The Truth About Scheduled Maintenance for Your German Import
Proper maintenance on your fine German import can be a real guessing game in this day and age. With the advent of “free scheduled maintenance” by many manufacturers the water has become even muddier. Should you follow the schedule in your owner’s manual? Should you bring your car in more frequently? At Performance Services, we’ve been around long enough to remember the good ol’ days when following the manufacturer’s recommended service schedule would be enough to ensure a long life for your vehicle – even being able to pass your automobile down to new drivers in your family – often times to multiple generations. Unfortunately, that’s not how things go currently.
Vehicle manufacturers and their dealers suggest tuning up your vehicle before 100,000 miles and that the modern age synthetic fluids (like oil, transmission and brake fluids) are “lifetime” rated – easily allowing you to go 15,000 miles between oil changes. But what does “lifetime” really mean? They’re not talking about YOUR lifetime or even the lifetime of your vehicle!
To be sure, these infrequent service schedules are a marketing strategy designed to sell cars, trucks and SUVs. They may be appealing if you lease your vehicle or only plan to keep it for a few years, but what if you plan on keeping your vehicle for a long time – even passing it down to a child or grandchildren? The truth is, if you maintain your vehicle according only to the manufacturer’s specifications, you should not expect your vehicle to last more than 70,000 miles without requiring major repairs. Most manufacturers consider a vehicle’s lifetime to be somewhere between eight and ten years or 100,000 miles, But if you are like all of us at Performance Services, you plan to keep your fine German auto well past this “lifetime” established by the manufacturer - especially since you bought the car you have because you LOVE to drive it.
Most all of our customers see the value of their import as much higher than the manufacturer’s service intervals imply. Just ask our customers who are driving vehicles with 150,000, 200,000 and even 300,000 miles on them how important real-life service intervals are for them to get this type of mileage – and enjoyment – out of their BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Audi or Volkswagen. If your vehicle is an integral part of your life and your family get in touch with Performance Services. Our certified technicians can recommend a more stable routine maintenance schedule to help improve the longevity and enjoyment of your vehicle. We understand how your German vehicle operates and will help you pinpoint every special requirement to keep your ride smooth, dependable, safe and enjoyable.
Click here to get in touch with Performance Services or stop by and tell us about your ride. We’re conveniently located across Frederick Road from Tiger Town in Opelika.
At Performance Services we know you love your ride. So we do too.
