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Old 15th August 2009, 22:53   #61
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gd1418 View Post
What does your Flair manual say? Generally in today's efficient petrol engines with good quality engine oil, you don't need to change for about 10k Kms.

I don't go to ASCs as have an aversion to them. My views may be biased but I'm sure that they would not have changed the oil but billed you for sure..
Manual says 10K kilometres. Now in case they have duped, how do I check if the oil is new?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Takumi-san View Post
I think 6 months is a good time to change the oil. Even if the car hasnt run much, the oil does deteriorate by just being in the engine.
Thats what I was told by them. He said first oil change at 6 months is advisable even if the car hasn't run much. Next oil change only after 10K kilometeres.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jaggu View Post
No harm in changing if its regular mineral oil. Shorter trips, lesser usage are more taxing on oil compared to higher mileage and longer drives, so.
Out of 2841 kms around 785 was long distance trips and rest in city. I think Ikon uses regular mineral oil.
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Old 17th September 2013, 19:52   #62
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validation of service

Hi All,

I gave my Fiat Punto for service at Vecto motors, on Hosur road, Bangalore. I picked the car at night and couldn't check the car condition at the service center.

Upon reaching home, i realised that the car's tyres were not rotated. [One of the alloy wheels had a scratch and it was in the original place]. I called up the service agent, who claimed that rotation had happened. Reluctantly, He has agreed to fix the issue. Now i am worried if any of the other promised activities(filter replacement, oil change et al) have been done. How to validate these? When it comes to the innards i am a novice, Please help.


Regards,
Naveen
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Old 17th September 2013, 19:55   #63
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Re: validation of service

Always go over the service center paper notes to see what has been done. It is not foolproof, but will serve as a starting point for any such issue detection.
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Old 18th September 2013, 10:18   #64
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Re: validation of service

Quote:
Originally Posted by algos&autos View Post
I gave my Fiat Punto for service at Vecto motors, on Hosur road, Bangalore. I picked the car at night and couldn't check the car condition at the service center.

Upon reaching home, i realised that the car's tyres were not rotated. [One of the alloy wheels had a scratch and it was in the original place]. I called up the service agent, who claimed that rotation had happened. Reluctantly, He has agreed to fix the issue. Now i am worried if any of the other promised activities(filter replacement, oil change et al) have been done. How to validate these? When it comes to the innards i am a novice, Please help.
Oils

All modern cars come with 2 dipsticks to check the quality of engine oil and gearbox oil respectively; the locations of which will be clearly mentioned in your manual. The engine dipstick is generally located in the left bottom corner of the engine (below the inlet manifold) and the gearbox dipstick at the head of the gearbox (bottom-right to the engine, just below the battery). I suggest you remove the dipstick and check the amount/quality of oil.
  • New engine oil should be clear and light brown in colour. If the colour is dark brown/black, no oil change has been carried out.
  • Most dipsticks have markings/grooves to indicate the maximum and minimum level upto which oil can be filled. Ideally, oil should be upto the max mark.

Filters

A quick peek at the air filter should tell you if it is replaced or not. A brand new filter should ideally be light green/yellow in color and free from dust and grime. The type of filter used in your car and its exact location will also be mentioned in your manual.

Checking for a new fuel filter is complicated for a DIY and I suggest you skip it.
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Old 18th September 2013, 18:06   #65
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Re: validation of service

Quote:
Originally Posted by mohitk1993 View Post

Most dipsticks have markings/grooves to indicate the maximum and minimum level upto which oil can be filled. Ideally, oil should be upto the max mark.
Isn't is wrong to fill the oil till the 'Max' mark? I feel it is better to keep the oil between the half mark and Max mark. More the oil in the engine churning could be experienced and more oil is not good for the engine too.

Anurag.
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Old 18th September 2013, 18:14   #66
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Re: validation of service

Quote:
Originally Posted by algos&autos View Post
How to validate these? When it comes to the innards i am a novice, Please help.
this happened with us long time back when we courageously decided to use the Mitsubishi service centre for servicing our lancer. They claimed they changed the air filter but on inspecting the engine bay area, one could easily see that the air filter was an old one and clogged with dirt. The only effective way to prevent this is by being with your car while they are servicing it. Also always insist on getting the old parts back that have been replaced like filters/brake pads etc.
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Old 18th September 2013, 18:20   #67
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Re: validation of service

I suggest you to be present for initial hrs of service till oil change/filter change/tyre rotation /battery checkup/brake drum cleaning/spark plug cleaning/coolant/gear oil change etc is been done.
After all it is your car so spend 3 to 4 hrs in six months make sense.
Leave the car with them when washing or some small visible jobs are left.

I do this activity sincerely and also it helps to increase knowledge of the engine and parts and how to remove them/check them in emergency conditions.
Also you build relation with the service guy and later compare with other service guy in next service or demand for the same service engineer if you like the work.

There are very less chances that service folks will remove oil etc and put old one once you left the scene.
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Old 1st July 2016, 19:12   #68
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Re: How to tell whether they really serviced the car

Sorry to bump up this old thread, this is what I followed for my Zen which I had sold after it completed 150K KMS. Used to go to ASS understand what the problem is, take a list of all the parts etc which need replacement, go to my FNG procure all original stuff and get him to do it.Was decidedly cheaper on the pocket, plus used to be present throughout the whole process
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Old 30th July 2019, 23:47   #69
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Re: How to tell whether they really serviced the car

Sorry I couldn’t find a better forum to ask this question. I used to service my 4 year old Skoda rapid in their authorised service centre till last year since the car was under warranty. Did my last service from Manikandan Skoda service, Kochi at 55000 Km in last November. Now the car has done 65000 km, and last week I took my car to a local workshop for repairing a small dent in my front bumper. The mechanic also checked oil and said the oil is dangerously old and need urgent replacement !!!. In 8 months and 10000 km, the oil became dangerously old, is it probably because the service centre people didn’t change the oil or they put a re used oil ? Is there any other possibility?

I tried to contact the service centre, but they closed down their service centre in Kochi !!

Last edited by Aditya : 1st August 2019 at 07:52. Reason: typo edited
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