Team-BHP - Chevy Spark 1 year 9700 Kms on the odo EDIT:15,000km service update

Hi ,
I had the 3rd free service done today. I have not opted for their CPCO plan i.e 3 years zero maintanence plan. So I am charged for consumables till this service and labour charges are free. Here is how it went I called up the dealer and fixed up a appointment for service. Dealer's driver came promptly at 9.45am in the morning and took the car. At about 11am I got a call from the service engineer and he told me all that was expected in 3rd service. He also told me engine oil change came at 15000kms. Hopefully it is OK. Now was basically checking the car alignment, noises rattles if any (fortunately none for me), brakes assembly cleanup etc.
2.30pm car is back to the house. Total bill "Zero" .

Good to hear. Does the car feel better post service? Did it feel better post the first service with respect to freeness of the engine? I think I read that somewhere, that the initial feeling of tightness gets a lot better after the first service.
GM now gives the car with consumable free as well. Having see it all in life, I asked the salesman, isn't that a temptation to not change the oil when the car come in for a due oil change? He looked quite shocked, so I don't thing they do this!
Also, the 3 year cashless maintenance includes up to 3 free wheel alignments - truly comprehensive and I see myself paying only for petrol.
Though I will change the oil and oil filter by paying for it at the first service - just good practice that I follow with all new cars.
PS: If your car has had no oil change at all since purchase, I would ask for one. Other than kms, I would not keep the oil in the engine past the 12 month mark.

Re the oil change, my memory tells me that they do the change at 5000 kms, so you ought to be ok. I think it is 10000kms for every change thereafter, though I would change it every 5000kms. Nothing is as good for reliable engine performance for a long time as timely and consistent oil changes. With the filter. Given the size of the sump, and what they charge for filters, this is not very expensive, and if you do that, the oil doesnt need to be anything better or expensive than the standard stuff from any of the mainstream brands. Your engine will thank you way beyond the three years.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vikrantj (Post 1401021)

He also told me engine oil change came at 15000kms. Hopefully it is OK.

First oil change done for my Sparky during 1st/5000 kms Free service. Then, 2nd oil change done during 3rd/15000 kms free service (at this time, ODO reading was only around 11000 kms)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sawyer (Post 1401033)

Does the car feel better post service? Did it feel better post the first service with respect to freeness of the engine? I think I read that somewhere, that the initial feeling of tightness gets a lot better after the first service.

Engine did feel smoother after 1st service. I used to have some accelerator vibrations, which completely vanished after 1st service. Also, I started filling only Shell petrol which made things even better :)

Hi All ,

My Spark completed the 15000kms servicing on Saturday. It had been just 5 months that I had serviced it at 9700kms. The odo showed 15467 on the servicing day.

Place of servicing : Pashankar Auto , Mumbai-Bangalore Bypass road.

This time being a Saturday and especially busy one a driver was not available to pick-up and drop the vehicle for servicing. Usually the service center sends their drivers for the same and it is a free service offered. So landed up at 10am at workshop. I was alloted a service manager in about 5-10 minutes of wait time.

I had a concern about the brake noise coming from the rear wheels apart from that no squeaks at all. The car had done a Pune-Amravati-Pune (about 1200kms) run between the two servicing, on road conditions ranging from very good to pathetic and also had a flat tyre . So wheel balancing and alignment and rotation was on cards.

So finally at 5pm I got the car back. The car was well washed and vacuumed. The total bill including labour was Rs.2209 . I have not taken the cashless offer. The bill includes Engine Oil (3.3L) , Oil filter , Wheel alignment and Balancing , labour + service tax.

About the noise from the rear brakes well it turned out that the issue was with the shock absorbers which do not have a leak or malfunction (they are gas filled) but are just noisy. It will be replaced free under warranty next week since it was out-of-stock. So people who have got their Sparks about 1.5 years back may have come across this .

So as of today my total service bills are : 700rs + 2200 = 2900Rs in the last 1.5 years.

After the service took the car for a test drive for about 300kms to and from Mumbai. There is no noticeable difference in the performance , but the car has become smooth. Also I think they have cleaned the a/c ducts or something since I see significant change in cooling of course on the good side.

--- Vikrant

Mods : Please change the title to "15000kms service update"

Hi guys,

I have just got an estimate of Rs.6300 plus taxes for the first paid service for my Spark LPG. It's a 15000 km service. I have a feeling that I am getting conned. I have received a breakup from them, and asked them to proceed with servicing the vehicle only after I give them a go ahead.

Below is the break up. Need inputs from you guys if it sounds reasonable, and what components are unnecessary and can be removed from the list.

Paid service-1175
Front Brake O/H-425
Rear Brake O/H-485
All Door Adjustment-200
Engine Tuning-425
Engine oil & Oil Filter-1200
Consumables-500
Foam Wash-1078
W/A-375
Injector Cleaner-410
PUC-75

The total appoximate estimation is 6348+tax.

Would appreciate a quick response.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oxy (Post 3351783)

Paid service-1175
Front Brake O/H-425
Rear Brake O/H-485
All Door Adjustment-200
Engine Tuning-425
Engine oil & Oil Filter-1200
Consumables-500
Foam Wash-1078
W/A-375
Injector Cleaner-410
PUC-75

The total appoximate estimation is 6348+tax..

Engine tuning - What exactly are they going to do here? Dont think this is needed.
Injector Cleaner - You can get better alternatives outside and at 15,000kms is it mentioned in your service manual to get the injector cleaned? If not get this removed.
Wheel Alignment - Get this done outside for around 250/-
What are the consumables covered in the 500 they have quoted? And what is covered in the paid service which is for 1175/-? Clarify on these. I dont think the labor charge for paid service is 1175/-. Since they are charging individually for other works, clear out what is covered under Paid Service.

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhinav.s (Post 3351800)

Thanks a ton Abhinav.

The car has only done 5000 kms in 2 years (I use it sparingly). But they are insisting on a 15000 kms service. I don't think that itself is correct in the first place.