Maintaining your vehicle can be extremely expensive and time-consuming. It seems like there are a million things out there that need to be done to your car to keep it road ready, and you may not even know that you need to do them. Everyone knows the basic maintenance services you need to do on your car such as oil changes and tire rotations. But there are dozens of other maintenance services that you should have done to your car over the course of your vehicle’s lifespan. While not all of them are 100% necessary, they are still good services you should get done every so often.

Induction System Service

We all want a little help to save on gas right? Boosting your car’s fuel efficiency is a great way to save money on gas (since you won’t need to buy as much). This is where an Induction System Service comes in. The Induction System is the system in your car that directs airflow into your engine. As time goes on, the throttle body (the valves that increase/decrease air flow) on the system gets dirty. This leads to a disruption in airflow into your engine and will decrease your fuel efficiency.

What a service centre will do to clean this, is they attach a special kit to your engine and flush a specialized chemical through your Induction System. This chemical gently cleanses the throttle body and everything beyond that, including intake valves, to restore proper fuel economy. You may not notice this change when you’re driving your car, but you’ll definitely notice it in your wallet.

Fuel System Cleaning

When you’re burning any kind of fuel, you’re going to see a build-up of something. With gasoline, you often see carbon build-up from the burning of this fuel. This carbon build-up will get on your throttle plates, air intakes, and valves. Again, this can lead to issues with reduced airflow and some sluggishness in your vehicle as you drive.

So then based on this, what’s the difference between the Fuel System and the Induction System that I previously mentioned? Glad you asked. The Induction System is strictly the system on your engine that directs airflow. The Fuel System is much larger and includes things like the gas tank and fuel lines, basically everything that brings the fuel from the tank into your engine to make it move. A proper Fuel System Service will increase your fuel efficiency as well as eliminate sluggishness.

Fluid Flushes

We’ve talked about oil changes before and how important they are, and most people who drive a car know that it is vital maintenance to perform on your vehicle. What a lot of people don’t realize is that what you do to your oil, you should also do to EVERY fluid in your vehicle. Brake fluid, power steering fluid, transmission fluid…all of them are vital to keeping your vehicle running properly. As with your engine oil, these fluids need to be flushed and replaced, as there can be water and other foreign materials present in the fluids that may impact the life of your vehicle.

Spark Plug Replacement

It’s amazing how many people don’t even think about their spark plugs (full disclosure: I’m one of them). But the spark plug is kind of important. The spark plug is what ignites the fuel inside your engine to makes it run. Probably something you should look after.

Granted, it does take a long time for a spark plug to get worn out, usually about 45,000km. However, depending on how much you drive, this could be only a couple of years. When a spark plug gets worn down, it will have a smaller electric arc which makes it harder to ignite your fuel. If your car feels like it’s skipping or running a little rough, this is something you should have looked at.

Filter Replacements

When you get an oil change done on your vehicle, most service shops will include an oil filter with that service. But oil filters aren’t the only filters you should change. There are a couple of other filters you should regularly change, which are the air filter and cabin filter.

Despite the similarities in name, there’s a difference between these two filters: the air filter is what filters the air going into your engine, and the cabin filter is what filters the air coming into your car. You know, the air you’re breathing.

When the air filter in your engine gets clogged up, it can reduce airflow into your engine which, as previously mentioned, can reduce your fuel efficiency and reduce the lifespan of your vehicle. When the cabin filter gets clogged, the airflow into the cabin will be reduced which will restrict the flow of the A/C system. You might even notice a reduction in airflow or possibly even unusual odours, something like a musty smell.

Conclusion

Many of these items will be checked by your service advisor when you do a basic maintenance on the vehicle, but if you’re really concerned about something, you should definitely ask for it to be checked. These services are generally referred to as “Preventative Maintenance Services” as they’re done to prevent something even worse from happening.

Most dealerships and service centres offer maintenance packages that include these services, and they’re usually based on a mileage count. The best thing to do when you’re not sure about a service your vehicle may need is to ask a service advisor or refer to your owner’s manual regarding it. You have enough to think about with life; you don’t want to spend more time thinking about small services your car needs.

If you’re still not sure if you need any of these maintenances, we can check for you! If you know you need something done on your car, we can do that too! Reach out to us and we can get you set up with our service team to make the process as easy as possible.