Myths start with a grain of evidence and are then built up with a lot of imagination and very elastic logic. And the internet is a breeding ground for automotive myths. Some bloggers recall the vehicles of yesteryear and declare their modern decedents to be virtually maintenance free, and note that anyone who says otherwise is out to rip you off.

Let’s examine a couple of the more popular rants and look at the truth behind them.

The first one is that the chassis no longer needs lubrication for suspension, steering and the driveline. They declare that anyone who has charged you for lubrication is a charlatan.

The truth on which the myth is based is that most cars come from the factory with sealed joints and cannot be greased. However, there are still some grease points on some cars. A grease fitting may have been installed in conjunction with a repair. And most trucks and truck based SUVs still require chassis lubrication. This is because they are more heavy duty and proper greasing is still required to keep them going.

Another common rant is that modern cars don’t need tune-ups. That depends on your definition of a tune-up, which has changed as technology has progressed. Before engine control computers, electronic ignition and fuel injection, a tune up meant replacing mechanical parts that wore out. You’d manually adjust fuel and air mix and timing. When these adjustments were off, spark plugs would foul and need to be replaced.

This definition just doesn’t apply to modern vehicles. Service centers generally consider a tune-up to be the major service visit, recommended by your manufacturer, every 30,000 miles or so.

Of course you can’t lubricate a sealed joint. Of course you can’t adjust a carburetor if your car doesn’t have one. You don’t need to change spark plugs every year if your manufacturer says they can go 30,000 miles. What are these blogger getting so worked up about?

The danger with these modern-day myths, is that they prevent people from taking care of the routine preventive maintenance that manufactures recommend. Listen to this partial list of things you still need to do to take care of your car. How many of them are really any different today than they were 20 or 30 years ago?

Oil change, cooling system service, transmission service, tire balancing, tire rotation, wheel alignment, suspension service, power steering service, proper tire inflation, brake service, differential service, battery maintenance, engine air filer, PCV valve, breather element, fuel filter, belts, hoses, timing belt, windshield wipers . . .

You get the picture. Your car or truck is still a machine that needs to be maintained. And, hey, your service advisers have always adapted to keep pace with automotive technology. Next time you come across an angry voice about your car care, talk to your service adviser, or do some research of your own.

Nowadays, everyone is paying more at the gas pump. For some families, it adds up to several hundred dollars every month. That’s got to come out of the budget somewhere. Throughout North America, people are putting off buying a new car. They plan on keeping their old vehicle for a year or two longer than before.

Even now, 2/3 of the personal vehicles on the road have over 75,000 miles on them. The average age of vehicles is over nine years. And most of us can’t afford to be stranded or inconvenienced by a break down. So following a regular maintenance schedule, like our personal diet and exercise plans, is actually critical to preserving your investment.

Knowing what to do for a higher-mileage vehicle can be challenging because many owners’ manuals don’t publish service intervals after 60,000 miles. It just means that you need to be better at keeping records and planning your preventive maintenance.

You can start by figuring that services with a recommended interval should still be performed on that interval, even after you’re past the tables in your service manual. For example, a service might be recommended every 15,000 miles. Well, just keep doing it every 15,000 miles for as long as you have your car.

Now higher mileage engines operate under more stress. Some experts suggest that the severe service schedule is more appropriate and that routine service should be performed at shorter intervals. Check with your owners’ manual or service adviser to see if the severe service schedule is right for your vehicle.

And keeping up with your full-service oil change schedule is important for a couple of reasons. First, older engines have had more time to build up oil sludge. Skipping an oil change here and there can really compound the problem.

The second benefit is that your other fluids are routinely checked and topped off. Power steering fluid, brake fluid, coolant and transmission fluid can be kept at optimal levels even though the older seals and gaskets are leaking more than when they were new.

And speaking of older seals and gaskets: they start to dry-out and become more brittle with age. You may want to consider using high mileage formulation oil and fluids. These products contain special additives to condition seals and gaskets to keep them from leaking. The high mileage formulations cost more than standard products, but they are well worth it in terms of preventing serious repair bills down the road.

Older vehicles need repairs and replacements that newer ones don’t. Things like timing belts, radiator hoses, suspension work, anti-lock brakes, air bags, water pumps, alternators and batteries. That may seem like a lot of stuff to have done, but it works out to be cheaper than new car payments.

With a high-mileage vehicle, a couple of relationships will become pretty important. The first is with your service adviser. You need someone you trust to take care of your car and be mindful of your needs. Ask for help to develop a plan to keep your vehicle road-worthy that works within your budget.

