What sort of regular maintenance should be done on my car?

Question

So I bought a 2005 Hyundai Elantra, and I'd like to keep it around for a while, meaning I plan on taking care of it as well as I can. The problem is, I know almost nothing about cars, and I am wondering what sorts of maintenance issues I should keep up with on a regular basis. The owner's manual gives me an outline of everything that should be checked and when to check it, but it's a long, confusing list. Obviously I know engine oil has to be changed every couple thousand miles or so, but do I really have to change fuel filters, spakr plugs, hoses, gaskets, transaxle fluid, air cleaner filters, etc. every single time I bring it to the shop for a routine check up? If so, that's fine...I'm just trying to figure out what to ask for when I bring it in to a maintenance center. I guess just asking the service people to look at the whole car and replace anything that is defective or low is stupid? Should I bring in a list of everything that needs to be inspected/replaced a la the manual?

Answer 1

If you want to take care of it the best you can, the first thing you want to do is find a mechainc that you TRUST. Once you find him/her, go over the maintenace schedule with them. They will know best what servicing will need to be done to your car and when.

If you can't find a mechanic then the best thing you can do is follow the owner's manual for recommeded maintenance. Now there usually is two sections. One for normal driving and one for severe driving. If you drive a lot in stop and go traffic or you use you car for only short trips that is considered severe driving so keep that in mind. The parts you list dont have to be changed every check up but they do have a finite lifetime and will have to be changed at some point. The maintenance schedule in the manual will tell you when.

DO NOT tell the maintenance people to change anything defective! They will find TONS of things to change every visit! Just tell them to do the stuff listed on the scheduled maintenance.

Answer 2

Follow the owner's manual for the maintenace service. The main thing is to get the oil changed. If you do that every 3K miles, then when you bring the car in, the service manager will also suggest additional work. If you rotate your tires every other oil change and have them balanced, you should get quite a few miles out of them. The air filter about every 10 to 15K miles unless you drive in very dusty conditions. good luck.