour?

I don’t have any ramps etc but I’m hoping after a bit of youtubing I can sort the oil and air filter myself, the car is a 2010 Fabia estate HTP, it’s the most basic thing I could find, basic and less to go wrong was at the top of the priority list when buying.

Tyres have just been replaced and it’s had a new mid-exhaust so I’m not leaving it to totally rot.

Servicing my own car at least once will also add Dad points in 16yrs time when my lads start driving and I’ll be able to say ‘back in my day I’d service all my own cars’ when in fact I did it once and it took a whole Saturday to change the oil, with the oil stain still there 16yrs later as evidence…

If the £150 +VAT includes oil and filters I’d let the garage do it!

Have you seen how much decent oil is now! 🙂

And then there’s the car devaluation due to several years of no service history. Not an issue of course if you plan on running it into the ground.

£50 for oil and filter + £10 for an air filter + £20 cheap axle stands + £10 oil filter wrench + £10 for a spanner for the sump plug if you don’t have one. Plus you might want to chnage the plugs so add in another £20-25 and a plug wrench if you don’t have one.

Me, I’d just get someone to do it but then I’m a lazy bugger.

A basic service is pretty easy.  As well as oil and oil filter, I’d normally clean (or change if necessary) the air filter and spark plugs.  If you want to be thorough your vehicle handbook will list all the other things which need doing and when, in great detail – down to greasing hinges and bonnet release catches etc.  The main one not to skip is any belt or timing chain changes – but this is less likely to be a DIY job if you’re not confident and experienced.  Likewise brakes – pads, disks and fluid.

I used to do my own serviceing but cars have changed since those days. The biggest issues for me were all about access, modern stuff appears to be desgned to only be accessed from below and then they put a big plastic undertray in place to cover it all up. Suddenly an easy job like oil and filter change become nigh on impossible without getting the car up on a ramp to remove the tray and access the filter etc.

The Fabia may be different but I’d suggest trying to access the sump plug and the filter before committing any money to a DIY service. If you can get to everything then great, if not then £150 makes it a job for someone with a ramp.

is it more than an oil and air filter change + £50 per hour labour?

No plans you use your brakes for anything soon?

. Not an issue of course if you plan on running it into the ground.

Depends on how quickly you plan to run it into the ground 🙂

12k in 2yrs….

wife’s car done just over 2k since last service. we were £260 for minor service, 2 track rod ends and MOT.

For £180 I’d get them to do, spend more time chasing around getting bit and applying plasters to scraped knuckles

And then there’s the car devaluation due to several years of no service history. Not an issue of course if you plan on running it into the ground.

On a 12 year old car that hasn’t been serviced for two years? I think that ship has sailed 😀

If it’s going to be a one off then I wouldn’t bother, send it into the garage. If you’re going to continue home servicing from this point on then pick up a Haynes manual or similar and crack on. If you haven’t already got a good selection of tools then expect it to cost as much as paying the garage first time round.
A decent service should include oil, oil filter, air filter, fuel filter, pollen filter, spark plugs if it’s a petrol engine. Also a good look over the running gear, wheels off and grease the brake calliper slide pins, check the state of discs and pads etc.

Brakes are not a service item

They are a maintainance item.

A 150+vat service is the bargain basement bottom of the market these day. You’ll be lucky if they even have time to look before they upsell you new brakes.

Got fed up of garages (several) cutting corners – so learned to do it my self

Don’t need to pay someone to **** it up. I can do that my self.

Flicker gets it.

Although that said many petrol cars are self cleaning filter for life in the tank….. which I’m not ok with but my hand is forced.

Thanks, having never done it before I was unsure of the costs but at £180 all in it does sound 50/50 if I’d save myself anything or not.

It’s a 12 year old car and I’m planning to keep it for at least another couple of years as it’s main job is taking all the excess house reno stuff to the skip so I’m not super be precious about recouping costs end if days, but point taken in running it into the ground later than sooner!

Check what the small and large services actually entail according to the manufacturer- and I bet a brake check is part of the list along with checking various other parts.

A  service should be far more than just oil and filters.  Valve clearance?  Transmission oils?  clutch adjustment?  etc etc

After two years untouched ALL fluids should be changed inc brake fluids for example

Bear in mind that the cost of the tools can be greatly reduced by doing it more than once. And not actually needing something like an oil filter wrench. Granted, the newest car I’ve worked on is a 2008, but on a basic oil/filter/plug change I don’t think I’ve ever needed anything more than a socket for the sump plug, a spark plug socket, and maybe a 10mm or Phillips for some trim screws. Which a lot of people will have most of anyways. So chances are all your really need to buy are axle stands at 25 quid ish

Pure guess at what you need, but Halfords oil is fine. That’s about 25 quid for 5l of semi synth, and filter will be at most a tenner

So about 60 quid. And 25 of that you can use again.

Thanks, having never done it before I was unsure of the costs but at £180 all in it does sound 50/50 if I’d save myself anything or not.

Buying a few tools is a long term investment. First time round you might save nothing if starting from scratch. Do get some axle stands – you don’t want to be underneath a car supported only by a jack.