The next relationship is with your vehicle itself. We’re not talking about naming your car or tucking it in at night. We just mean – pay attention and get to know your vehicle. Notice unusual sounds, smells, vibrations, etc. Then you can describe the changes to your service adviser and head off problems. We can’t do anything about the price of gas, but we can properly maintain Old Faithful to keep it safely and economically on the road.

We all know we’re supposed to go to the dentist twice a year. We get our teeth cleaned and have a thorough dental inspection. Once a year, we get x-rays to look for problems that can’t be seen with the naked eye. When the dentist is done, he tells us what he’s found – “Everything’s fine, see you in six months.” Or “You’ve got a small cavity starting, let’s schedule an appointment to take care of it.” By the time you leave, you have a plan for addressing any necessary repairs.

This system works so much better than waiting for a painful problem before going into the dentist. Small problems are fixed before they turn into big problems. And you avoid those huge bills.

If we buy into this way of handling our dental care, why do we resist so much when facing the same system for our car care?

Following the manufacturer’s recommended intervals can be confusing. First there are recommendations for so many things: oil changes, transmission, coolant, air conditioning, power steering, brakes, fuel system, filters, belts, hoses, alignment, rotation, balancing …you get the point.

Every item has a recommended interval and it’s hard to keep it all straight – even if you’re part of the 1% of the population that reads your owners’ manual.

And if you have more than one car, the complexity is multiplied. You’d need a computer to keep track of everything. We’ll, that’s how your service center does it. They subscribe to automotive databases that have your vehicle’s recommended intervals. You may have wondered how they know what else to recommend when you take your car in for an oil change – it’s all in the computer.

Well, it’s not all in the computer. There are other variables that can’t be accounted for in the schedule. Things like the weather conditions, altitude, and where and how you drive need to be taken into account. Talk about these things with your service advisor and you may decide that the severe service schedule in your owner’s manual is more appropriate.

Since anything that’s not highway driving in moderate weather is considered severe, most of us do at least some of that and it should be taken into consideration.

Let’s take your basic oil change as an example – what issues are involved? The oil you put in your car is a blend of base oil and special additives. There are detergents to clean the inside of your engine and corrosion inhibitors. A good quality motor oil will not only lubricate your engine, it will help it stay clean inside and run cooler.

Now, these additives deplete with use and time. That’s why most maintenance recommendations include both a time and mileage element – like 3 months or 3,000 miles, whichever comes first.

It’s easy to think, “Gee, I’ve only driven 2,000 miles in the last 3 months. I can wait on that oil change.” But you need to remember that the inside of your engine is a harsh environment. The oil is contaminated with combustion by-products that starts degrading its effectiveness even when it’s just sitting there.

A lot of people don’t realize the harm that can be done by just skipping a single oil change. There are a lot of metal parts moving around in your engine. Small bits of metal wear off and are floating around in your oil. They can be carried to more delicate areas of the engine where they cause damage. Your oil filter is designed to trap metal particles and other dirt, but if it’s clogged up because you haven’t changed it, it can’t trap any more.

Oil sludge is another problem. Sludge is oil that has turned to a gunky jelly – think Vaseline. Obviously, sludge doesn’t lubricate. It can also clog small oil passages so that all the parts don’t get properly protected by the oil. That’ll lead to premature wear.

If you’ve missed some oil changes, don’t despair. Just talk with your service advisor. Fess up – you’ll feel better. And he can help you get back on track. Following recommended intervals is the key to keeping your car on the road and avoiding major repairs.

Nothing in your engine workers harder than your oil.  With hundreds of moving parts, and thousands of explosions every minute, it’s no wonder that engine oil needs to be changed frequently!

You’ve probably heard the old rule of thumb: Change your oil every 3,000 miles/ 5,000 kilometers or 3 months, whichever comes first. But some car manufacturers have introduced extended oil change intervals.  They figure that a modern vehicle driven under the right conditions can go for 5,000 miles/8000 kilometers or more between oil changes.

The key phrase here is “under the right conditions”. If you look at your owner’s manual, you’ll see two different maintenance schedules: one for “normal” driving conditions and one for “Severe Service”.  Severe service driving conditions include stop and go, short trips, towing, hauling, hot, cold, and dusty driving. That’s why at AutoNetTV we often refer you to the severe service schedule in your owners’ manual, because, for most of us, that’s the way we use our cars in everyday life.

Recently, four of the largest auto manufacturers in the world have extended engine warranty coverage for engine damage caused by oil sludge resulting from longer oil change intervals.  They found that real-world conditions require more frequent oil changes than the 7,500mi/12,000 km interval they were recommending.  They subsequently recommended more frequent oil change intervals and proof of timely oil changes in order to qualify for the extended warranty.

