DIY servicing or get it done.

[Mikes defender]

G'day,

When i bough my defender 4 yrs ago i swore that i was going to get it serviced so that time in the shed was spent playing with my other toys (Peugeot 205 gti's) But the service was due during christmas holidays and i did it myself. After doing it once i completely demistifyed the process and carried out the services from then on.

Now im wondering if there are any guys with disco 3/4's that service there rig's themselves.

Pros:

Learn about the car, could help fix it if broke in the bush.
Manuals avalible on line
Cheaper
Can do it on any day of the week thats free
Know the job was done right. Don't have to fix other mechanics mistakes.
only have to get the shed in the backyard. Not half way across melbourne


Agaisnt

No dignostic computer. (can you get them?)
Difficult convincing buyer that you know what your doing.
Bloody heavy car to jack up
LR knows the tricks and what wears out



What are your thoughts?


mike

[Neil P]

If you're not in a warranty situation , then do it yourself.
The electronics is a work-or-not aspect . There's very little
involved , which is why we consider warranty service costs
to be a ripoff. The markups on supplies and charges alone
are worth your self-servicing , never mind the labour !
There's more involved in tractor maintenance , and most
owners wouldn't consider calling out JD etc.

[Nomad9]

Hi Mike Defender,
I do all my own servicing, D3 SE 05, electronic dagnostics I bought a Faultmate MSV 2 from Blackbox Solutions, takes a bit of getting used to, the forum attached to the product is brilliant. I've used the unit for diagnostics as well as some playing around. The only thing I take the vehicle to an agent for is the four wheel alignment something that I believe is specialised. the cost of the tyres off sets getting the wheel alignment done properly. The agent has done the safety recalls when I've taken the vehicle in for the wheel alignments.
I agree most whole heartedly with your comments about learning about your vehicle, you never know when this might be handy.
Good luck, its worth doing th servicing yourself, my opinion, others may vary.

[trobbo]

My view is a little differnt to those above and is based predominantly on how long you plan to keep the car. I love fiddling with them, however I would not spend 40K, 30K, or even 20K on a second hand car unless it had a full service history carried out either by the factory or a reputable workshop or it was so ridiculously cheap that you couldn't walk away from it.

[Mikes defender]

Thanks for your input guys.. Ill see how lazy/adventurous im feeling in 5000km when the service is due. Don't think it will take long coz i really enjoy driving it!!

Had a chat to my local mechanic, after he did the RWC, to see if he could service it. His quote was "it was made by man there for man can fix it!"

[roamer]

Had a chat to my local mechanic, after he did the RWC, to see if he could service it. His quote was "it was made by man there for man can fix it!"

Your local mechanic sounds enthusiastic, but sometimes a little bit of knowledge can be dangerous (expensive/frustrating), these cars aren't build by man or fixed by man, they use computers,
but services should be straight forward enough.
Cheers Ken