It can take a little while to figure it all out too, working out where the jacking points are, how to get to the filter – they can be awkward on some cars. And it can get messy. Need to dispose of the oil too.

Easy 30 min job once you know what you’re doing.

I thought I would have a look at Skoda to see what they recommend

https://www.skoda.co.uk/owners/servicing-maintenance-fixed-price

£185 from Skoda for the basic service

NO mention of valve clearances – all hydraulic valve lifters?

No mention of brake fluid change

Weird

Oil and filters can be done with minimal tools. Just take your time. With two of our cars it takes longer to take off the underpan than to drain and refill the oil. I’ll do most jobs other than suspension as it’s heavy, and has been there 20 years on my car. Pads and discs are relatively straight forward.

Decent jack and axel stands essential. My son made a couple of ramps out of timber – we use these for oil changes – just drive the car up. Worked out quite cheap by gluing and screwing some decent pieces of timber together.

My son’s into modifying, so has somehow picked it all up off the internet, as well as being mechanically minded. He’s changed two engines, and will need a new gearbox shortly after it gave up after a track day recently.

You don’t touch valve clearances on modern cars – never done it. Transmission is usually sealed for life (21 years on my car and 150k)

You don’t touch valve clearances on modern cars – never done it.

Recommended every 25k miles on my car (2007 Type R). 😜

A service should be far more than just oil and filters. Valve clearance? Transmission oils? clutch adjustment? etc etc

After two years untouched ALL fluids should be changed inc brake fluids for example

You looked at a calendar recently? It’s not 1989 anymore… 😉

Pads and discs are relatively straight forward.

Can be. I’ve spent entire weekends doing these jobs when seized nuts/screws have rounded off and I’ve not had the right tools. It’s a decent step up from an oil change.

Top tip put whatever you’re using to catch the sump oil as close to the drain as possible. This stops the last few drops being blown all over the driveway under the car.

Whatever day you choose to do this will be the coldest one for months and you will bleed from your knuckles!!

After two years untouched ALL fluids should be changed inc brake fluids for example

Does anybody actually include these in a service these days? Genuine question – anytime I’ve looked at a car with supposed FSH it’s only ever had oil and filters.

Have you seen how much decent oil is now!

Yeah, mine charges me less for Helix than I’d be able to get it for myself.

Realistically, you’ve never done it before so I’d say you’ve really no inclination to do it. You don’t know what you’re doing and you probably don’t have all the tools you may need. It’s December and looking like a cold weekend coming up. I see nothing in your future but looking wistfully back on a £150+VAT quote from a handy local garage as you lie on your back on freezing concrete and it’s an hour past sunset.

Or it may go swimmingly and you have a great time picking up a useful and money saving life skill, I dunno really.

I used to do mine using an oil vacuum. Makes the job a lot less bother especially in the cold months.

Depends on the engine how effective it is, on my octavia it left only a thimble-full in the sump and the filter was easy to get to.

A service should be far more than just oil and filters. Valve clearance? Transmission oils? clutch adjustment? etc etc

When did you last touch a car 1972 ?

You don’t touch valve clearances on modern cars – never done it

Conversely I have to solve a slow start issue on a diesel. Lifter buckets needed shimmed to the cam to recalibrate the valvetrain as it had aged…..

So many people garages included just change the glow plugs and wonder why it’s still shit to start….

Not a fun job as the timing belt had to come off and the cam shaft had to come out.

100% not a service job. More a- car has x problem – what would cause that….. Lack of compression.

Buy a Haynes manual, it’s all in there.

Oil and filter is the fundamental thing that needs changing but there are plenty of other things that may need replacing depending on how long they’ve been there

– Spark plugs
– Cambelt/pulleys
– Coolant
– Air filter
– Fuel filter
– Auxilliary belt
– Water pump
– Trans fluid maybe
– Brake fluid

They will want changing at different intervals, or not at all depending on the car or the service schedule.

After two years untouched ALL fluids should be changed inc brake fluids for example

VW coolant is fit for life. Brake fluid isn’t, but you can pay to have that done separately at places like a Halfords Autocentre. It’s much easier for a garage to do it with a machine than you to fanny about pumping and bleeding.

A basic service will almost certainly only cover oil and filter, some garages might check other bits out of courtesy but some won’t. You should be able to get the oil and filter for under £50.

I do most servicing myself, oil changes, filters and brakes are all pretty easy. Just remember that the first time you do it it will take longer than you think but will be much easier the following times.

I have a MK3 Fabia estate, the only annoyance is that there is an undertray that makes oil filter removal a bit tight but your version might be different.

No mention of brake fluid change

Weird

Skoda is first brake fluid change at 3 years. Every 2 years thereafter. Spark plugs at 40k miles. cambelt 5 years or 50k miles.

Its a DIY job and very easy. In addition to the advice above you will need to buy a plastic oil drain tray and a couple of empty oil containers. Also good to have a towel just in case. Recycle the oil at a local tip.

Maybe you have a heated well lit garage. I don’t. So yes, a basic service is pretty easy on an older car. But I’ll only do it myself in the summer. Also, like all car jobs, things look easy on paper but can turn into a nightmare in the wild.

