I have a 2007 Honda Civic EX with about 72,300 miles on it. I need and oil change with the B13 service. I've been going between two different dealerships depending on which one has screwed up and frustrated me less the last time I had my car in. One of the dealerships is telling me that I need to do a 60k mile major service and might as well go ahead and do the 75k mile mid-range service as well - they didn't happen to mention the 60k major service the 3 times it's been in their shop since I passed 60k miles. The other dealership says the newer Civics with the maintenance minder just tell you what they need and there's no need for the services based on mileage. They said it's just a way for the other dealership to get more money out of my car. My owner's manual says absolutely nothing about the service based on mileage - whether to do it or not.

Seeing as I just dumped my entire last 3 paychecks for odd and completely un-related problems for my car, I'm not really wanting to dump more into it if I don't have to. I do, however, understand the importance of regular maintenance and want to do the necessary service to it so that it will hold up longer and cost less in the future. I really don't want to not do necessary service on my car, and I also don't want to dump unnecessary money into my car, what's the real story here? Do I need to do service based on mileage or not?

Thank you in advance for your response!

 

I work for a dealership and am normally all about taking your car to the people that were trained to work on it. However, if you only have to worry about one car line, why are you making mistakes? Id like to know a little bit more about what youve experienced.

Sometimes "intermediate" and "major" service packages can save you money. Sometimes they do the exact opposite. You have to take a good account of what your getting for your money.

I dont trust maintenance minder, personally. My mother asked me this question recently. Ill tell you what i told her. Change your oil every 5k. Rotate your tires whenever the rears are better than the fronts. Replace your air filters every 30k or when theyre excessively dirty. Do your brake fluid every 2 years or 30k*. Flush your powersteering when its dirty.(actually dirty, not "it looks kinda sorta browner") Think about spark plugs and a valve adjustment at some point after 100k. Change your serp belt based on an assessment of its condition.

Its really important that youre able to trust whoever you bring your vehicle to, unless reliable transportation isnt that important to you

 

That is good advice on the maintenance of a vehicle. I change the oil and filter every 5K miles, 3 quarts auto transmission fluid swap every 10K, and change the brake and power steering fluid when they look off color. I changed the spark plugs at 80K, but they looked like they could have gone another 20K easily. Problem with the dealer is that they charge an arm and a leg for services that an owner could do in their driveway. A mechanic is generally needed for more complex repair jobs - my Civic has cracked lower control arm bushings and I don't have the equipment to handle that job. It's a matter of knowing what services to "farm out".

 

I never go to dealers, I found a mechanic I trust and he has done great work, even saved my money when it was less expensive to replace a set of parts over a single. The advice seems solid based on my experience. I have an 09 with 141k and it's only just beginning to run a little rough