Dealership maintained vehicles

Some of us value our free time away from the stress of the jobs that enable us to pay $100 or more an hour to have the maintenance and repairs done on our vehicles.
 
I too agree that dealership serviced cars are always in better shape. From my car shopping experience,people who are selling dealership maintained cars and always very picky,and their cars are always spotless.
 
Have always strictly followed the Maintenance schedule for my cars and had them maintained by the dealership ( Honda ). There isn’t much scheduled maintenance for Hondas as far as I am concerned so I have them do it.

Do dealer maintained cars drive/last longer than ones not maintained by dealers? I have no idea but I can tell you many people who have been in my cars seem to think so ( they have driven them too ).

Nothing wrong with maintaining your car at an independent shop. I cannot speak for everyone but the people I know who bring their cars to their local garage vs dealer don’t strictly follow the strict maintenance schedule. They just bring it in for things such as oil changes etc.

where I live the dealers are good, they don’t try and up sell any unnecessary maintenance stuff and actually tell you when stuff doesn’t need to be replaced ( they check it but say don’t replace it .....e.g air/cabin filters ).
 
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Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
A 2005 Odessey(170K) and a 95 4Runner (390K) are a few examples, both exclusively maintained by dealerships and they ride perfectly fine - in-fact very very good.

Maybe the dealerships do have something up their sleeves to prolong these vehicles beyond the 200K mark when many vehicles are sent off for a graceful death.

I am just lost, these dealerships are there to make money but then there are some extremely good dealerships, both these vehicle owners are extremely local to their dealerships.


I agree with you. However, this goes against the grain here on BITOG. And mean C'mon we have guys on here with a 12 year supply of oil simply because "it was cheap" (true fact). They are not going to pay dealers to maintain their vehicles.
Owning a 12 year supply of oil I take as a sign of mental illness. Just say no to the mass delusion and false economy of keeping a stash of oil. I have no problem with using a dealership or especially its parts department though. You just need to know how to deal with service writers.
 
Owning a 12 year supply of oil I take as a sign of mental illness. Just say no to the mass delusion and false economy of keeping a stash of oil. I have no problem with using a dealership or especially its parts department though. You just need to know how to deal with service writers.
I find if you give the service writer a few bucks when you bring your vehicle in for service they do not hound you to do the wallet flushing services.

With that said when looking for a good used vehicle I would rather have a dealership serviced vehicle that has all service records...High mileage late model vehicles does not matter to me as long as I can see all service records....With that said I only go to the dealer for transmission flushes,alignment and a/c issues or something the independent mechanic can not figure out.
 
Owning a 12 year supply of oil I take as a sign of mental illness. Just say no to the mass delusion and false economy of keeping a stash of oil. I have no problem with using a dealership or especially its parts department though. You just need to know how to deal with service writers.
I do a lot of driving. I wait until I need enough oil ( 3 cars ) to get free shipping with Amsoil preferred pricing. I just order enough to get the free shipping.

I don’t have a garage or much storage space and I don’t think my wife would be o.k with me storing extra oil in the bedroom closet or under the bed.
 
I avoid telling people I've belonged to a forum dedicated to motor oil for over 15 years. Lest they start to suspect me...

:sneaky:
I have been a regular visitor since 2002 ( almost daily ). I find this site hard to beat in terms variety of topics and quality discussions.
 
I avoid telling people I've belonged to a forum dedicated to motor oil for over 15 years. Lest they start to suspect me...

:sneaky:

I sometimes mention something on BITOG to my wife. I can tell she’s interested when her eyes glaze over and she slowly reaches for her phone...to check out BITOG, I assume.
 
I avoid telling people I've belonged to a forum dedicated to motor oil for over 15 years. Lest they start to suspect me...

:sneaky:

My GF called me a nerd when I told her that.......
 
Owning a 12 year supply of oil I take as a sign of mental illness. Just say no to the mass delusion and false economy of keeping a stash of oil. I have no problem with using a dealership or especially its parts department though. You just need to know how to deal with service writers.
A whip and a chair? Pepper spray? Ball peen hammer? Baseball bat? Shotgun? Stuff him in a crate and put it on a slow freighter to Abu Dhabi? (Wait, that only works in cartoons.)

Only huge oil purchase I made was when Walmart was selling old-spec 15W-40 for about $2/quart. I bought their entire stock and used it in my Caddy. (Flat-tappet cam, stiff valve springs, the high-ZDDP oil is good.)
 
I avoid telling people I've belonged to a forum dedicated to motor oil for over 15 years. Lest they start to suspect me...

:sneaky:
It's a site where we talk about cars, trucks, and the typical guy stuff.
 
I like dealer serviced vehicles. When I look at Carfax the one I buy would be the car with regular oil changes and a good reporting history on record. I do realize the private owner such as myself would not have the ability to post mileage etc on Carfax however when I see a great history it makes the car buying process a little easier. Everyone's situation is different. I do agree that regular service vehicles will last a long time and run great.
 
I have sat in many of my friends vehicles and they service their vehicles exclusively at the dealerships.
The observation I made was these vehicles do drive very well inspite their age and miles on the odometter.
Do the techs do/know something that they do with these vehicles that is not on the public domain.? Like s/w updates, h/w tweeks, pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.

Dealerships tend to prescribe more service and many people who use them get items done earlier than Indy mechanics and self.
 
I have sat in many of my friends vehicles and they service their vehicles exclusively at the dealerships.
The observation I made was these vehicles do drive very well inspite their age and miles on the odometter.
Do the techs do/know something that they do with these vehicles that is not on the public domain.? Like s/w updates, h/w tweeks, pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.

I'd say yes, as a former dealer tech, but that's not all. People going to a dealer are often prepared to pay for what';s needed, people looking for a cheaper place might be more inclined to only do what is needed to have a running vehicle.

There's no reason an indie can't maintain a vehicle aswell as a dealer and no reason a dealer can't do shoddy work or just the bare minimum.
 
Cant beat a car that’s been dealer serviced all the parts are OEM so they should be operating in peak condition. Also enjoy the not so free bagels and coffee at the dealership waiting area 😁
 
Cant beat a car that’s been dealer serviced all the parts are OEM so they should be operating in peak condition. Also enjoy the not so free bagels and coffee at the dealership waiting area 😁
Used to be a awesome dealer in New Jersey [Town Motors Lincoln Mercury] who had a nice brunch [with tons of good food] once a month. Everyone in my crew that had a Ford product went there on those days. They also did not upsell wallet flushing services.
 
Cars that get worked on at the dealer don’t really get special treatment I mean they get courtesy checks but that’s about it. There is a reason I’m a mechanic and that’s because I don’t trust anyone to fix my stuff except myself. Not even the dealer. When we bought our 2004 Camry in 2010 from an individual it was only dealer serviced and the guy was a real stickler for that but he was the type that keeps their cars in excellent condition just as we do. He only used Exxon gas. He also thought he was getting genuine oil but unfortunately he wasn’t as we use bulk oil at the dealership too but at least a reputable company delivers it but I still would not use it in my vehicle.
 
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