Everyone loves the feeling of driving their car on the open road. When they do, they’ll naturally increase the mileage more and more. As obvious as that is, countless car owners overlook the fact this means they need to put more effort into maintaining their car.
Usually, a car maintenance schedule is needed for this. That doesn’t mean scheduling out repairs and improvements for various times in the year.
Instead, your car’s mileage plays a significant role in this. The higher the mileage, the more time and effort you’ll need to put into servicing your car. Taking this approach, instead of just getting it checked out when problems turn up, offers more than a few benefits.
You’ll go through a lot less stress, save yourself money, and more. Let’s dive into what a mileage-based car maintenance schedule looks like and why it’s important.
Why Car Mileage & Servicing Matters
First, why is it that your car mileage matters, and how does it relate to servicing? Cars are designed to last thousands - or tens of thousands - of miles without any issue. But, that doesn’t mean they’re designed to keep going without any kind of maintenance.
Mileage is usually seen as a major indicator of the wear and tear your car goes through. A car that’s gone through 1,000 miles will have significantly less wear and tear than one that’s traveled 10,000 miles. As obvious as this is, it’s still worth noting ahead of time.
While this can vary depending on whether those miles were in a city or on rougher terrain, it can still be a sign of whether your car needs servicing.
Benefits of Regular Car Servicing
Servicing your car regularly keeps it in a road-worthy condition and keeps it legally compliant when you’re on the road. That’s one of the major reasons why you’ll need to put the time and effort into it. But, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t offer more than a few other benefits.
Some of the larger benefits you’ll see include:
- Preventing Breakdowns - Perhaps the most obvious benefit you’ll see is that your car will be much less likely to break down once it’s been serviced. Anything that could cause a breakdown will be spotted and addressed by a mechanic.
- Improved Fuel Efficiency - The more properly maintained your car’s engine is, the less fuel it’ll need to take. At a minimum, it’ll save you from needing more and more fuel in time to do the same job it used to.
- Maintains Your Warranty - Many warranties require regular car servicing to keep the warranty valid. If you want to make sure you’re still covered during the warranty period, you’ll need to invest in this servicing regularly.
- Keeping You Safe on the Road - Let’s face it; if your tires, brakes, and other parts of your car aren’t properly maintained, you’re not truly safe on the road. These could be at risk of failure, which could end up causing a major accident in time.
- Saving You Money - While you’ll usually have to spend a decent bit of money on car servicing, this pales in comparison to the cost of repairs. A proactive approach to car maintenance is a much more cost-effective one.
- Improving Your Driving Experience - As time goes on, you could notice more noises, bumps, and similar issues with your car. These could seem minor, so you mightn’t address them. But, they affect your driving experience. Fixing them improves this and gives you a better driving experience.
By following a car maintenance schedule, you shouldn’t have a problem seeing each of these benefits. You’ll see them more and more as time goes on.
But, that begs the question as to what a car maintenance schedule actually looks like. While countless people believe this means going to a mechanic at certain points during the year, that isn’t all you have to consider.
A mileage-based schedule could be more appropriate. As long as no issues pop up in the meantime, it could be the best approach to take. Let’s take a look at what this involves.
Car Maintenance Schedule: What to Do Based on Mileage
The amount of mileage your car goes through is a significant indicator of what kind of maintenance it needs. The higher the mileage, the more you’ll need to have done. Having a car maintenance schedule in-hand helps keep this simple and easy to manage.
While you should always default to your car owner’s manual, it’s worth having a general idea of what you should have done - and when. Let’s dive into what a typical car maintenance schedule looks like.
Every 5,000 to 7,000 Miles - Basic Maintenance
You should only need some basic maintenance every 5,000 to 7,000 miles. This is more of a health check to make sure everything’s working the way it should be. You wouldn’t need to get much done, other than covering the basics.
Some of the more common car maintenance tasks here include:
- An oil and filter change.
- Topping up brake fluids and other car fluids.
- Checking the tire pressure and thread depth; these could need to be replaced in time.
- Checking the lights, tires, and horn to make sure they’re working properly.
Even if you’re not driving too much and only taking short trips, it’s still worth investing in this basic maintenance every few months.
Every 10,000 to 12,000 Miles - Interim Servicing
After every 10,000 to 12,000 miles, it’s worth putting a little more effort in. While an expert technician will still check all of the above, they’ll take care of a few other issues to keep your car running smoothly.
Some of the more notable areas that should get attention with this kind of servicing include:
- Replacing the engine filter to keep it running smoothly.
- Checking the battery so it’s healthy, which is vital during the colder months.