Can be. I’ve spent entire weekends doing these jobs when seized nuts/screws have rounded off and I’ve not had the right tools. It’s a decent step up from an oil change.

Ah yes.

I’ll just change the pads, oh, caliper is buggered.
I’ll just change the caliper, oh flexi is seized.
I’ll just undo it at the solid line, oh, the solid line sheared.

That was a fun day. Lots of new and exciting tools.

Just do the oil on my 1ltr tsi fabia. I think the intervals are too long so do an extra change. It did lots of short journeys, doubt I will benefit from it but hopefully next owner does.

Dead easy, I have some levelling ramps for the our camper which are great for car jobs.

I thought I would have a look at Skoda to see what they recommend

https://www.skoda.co.uk/owners/servicing-maintenance-fixed-price

£185 from Skoda for the basic service

NO mention of valve clearances – all hydraulic valve lifters?

No mention of brake fluid change

Weird

I have the same car but a 2013 and service it myself.

Sump plug is a 6mm hex.
Oil filter is a plastic canister up top, needs a large socket to undo it.
Air filter is just a screwdriver and some clips.
Best bang-for-buck oil is Carplan R-Tec 16, filters wherever is cheapest but avoid any by Crossland as they’re crap and can break up before the next service.
Plugs are every 60k.
Timing chain is lifetime.
Service interval is every 10k, the major service just adds a few extra checks.
Brake fluid is every 2 years regardless of anything else.
Valves are hydraulic and set for life.
I’d do the cabin filter too as I can guarantee it’s never been done, not included in a dealer service.

Mine takes about 25 mins to do and cost is around £60, the oil is expensive! Easy to do if you’re not rushed or are familiar with oily stuff.

One great benefit of doing it yourself is that you gain an understanding of the car, so that when it makes an odd noise, you can identify the problem. You can also makes sure it’s done properly; after searching for a reputable garage, I paid them to change the clutch plate and timing belt (the timing belt is a 13 hour job for a skilled mechanic and requires £500+ of special tools). They thought it would take 2 days, it took 4.5 days, but then they forgot to put the oil filler cap back on so there was oil all over then engine when I got home. Then 3 weeks later, checking it for the MoT, the suspension ball joint was split in two places, just exactly where careless use of a forked splitter would tear it – nobody else had taken that joint apart in the previous 5 years, but I couldn’t prove it. I replaced the suspension arm and ball joint myself, I wouldn’t take it back to them.

I use to use one of those oil drain containers. Capacity was a bit tight so it would be brim full, the drainer was too shallow and would overflow if the car had a big drain plug, and it had to be dead level to drain. And then to top it off, you have an oil container thats got one side covered in oil!

The game changer was getting a 25L container and cutting a square hole in the side. Suddenly all of the above is just a painful memory, and if you leave a nice big lip around the hole, you can still take the cap off and decant it into old oil bottles. The only downside is you might need to lift the car higher to fit it under the sump 🙂

Other service items I’ve not seen mentioned, handbrake adjustment, fuel filter, pollen filter. However as mentioned, unless you are getting main dealer servicing, I don’t think a standard service will ever go further than oil and filter.

However as mentioned, unless you are getting main dealer servicing,

Neither robins and day nor Bristol Street motors see the pollen filter as a service item in a stamped service – 4 years it’s been serviced and the filter was clarted and dated with the bulld of the car….

Like wise my parents range rover evoke……it had been serviced by town and county all it’s days…. Was getting sluggish….for a 200bhp car. Fuel filter had never been changed. I changed it and it was a totally different car…..-notoriously difficult to bleed this design after a filter change…..

The only service you get from a dealer than you can’t get else where is goodwill when it goes to shit.

I service and maintain all my own cars.

From oil + filter, autobox fluid + filter, swapping turbos, timing belts etc Clutch on my 911 etc.

Never had an impact on resale value. I take photos and include all receipts. I’ve saved tens of thousands.

All the info is out there for every car on youtube and forums.

Get cracking, the hardest bit is getting them up in the air.

All this “its too hard on modern cars” is BS. It is way easier these days, things are designed to be dismantled, fasteners and plugs only fit one socket, plug it into computer and it tells you whats wrong itself.

Never had an impact on resale value. I take photos and include all receipts. I’ve saved tens of thousands.

I do this too….and it’s always gone down better than a stamp…..but I don’t sell to dealers.

I’d trust receipts and photos over a stamp any day of the week !

I DIY our own cars;
200k mile Volvo V70
215k mile Volvo XC90
90k mile Peugeot Partner

Get yourself a Pela oil suction pump. I’ve used one for years and they work well (I’ve removed the sump and checked).

Mannol oil from Ebay (decent German oil at good prices)

Filters by Mann&Hummel/Mann – German OEM.

Set of ramps (if needed) and a filter housing wrench. Some engines have the filter on the upper area of the engine so you don’t need ramps (VW PD, Volvo D5).

Oil is the most important, after that air filter (easy) plugs and fuel filter for a petrol.

I’ve saved tens of thousands over the years and have a 200k mile car that regularly does the UK to Perpignan trip without any worries of it letting us down.