Oil sludge is the culprit. Sludge is oil that has turned to a thick, jelly-like consistency.  Sludge can block passages in the engine, preventing oil from lubricating vital engine parts.  Parts wear more quickly and may fail prematurely.

Sludge is caused by several factors.  The first one is simply – time. The engine oil is contaminated by exhaust gas that eventually leads to sludge. That is where the recommendation to change your oil at least every three months comes from. Sludge can also come from oil that gets contaminated by water from normal condensation. A few minutes of driving at freeway speeds allows the oil to heat up enough for the water to evaporate. The problem is we often run errands or take other short trips that don’t allow the engine to warm up enough for the water to evaporate.  This is especially true in winter. Sludge also forms when the engine gets too hot, causing the oil to breakdown.  Stop and go summer driving, towing and hauling are all prime conditions for creating harmful sludge.  And every engine has hot spots that create sludge.

Given all of these factors, estimating when to change your oil is pretty complicated.  A couple of manufacturers have computer programs built into their vehicles that record the number of cold starts, how many times the cylinders fire, engine temperature and other factors.  From that, the computer estimates when you should change your oil and flashes a warning.  But what if you do not have a vehicle with this feature? How do you know when to change your oil? We’re not sure you really can.  Which is why it is better to be safe than sorry.  3,000 mi/5,000 km or three months – whichever comes first – talk with your service advisor and see if that’s a good recommendation for the way you drive.

Sometimes we hear people say, “What’s up with all this maintenance stuff?  Modern cars just don’t break down.” While it is true that today’s cars and trucks are extremely reliable, they are also becoming increasingly complicated and use more exotic materials than ever before.  All that complexity demands higher tolerances for everything. For example, most folks don’t realize how high tech automotive fluids have become.  Fluids like, engine oil, transmission fluid, coolant and brake fluid.

Did you know that a modern engine would not run for more than a few months using motor oil formulas from 30 years ago?  Today’s automotive fluids contain a much higher percentage of additives to protect your vehicle’s components from premature wear and corrosion.  Time and miles march on for all of our cars. Please don’t think we’re using scare tactics to get you to take care of your maintenance – but here are some personal stories from AutoNetTV staff members to emphasize the importance of getting things done when they are due. Names are withheld to avoid embarrassment to those who should know better. Even though they should know better, it usually comes down to real life: time and budget.  But they are tales of a stitch in time saves nine.

The first comes from a staffer who bought a used pick-up truck for his son.  The oil was clean and all the fluids were topped off.  A short time later, the truck overheated on the highway and shut down.  The repair shop diagnosed the problem: the radiator pan was corroded and dumped the coolant. Even though the coolant level was correct, it was clear that the coolant had never been exchanged – just topped off from time to time.  While this kept the engine cool, all of the anti-corrosion additives had worn out; the coolant became acidic and ate through the radiator pan. The cost: hundred of dollars and four days in the shop. This demonstrates the need to get your coolant exchanged on schedule.

Another story involves the true cost of skipping an annual inspection.  Our staffer took his SUV in for the state safety inspection to renew his registration.  At the inspection station, he learned that the law had changed and that his newer rig only required an inspection every two years.  He was very happy to save the $45 bucks. The problem was, his rear brake pads were very worn.  Two months later, it was bad enough that he could hear the grind – over the radio, DVD player and the kids.  He took it in to get the bad news. Both of the rear brake rotors were damaged.  The left one could be resurfaced.  The right had to be replaced.  So saving a few bucks on his safety inspection turned into an extra $500 over what brake pad replacement would have been. Moral of the story: don’t skip your annual inspections.  The irony is that many service centers would have done a brake inspection for free.

Next: a teenage daughter and a curb.  Daddy’s little princess smacked a curb when she turned into a shopping center and popped the tire.  The problem came when Dad didn’t get an alignment.  The impact was hard enough to ruin the tire – so it was hard enough wreck the alignment.  But instead of an alignment after the first tire, Papa ended up buying a second tire a few months later – and then an alignment.

Situation: son and wife with cars from the same manufacturer with essentially the same engine.  Our staffer checked the son’s maintenance schedule and saw that it needed a timing belt replacement at 90,000 miles/145,000 km.  He had it done – it cost several hundred dollars. His wife’s car had about 60,000 miles/97,000 km, so it should be ok for a while. Right? Wrong. The problem was that the wife had the turbo charged version.  Its belt was scheduled for replacement at 60,000 mi/97,000 km.  At 63,000 mi./101,000 km, the belt snapped on the interstate.  The valves all crashed down into the cylinders at high speed and the entire head was shredded and had to be replaced. The cost: several thousand dollars.  Does he wish he had checked the maintenance schedule?  You bet he does – every time he passes a big-screen TV.