- Inspecting each part of the brakes to find any potential issues.
- Checking the suspension and steering so your car handles perfectly.
If you don’t tend to get this kind of mileage during an average year, it’s still worth investing in anyway. Getting it done between an annual service and your MOT is recommended to avoid any issues being found during the MOT itself.
Every 20,000 to 25,000 Miles - Full Service
Now we’re talking about getting more comprehensive with your car maintenance. This should be what gets your car running as close to new as possible. Outside of the above, more than a few car maintenance tasks should be done here.
Some of the more important here are:
- A fuel filter replacement for diesel cars to stop debris clogging the engine.
- A cabin filter change to keep the air inside of your car clean.
- Diagnostic check to pick up any hidden issues early.
- A full brake inspection and fluid replacement so you can avoid any brake issues.
- Checking for coolant leaks, exhaust issues, and steering wear.
While these are the more important areas to focus on, there could be a few optional extras to focus on, too. A wheel alignment can be one of the more notable going forward. If you’ve hit a few potholes, this could be relatively important.
Every 40,000+ Miles - Major Service Tasks
If you’re racking up some serious mileage, you’ll naturally need to invest in some serious car maintenance. Your car will be getting a lot of use, and the wear and tear builds up, even after getting all of the above done.
An expert technician will check all of the above, but they’ll also take a lot more of a comprehensive approach. They should:
- Check out the timing belt and chain to see if they need a replacement.
- Inspect the transmission fluid and clutch.
- Replace the spark plug to make sure the ignition fires cleanly.
- Check the suspension bushings, mounts, and bearings for wear and tear.
These can all be significant car maintenance tasks to look after. If they’re not properly done, you could run into serious issues with your car as time goes on.
What If You Don’t Drive Much?
This car maintenance schedule is a great guide to follow, especially when you do a lot of driving. But, what if you don’t use your car that much? This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put any time into your car maintenance.
Even if you don’t drive often, your car goes through wear and tear when you do. Following the schedule above should help minimise this and avoid any issues.
Then there’s what happens when your car is left in the driveway for days on end. Fluids degrade over time, rubber components can rot, and smaller issues can go unnoticed. These all still need to be addressed.
While you mightn’t have to put as much time and effort into car maintenance as you would when you drive a lot, you’ll still need to invest in it.
How a Car Maintenance Schedule Affects Resale Value
A car maintenance schedule is vital when you plan on driving your car long-term. But, it can also play a significant role if you plan on selling or trading in your car at any point. Since you’ll likely end up replacing your car at some point, this is a natural path to take.
Making sure your car is properly maintained has a significant impact in various ways. Some of the larger of these include:
- Looking and Driving Better - When someone’s buying a car, even a second-hand one, how it looks and drives plays a major role in their decision. With a well-maintained car, this shouldn’t have to be an issue when you’re selling. Potential buyers should be more interested in it because of that.
- Fewer Surprises - You’ll usually have to get an MOT done not long before you sell. If your car has been properly maintained, there shouldn’t be any surprises during this process. If there are any, they should be relatively minor. These should be relatively quick and easy to address before you sell up.
- Sell It Faster - Nobody wants to wait around when they’re selling their car. If your car isn’t in a great condition, you could end up waiting a lot longer than you would’ve thought. You’ll speed up the process quite a bit. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to off-load it relatively quickly.
- Get More Money Out of It - The better shape your car is in, the more money you should get out of selling it. Potential buyers will expect to invest more money on repairs and maintenance if a car isn’t properly looked after, and they’ll use that to negotiate. There’ll be a lot less wiggle room once your car is in good shape.
Even if you don’t plan on selling or trading in your car anytime soon, you’ll still see each of these benefits when you do take the plunge on it. They’re all the more reason to invest in a car maintenance schedule early on.
While there’ll still be an upper-limit to how much you can sell or trade in your car for, this should be higher than a car that hasn’t been properly maintained. It’ll be more than worth the time and effort that it takes.
Stay on Top of Your Car Maintenance Schedule With MB Motors
Maintaining and servicing your car isn’t a process you should go through by yourself. It can be complicated, take a lot of effort, and needs a certain skillset. Make sure your car gets the care it needs from a professional to keep it well-maintained.
At MB Motors, we don’t just tick boxes and leave it at that. We make sure your car is properly looked after. Whether you want a quick service or something more comprehensive, we’re there for you.
Even if you need specialist work done, our team of expert technicians can get your car back to a tip-top condition. No matter how many miles your car has, we’ll get it back to full working condition.
Get in touch today to give your car the treatment it deserves.
