Regular Car Servicing – 5 important Benefits
Taking your car for a service can feel like just another car expense, and it can be tempting to leave it for a little while before booking your car in. However, there are many benefits to regular car servicing that make the regular investment a very worthwhile one. Adding to this, regularly servicing your car will help it perform well in the long run, especially if you are driving in busy areas like London. Here are just five of the more important ones:
Keeps You on the Road
Booking your car in for a regular service is a moment of downtime for your car, it is true. But it is planned downtime and will usually take no more than a couple of hours, as it is a tried and tested process that can be completed in a timely manner, usually to the point that you can be advised in advance of what time you can come along to retrieve your vehicle.
Compare this with the inconvenience of unplanned downtime such as when your vehicle breaks down. In that case, you will have to wait – sometimes for hours – for roadside service while you call and cancel, or postpone, all your commitments for the next few hours, perhaps even the whole day. Then you have the worry of waiting while the roadside assistance mechanic checks out your vehicle and decides whether he can fix it there and then, or if the car needs to be towed or transported to a garage for more intensive (and mostly likely expensive) work.
Just a moment’s thought will be enough to persuade most drivers that having a mechanic check their vehicle over when it is time for the next service is the more infinitely preferable inconvenience of the two.You can also get your car servicing in London for a great price at DAT Tyres (020 8969 3030).
Ensures You are Roadworthy
As well as heading off major breakdowns, services ensure that your vehicle remains roadworthy, and within the spirit of the MOT test – simply having a valid MOT certificate, while important and legally necessary, is not enough to protect you from tickets and warnings should you fall below the legal criteria on any point following your test. Police roadblocks often net defaulting drivers, and earn a healthy profit for the traffic department due to drivers making this mistake!
The MOT test for roadworthiness had little to do with the integrity of the motor, looking instead to ascertain that you will be visible to other road-users, that you will be able to see other road users, and that, should a breakdown occur, you will be able to move to the side of the road and stop safely. As well as protecting you, during these unexpected events, a regular service can help you to keep other road users safe too.
Retains the Value of your Car
Regular servicing is a positive sign to potential buyers, should you hope to sell your car on at some point. Taking your car for services in line with the recommendations in the user’s manual, especially if you go to garages approved by the manufacturer, means that your car will be in good, well-cared-for condition, and will help potential third-party dealers trace the history of your car with confidence. All of these can ensure that you get the best possible price for your car when the time comes to replace it.
Maintains or Improves Fuel Efficiency
Regular Service of your car saves you money in the long run. Many of the small tasks completed during the service, from cleaning filters to aligning your tyres, all help the car to run more smoothly, with less unwanted friction from wear and tear – and the knock-on effect of this is to help your car use less fuel to achieve the same distance and speed on the road.
Catches Small Problems Early
A final reason to get your car serviced regularly is that services are designed to check over the many various systems that keep your car in good functioning order, from the brakes to the steering to the suspension. These checks, as well as the changing out of small parts: filters, spark plugs, fan belts and the like – can all head off problems before they have a chance to escalate into major issues and possibly cause an accident when a vital part suddenly fails.
These five reasons are just some of those reasons for you to take your car for its regular service when it is necessary, according to your mileage or your vehicle’s manufacturer’s advice.