Now that you have done your homework, negotiated a great price and lease terms you can live with, you will want to brush up your knowledge regarding car maintenance scams.

Everyone is suspicious of being “taken for a ride” when bringing a car in to be serviced. But knowing some of the popular tricks that your service station may try to pull is the best way to protect your pocket book.

Flushing

Dealer service stations often recommend flushing a car’s engine or transmission, when in fact, manufacturers warn against this money-making practice.

Severe Maintenance

Most drivers need to follow only normal maintenance schedules, but service stations may try to talk you into “severe” maintenance. This involves changing fluids and filters more often than is necessary. When the only thing it will really benefit is their bottom line.

Frequent Parts Replacement

If you are getting continuously charged for replacement parts, your mechanic may have had a difficult time diagnosing your car’s problem. This may just be an honest mistake, but your mechanic should still refund you the cost of parts that did not solve the problem.

Similarly, if the same part is being replaced over and over, this could be a problem of faulty workmanship. Check with ConsumerReports.org and search for issues with your vehicle and that same part. If this is not a problem that many owners of the same model have experienced, it may be due to your car repair man’s inexperience.

Dealer Only Service

If you have a mechanic that you have worked with in the past and trust, then by all means, keep going to him. Many car owners believe that having their car serviced outside of the dealership will violate the terms of their warranty. When in fact, the only services that must typically be performed at the dealer service station are warranty repairs, recalls and any post-warranty work that you want the dealer or buy here pay here car lot to pay for.