When you know whether or not you’ll be selling vs. maintaining your vehicle, you’ll be able to make decisions about the actual work that will get done in our shop. This topic comes up quite a lot in our office with customers.
We actually love talking about it directly, since vehicle repair and maintenance are less fun to spend dollars on than dinners out, fun new toys, or the next vacation.
Here’s what you need to consider:
1. How long (or, how much longer) am I planning to keep this vehicle?
Different decisions will be made for different scenarios. Let’s say Jason is considering buying a new ride in the next year and a 30k, 60k, 90k, or 120k service (or another big systemic service) is due in 6 months for his current truck.
A big upcoming service wouldn’t be as big a decision for Sarah, who wants to keep her truck in good shape for her daughter who will be driving in 2 years. Sarah wants to drive a new car when her daughter gets her permit & license. If her truck is in good shape, it’ll last another 4-5 years in the family. This is good enough for Sarah.
2. Is the vehicle worth the repair or maintenance it’ll take?
Cars, trucks, SUVs, hybrids, and electric cars can seem to have multiple needs at once. Accidents and collisions definitely happen along with regular maintenance and other things that just break or get worn down.
We track repairs and maintenance proactively and collaborate with our customers about what should be fixed next for their vehicles so it works for their timing and budgeting.
Knowing and understanding maintenance costs in advance will make it easier to decide how long you’ll keep or sell your vehicle.
3. Review previous service records
Knowing when major services or repairs have taken place, including oil changes, can give a clearer picture of what’s been done and what may be coming in terms of maintenance needs.
Note: If you’ve taken your vehicle to the dealer or another shop, there may be recommendations in previous service records about what to watch for or consider as a future fix (e.g. brake pad wear, belt or chain update, etc). Look for notes, suggestions, or recommendations.
4. Better yet, ask us to review them with you
If you’ve been a customer with us (thank you!), we have all of your records handy and would be delighted to talk specifics about your car and its needs directly. Call or come on in and we can go over previous records really quickly.
Plus, we will ask specific questions to help you clarify, understand, and decide how this vehicle may or may not be with you.
We’ll ask the right questions. You will make all of the decisions.
5. Ask about our Comprehensive Used Car Inspection
Our 100+ point inspections are definitely comprehensive. If you have a newish, or new-to-you vehicle that you’ve had for a year or two, this inspection will give you more clarity, really quickly, about what will be needed for maintenance or repair for the life of the car (with you).
Specific ratings regarding the safety and maintenance of your vehicle are provided.
This is also known as a Pre-Purchase Inspection and it is absolutely the service to request when you are considering buying a used car as well.
We counsel and educate so many customers on this. Allow us to save you some time, heartache, frustration, and money. Ask about this inspection, or go ahead and schedule it now.
You can schedule any service with us today.
We’d love it.