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[Varche]

My Dads low usage ( in terms of mileage) Fiesta is a year old today and is going in for its service. He uses it every day.

In the Ford dealer blurb there are  three TLC treatments recommended which he is declining . I am interested in what folk think about them and the prices. They are:

Bacterial cleanse £25, recommended every year.
Is this a diy item ? If so presumably you can buy whatever they “spray” in. Anyone do this on their car.

Brake Fluid change £50 recommended every two years
Is that a reasonable time frame. Does it just degrade with time as it absorbs water or does heat and heavy braking also come into play?

Engine flush and fuel treatment  £24. Recommended every two years.

Two things here. First is added to engine to clear oilways and sump of sludge at oil change.
Is this spmething that needs to have been done regularly to avoid suddenly releasing a load of gunge on a several years old vehicle?
Second is a fuel additive. To clean the whole fuel system , lowers CO2 emissions, removes harmful contamination . Contains an octane booster to improve performance and in most cases to improve mpg. Noticeably. Seems a big claim. Presumably this is “STP” type treatment bottle just tipped in fuel tank.?

Which of those, if any,  do those forum members with newer cars do? Are they automatically included in service specs?

[STEMO]

Unless these things are part of the manufacturers servicing schedule, I politely decline them. Renault recommended an air conditioning clean when the wife had her captur. When I said I hadn't noticed that one in the book, the nice young lady just changed the subject.

[BazaJT]

Bacterial cleanse is often referred to as an "air con bomb",basically it's a can of spray and you set the car running with air con on and trigger this can,put it in footwell of car shut the door and walk away for a while letting the can empty itself and the "smoke" in the car disappears.Yes you can buy it over the counter and do this yourself[read the instructions though as they may vary product to product] It has long been recommended to change brake fluid every two years[unless you've got silicone fluid in there-but I don't know that manufacturers use silicone from the factory]how many owners ever bother with this is debatable though.Engine flush and fuel treatment is imo something of a con job and easy earner for the dealers.

[Nick W]

They're £5 cans of snakeoil that are recommended purely to increase the dealer's profit margin. The only one that you'll know if they actually used is the 'bacterial cleanse' as you'll smell it.


Oil flushes and fuel treatments are for the gullible, don't let that be you.

[Kevin Wood]

I would say all of the above are snake oil except the brake fluid change. That probably is genuinely in the service schedule for every 2 years and is worthwhile IMHO. Regardless of how it is used, it absorbs water and, if the fluid gets too bad, you'll suffer more expensive issues eventually.

[Shackeng]

You can buy a brake fluid tester quite cheap which shows if the fluid has deteriorated. I have one, but also rely on common sense. I didn't have my Mondeo changed at 2 years and 11k for £53. I'll do it myself next year in the unlikely event I still have the car, and I'm sure it will be fine.

[Doctor Gollum]

2-4 years is the usual interval for brake fluid, REGARDLESS of mileage...

Manufacturers either include it every other service or as an ad-hoc item based on time.

It's fair to say that in a healthy system, with normal use, the fluid will probably still be safe past four years... But the more you use the brakes, either by way of abuse or plain mileage, the sooner it should be changed.

Track cars possibly every weekend.
Plod, etc every six months.
Taxis annually.
Typical usage driving hard, 2 years.
Typical usage driving gently, 4 years.

But certainly wouldn't go much past that. Size of car and gearbox type will also have a bearing...

[TheBoy]

Pretty much all cars are some variant of DOT4 brake fluid, so that'll be every 2 years as part of the schedule.

The antibaterial A/C 'dangle berries' is up to you, but a tin is around £7, and easy to do.

Engine flush, if its been serviced, not needed. So is the dealer admitting they aren't servicing it properly?

[Varche]

I am presuming the engine flush is done same day as oil change. Let old oil out( or suck it out through dipstick?) then add four litres (approx) of light oil laced with fairy liquid. Run engine for five minutes, empty and refill with real oil....... Probably would be the kiss of death for every old engine but done from new maybe beneficial.

Funnily enough they collected it this morning. Last night they rang to check "it is the service and engine flush and oil treatment?" My Dad quick as a flash said No, just the service.

[Nick W]

I am presuming the engine flush is done same day as oil change. Let old oil out( or suck it out through dipstick?) then add four litres (approx) of light oil laced with fairy liquid. Run engine for five minutes, empty and refill with real oil....... Probably would be the kiss of death for every old engine but done from new maybe beneficial.

It's even more of a con than that: pour a half litre can of Super-gullibility-miracle-jism  into the engine whilst it's still hot from screaming into the workshop at max rpm minus one. Then drain and refill the engine as normal. This stuff is mainly about increasing your profitability targets and you can further improve them by charging for the stuff and not actually using it, as the customer will never know the difference.

[deviator]

Probably would be the kiss of death for every old engine but done from new maybe beneficial.

This. The engine flush does breakdown crap stuck to the inside of the engine. However I bet a significant proportion doesn't come out with the oil. Meaning that dirt that was doing nothing but being stuck there is now having the same effect on your oilways as a 100 day smoker and their veins.

[Varche]

Just arrived back

10,000 mile inspection to Ford spec

Plug - oil drain 10.79
Oil filter assembly 9.20
Filter odour and 16.85
5W20 oil(1/10ths)   five at 11.60 equals £58.00
Cleaner glass  1.70


Parts 96.54
labour 60.96
VAT 31.50        total £189

Presumably the oil doesn't come out of 5 litre cans but lots of one litre bottles

He nearly fell over. It has just costs him £330 this morning as the house kerosene boiler had a serious leak that had ruined two major components. He had a cataract removed yesterday to add to his misery and I won't let him drive, gallavant around etc 

[annihilator]

2 things stick out £58 for oil and a sump plug probably buggered by the mechanic and not chargeable to him 

[Doctor Gollum]

£10.79 for a sump plug is taking the piss however you type/read it

A new plug for the A Class was a third of that...

[Nick W]

2 things stick out £58 for oil and a sump plug probably buggered by the mechanic and not chargeable to him 

Cost of the oil is what you pay at a dealer. Any dealer.


Sump plugs are now consumable items; the retained seals see to that. I wouldn'tdon't reuse one more than a couple times. £10 is taking the piss though.