We’re talking about taking care of little things before they become big things.  And when you take care of the little things, your car runs better and is more economical to operate. Remember to save those maintenance records.  It’ll show potential buyers that you’ve taken care of your vehicle and it will help you get a better price. Or when you buy a used car, check those records.  If there aren’t any, assume that the maintenance hasn’t been done and take it to your service center for an inspection.  Take care of unperformed maintenance sooner rather than later.

A lot of our viewers have asked whether or not they should use their severe service maintenance schedule, which is listed in their car owners’ manual.  It can be confusing.  Let’s clear the air on this subject. Cricket Killingsworth is from QMI/Heartland, a manufacturer of automotive products and fluids. She’s been in the automotive business for 20 years and is a speaker, a trainer, and a writer.  Cricket says there’s so much confusion on this topic because, “Most owners’ manuals actually have two maintenance schedules.  Sometimes these are called ‘regular service’ and ‘severe service’.  Sometimes they’re simply called Schedule 1 and Schedule 2.  A severe service schedule recommends that things like oil changes, air filter replacement, and transmission service be done more often:  either in fewer miles or in less time.”

Manufacturers create these specific schedules for each vehicle they make.  So there isn’t one generic schedule that applies to all cars.  In addition to your owners’ manual, service centers subscribe to information services that provide the maintenance schedules for every vehicle – so they can help you know when to take care of needed services. Below is a typical definition for severe service.

• Most trips are less than four miles
• Most trips are less than ten miles and outside temperatures are below freezing
• You drive in very hot weather
• The engine is at low speed most of the time (not on the highway)
• Stop and go driving
• You operate your vehicle in dusty or muddy conditions
• You tow a trailer, regularly carry heavy loads or carry a car-top carrier

It’s common sense:  Just a few minutes at freeway speeds allows the moisture in the oil to evaporate.  Very short trips, or trips of less than ten miles when it’s very cold, don’t allow the engine to heat up enough to get rid of the water.  And water in the oil leads to damaging sludge.  Also, towing and heavy loads raise operating temperatures and cause fluids to breakdown more quickly.  Dusty and muddy driving means that more dirt will get past the air filter to contaminate the fuel system and engine oil.

The bottom line is that you need to decide for yourself if the regular or severe service schedule is right for you, based on your driving.  Look at your owners’ manual, or talk with your service advisor who can help you know which schedule to follow.

Here is what a fleet manager said recently:  “Since city miles are generally tougher on vehicles than highway miles, we use the manufacture’s serve service schedule as the basis for our preventative maintenance program.  We massage those schedules over time, increasing or decreasing the service intervals so that they make the most sense.  There is a little bit of art to go along with the science.”

Make an honest evaluation of your driving habits.  Unless you do mostly highway driving in moderate weather, you’ll likely have a fairly good amount of severe service mixed in.  Some people just want to play it safe and follow the severe service recommendations, rather than analyzing how they drive each month.

If you’re reading this article, then you probably care about your car and how it runs. Even though you care, there is still that moment of dread when your service technician tells you the manufacturer recommends some additional service. Your heart beats a little faster, your blood pressure rises.  You worry about spending more money than you expected.

And you worry that if you say “no”, you might be harming your car or compromising safety.
At the risk of sounding like your dad, you really should have done your homework.  All of this stuff is in your owner’s manual.  But it is not like you want to keep your maintenance schedule on your nightstand for bedtime reading.

Cars are complicated machines and it takes care to keep them running well.  That is why manufacturers have maintenance schedules that explain how to keep your vehicle performing efficiently and prevent costly break downs. In a typical owners manual you’ll find: Oil change, brake fluid and pad change, coolant system service, transmission service, battery electrolyte levels, cables and terminals, tire pressure and wear, CV boots, cabin air filter, air conditioning, heater, fuel filter, air filter, belts and hoses, power steering fluid, differential service, fuel system cleaning, and wheel alignment. And then there are mechanical service requirements like timing belt changes, valve adjustment, steering function, engine and exhaust leaks – yeah, it is a really long list!

Fortunately, this isn’t a test: You don’t need to have it memorized.  Your service center has access to your manufacturer’s recommendations.  So do not be surprised when your technician reminds you something is due. Your manufacturer has taken great care in putting together your maintenance schedule.  Let your service center help you stay on top of important maintenance. You can expect them to suggest recommended services and tell you what problems they find under the hood.  They will also explain how urgent these services are so you can work them into your budget.