Advice on Service History

[Diablos-666]

I went and viewed an '05 Vantage yesterday with 24k miles on the clock.

My query is regarding the service history as there are year gaps. The owner / dealer (home dealer) said that as there was only 2k miles done in the year, the previous owner done 2 year services where both a minor and major was done at the same time.

The service book does show 2 Stratestone stamps on the same date.

Is this common on a Vantage?

[Big Ry]

Not common, but if the car has a full AM or reputable Indy service history then I wouldn't be concerned. Providing everything that should have been does has been done then I would say it's OK.

That's my personal opinion anyway.

[C997]

Call Stratstone and ask if they have any concerns with the service history. Low mileages are much more common than high mileages in Astons. Mine's going for a service soon with, embarrassingly, less than 400 miles between stamps.

[Sump]

A full service history strictly equates to a service every 12 months or 10k regardless.

The mainentance sheet clearly states :

"Maintenance time intervals
should always be obeyed, even with low service mileages, to keep the vehicle at the best performance and condition."

Even though due to such low mileage servicing once every 2 years won't make an ounce of difference, the reality is that it is NOT considered full service history.

[Ken Figenus]

Its a tricky one isnt it - as a buyer you want a FSH no quibbles but as an owner it seems crazy to service a very low usage vehicle annually. Especially as these days BMW for e.g. permit high performance Diesel cars using the same oil as the Aston to do at least 17,000 miles on it and request a change the brake fluid every 3 years.

I think only you will know but it depends on the deal too...

Edited by Ken Figenus on Sunday 22 March 18:02

[johnxjsc1985]

If you have doubts when you come to sell it on those doubts will be taken up by future buyers.

[Diablos-666]

Ken Figenus said:

Its a tricky one isnt it - as a buyer you want a FSH no quibbles but as an owner it seems crazy to service a very low usage vehicle annually. Especially as these days BMW for e.g. permit high performance Diesel cars using the same oil as the Aston to do at least 17,000 miles on it and request a change the brake fluid every 3 years.

I think only will know but it depends on the deal too...

Yes it is a tricky one. Especially as you say other high end cars have 2year / 20k mile service intervals (I think even some Pork have this?)

The deal is okay I think.

06 Vantage V8 manual 24k miles for £34k (including £22k for my Porsche 993 120k miles tip as PX)

Other dealers have offered me £18-20k PX.

The Vantage was last serviced mid 2014 so is due one now. I've asked if the car can be serviced as part of the deal. He said he would but it would not be a main dealer / main Indy.

[Ken Figenus]

For me a non main dealer or reputable Indy based service history would be a dealbreaker as a buyer. Local garage is not good enough at this level.

Also just to add if you are going to put any warranty on it I think the history may need to be tighter - do check rather than get caught out.

Edited by Ken Figenus on Sunday 22 March 18:08

[johnxjsc1985]

if you are buying an Aston or a Bentley of a Ferrari the service history must be 100% or walk away.

[vankypanky]

i think it depends on the age of the car. for some older cars an annual service is fine and you skip the interval one. even my own dealer suggests that it is very normal.
you have a big service followed by a little service but you then just skip the little ones

[Diablos-666]

Thanks for the advice to all that posted.

I contacted the guy and told him of my concerns regarding the service history and that I wasn't happy that the car is due a service and it not being completed by a specialist.

He said he'd look into getting it serviced at an Indy. So a deal might still be on 😀

[dig123]

The other thing to consider is how long you are looking to keep the car, if you are planning to keep it for a long time in say 10 years and the servicing is back on track it will be less of an issue than if you are only keeping for a year.

[hashluck]

I think the issue for me ia that servicing is not that expensive in the scheme of things and thus suggest the owner has tried to run the car on a budget and likely skimped elsewhere as well

[shuzzy]

I think you will probably find there are more cars out there that have 'missed' services when travelling low mileages, than there are that have a full and complete service history. If you are going to insist on a car that has had a service every 10k or annually then you will have a much smaller pool of cars to choose from. I considered quite a few and can say ones with every single service stamp were the exception and not the norm. It wouldn't be a deal breaker personally provided the car goes in for service prior to sale, which should also pick up on other potential issues.

[Ken Figenus]

And I think it needs to be said that any car with FSH does NOT mean that all issues or faults reported by the dealer to the owner have been fixed or addressed - particularly if the car was out of any warranty. A stamp never guarantees all is 100% and the advisories that went with the stamp could be the very reason for the sale!!!

[johnxjsc1985]

Ken Figenus said:

And I think it needs to be said that any car with FSH does NOT mean that all issues or faults reported by the dealer to the owner have been fixed or addressed - particularly if the car was out of any warranty. A stamp never guarantees all is 100% and the advisories that went with the stamp could be the very reason for the sale!!!

you can check MOT's on line and advisories would show up.
Maybe the correct thing to do is have the car fully inspected.

[DB4DM]

A stamp never guarantees all is 100%

Hooray for realism, experience and judgement. It's a machine, they break at random. No warranty will cover everything

[Quinny]

My main concern would be...How long did it go between oil changes?? Not so much in time, but in mileage....

Oil changes are supposed to every year or 10k miles......modern oils are very good, so if it's gone say 18 months to 2 years without an oil change, I wouldn't be that concerned.....

However if it's done 15000 miles between oil changes....I'd probably walk away..

[Ken Figenus]

Quinny said:

However if it's done 15000 miles between oil changes....I'd probably walk away..

I would too Quinny, but I don't know how logical that is really - my twin turbo BMW that has more torque than the Rapide is permitted to do at least 17,000 miles on the same oil by BMW. And its a Diesel.

Just cant help thinking the FSH and provenance thing is maybe a little removed from mechanical reality? But that ball has long since been rolled...

Interesting you can check MOT advisories online (but not dealer maintenance ones of course). Useful to know.

[AMDBSNick]

Ken Figenus said:

And I think it needs to be said that any car with FSH does NOT mean that all issues or faults reported by the dealer to the owner have been fixed or addressed - particularly if the car was out of any warranty. A stamp never guarantees all is 100% and the advisories that went with the stamp could be the very reason for the sale!!!

Absolutely correct.

When I was looking at buying our DB9 I did a deal over the phone for a low mileage Volante with FMDSH. I got a call a day later to say the car would be auctioned as it was not fit for sale post the 140 check. Turns out the car had every stamp but the "1 owner" had ignored every advisory. And yes a MD had taken it in PX against a new car. Seems they only do the 140 check when they have a buyer. Said car appeared 2 weeks later at a "specialist". No doubt a good polish made it "look the part"!!!! For total peace of mind get it checked or go MD or respected AM indie

BTW my DBS missed its first service rendering it worthless