[Closed] Car service intervals - do they still apply if you don't use the car?

just your perceived resale value

if you are keeping your car I'd have no worries about stretching that out another 6 months

basically sits in the road and goes a couple of miles to the supermarket and back every 2 weeks

This is one of the worst things you can do with a car. It doesn't warm up properly so moisture accumulates in the oil which causes it to work less well.

I'd stick as a minimum to the service intervals recommended, if not more often with that sort of use.

Doesn't an engine wear faster with short (cold engine) journeys vs. long motorway journeys?

Then again alloy engines can warm up after a minute of driving vs. old iron or steel block of yesteryear?

More importantly use the right grade?

(I'm no expert so any new news/info/posts would help me too.)

Any downsides to leaving it another 6 months before getting it serviced?

2nd trip to the garage? For a 10 yr old car I'd service every year at the same time as the MOT for convenience rather than separate trips.
Or to save a few quid maybe just oil & filter change and MOT as the MOT would pick up any safety issues anyway (assuming you know it isn't due anything like cambelt changes etc).

I really wouldn't worry about going six months longer.

I would stretch out the time but make sure I was servicing before the due mileage with that type of driving.

eg if your servicing is annual or 10k and you have done 3k in it then do it at 18 months and 5k.

One thing you must not extend either mileage or time is the cambelt.

Also you will be getting out of sync with the planned service intervals so things like brake fluid, coolant etc can be neglected and will need doing at some point.

As said moisture gets into the oil which degrades performance, same with brake and clutch fluid. If your service intervals advise a time then I'd stick to that especially since they tend to stretch things out.

Just change the oil, everything else can wait. Do it yourself on the drive and it'll cost you about £50.

Or do it yourself on the road, save spilling oil on your drive!

Or do it yourself on the road, save spilling oil on your drive!

I did that once with my gearbox. Only after being proud of myself for not spilling any I went and kicked over the container (I was draining back into the oil bottle) and it flowed downhill past my neighbours drive containing his DB9. That took a lot of paper towel and soapy water to make sure there was lovely gearbox oil to coat his tyres the next day and come find me! (he's a big guy)

Gravel drive from now on and bottle stood in a washing up bowl unless I am using the drain pan in which case a sheet of cardboard under it to catch any of those dribbles which seem to go sideways.

It's 10k or 12 months for a reason. Some cars do specify a 6 month oil change for extremely low mileage use, as the level of condensation you get in the oil is very high. You sometimes see this as mayonnaise under the oil filler cap and in the breather pipes on shopping cars. A petrol engine runs pretty rich during the period from start up until it gets to operating temperature, which for your car is going to be most of your driving time. This means there will be more fuel degrading the oil than you would expect.

I personally would do an oil change every 6 months, either myself or somewhere like National Tyres - they generally have an offer voucher on their website and do the job for about the same price as you would pay yourself 5L of oil and a new filter.

As for servicing, I'd get service done every 12 months, but make sure that the garage is actually doing what the service manual requires and not just doing an oil and filter change but charging £99...

depends on the car. Some models moan if you miss a timed service interval. And some dealerships will often call to remind you.

Unsure if the various fluids and lubes degrade sufficiently over the time you're talking about to justify worrying about it. Things like bushings, wipers, may degrade at the same rate used or not.

Resale value probably only matters if you're not planning on either keeping it until it fails or not planning to trade in.

I personally would do an oil change every 6 months, either myself or somewhere like National Tyres - they generally have an offer voucher on their website and do the job for about the same price as you would pay yourself 5L of oil and a new filter.

I would be very wary of them using the wrong grade of oil and a substandard filter.

Personally I am not sure I buy the oil degrading either. Being heated up and subjected to combustion gases (ie what an engine does) has got to be far worse than just sitting there. Short journeys can be damaging yes, bit not sitting there which it sounds like the OPs car does most of the time. Not a 1 mile a day trip to school or work.

Just change the oil, everything else can wait. Do it yourself on the drive and it'll cost you about £50.

Go to National Tyre or Kwik Fit when they have an offer on and it'll be cheaper than that.
I've often just had an oil change one year and a full service the next. I wouldn't skimp on oil changes personally.

EDIT
£34.20 for our 1.6 petrol Focus right now. You can't buy the parts for that price if you DIY!
http://www.national.co.uk/oil-vehicle-search.aspx

Personally I am not sure I buy the oil degrading either. Being heated up and subjected to combustion gases (ie what an engine does) has got to be far worse than just sitting there. Short journeys can be damaging yes, bit not sitting there which it sounds like the OPs car does most of the time. Not a 1 mile a day trip to school or work.

Well trust me when I say you're wrong. Yes, normal use is bad but engine oils are hygroscopic. Unless its kept in a climate controlled garage it'll break down.

Marine engineer by trade

I would be very wary of them using the wrong grade of oil and a substandard filter.

Last time I was in one of their branches, they had a massive stack of Fuchs oil in various grades.