Electric car servicing

[cheeky_chops]

Nissan went from £150 to £200 for a leaf! Soon as it was out of warranty went to a EV specialist in Warwick and it was under £90.

[anonymous-user]

The biggest cost of EV servicing is the "manditory" 2 year brake fluid change (not that you'll actually use the brakes more than once in those 2 years ime)

Other than that, they look at it, change the cabin pollen filter and wash it. That's it.

[stut4]

Cheers chaps. Food for thought. Don’t mind paying for inspection but don’t fancy paying similar cost as full oil change etc when all they’ll do is plug it into computer, check software, tyres, brakes and pollen. Squirt a bit of white grease on door hinge and kerching.
Bit nervous of a 5-6k leaf, as have previously considered old Honda eclipse / Prius and older cars more chance of battery issues.


None of these dilemmas for me when I get rid of my v90 and get the s6 I’ve been listing after 🤣

[dave_s13]

stut4 said:

.
Bit nervous of a 5-6k leaf, as have previously considered old Honda eclipse / Prius and older cars more chance of battery issues

The only problem will be it will have lost a few battery capacity bars. Ours is on 10/12 and has approx 65mile range. Wife's commute is about 20mile round trip. Use it for local running about, charge it up every couple of days.

Charges on the octopus tarrif at 5p/KW.... basically a free car so far.

It's an appliance though. E-golf is a nicer thing but obviously a lot more money.

[aestetix1]

cheeky_chops said:

Nissan went from £150 to £200 for a leaf! Soon as it was out of warranty went to a EV specialist in Warwick and it was under £90.

You can do that while it's in warranty. They can't void the warranty because you used a non-dealer garage.

[jjwilde]

Mr E said:

Nissan threw in 3 years of servicing when I bought my used leaf. I don’t think they do very much.


It won’t be going to a main dealer when the free servicing is up. On the ramps once a year for a brief health check and that’s about it.

Someone left their dash cam on and all the dealer did was turn the car around in the car park, check the fault codes (none obvs) and clean the car.

£189 please.

Another owner who left the dash cam on caught someone pissing in a bucket and then using that to wash the car's windscreen, he got a new Leaf out of it (he had to sign a NDA and remove the video).

[Sheepshanks]

Baldchap said:

Our old Tesla was basically inspection, brakes and battery coolant.

Interestingly, if you didn't have a single service, the warranty remained intact.

I saw a Tesla service schedule and it had things like change wiper blades, rotate wheels. check alignment etc. I guess it's a carry-over from the US, where they routinely do those things on a service.

As you say, it did state that servicing is optional though.


As for eGolf, the 2yr service is going to be the same as on ICE cars - a major service without oil and filter changs. Plugs and air filter aren't changed until 4yrs.

The oil change takes about 5 mins in dealership so its not much less work. In fact if they add some electric specific bits then it'll likely take longer. However VW ICE servicing is a bit of a rip-off so that's not a good reference point. I waited while daughter's petrol Golf had its first service and it was in the workshop 20 mins.

[Sheepshanks]

Max_Torque said:

The biggest cost of EV servicing is the "manditory" 2 year brake fluid change (not that you'll actually use the brakes more than once in those 2 years ime)

If they're not used much it would be a good idea to get the brakes stripped and cleaned, but good luck getting a garage to do that these days.

[romeogolf]

Our services this year;

Renault Zoe - £118 at main dealer
Mercedes C220 - £260 at independent

[anonymous-user]

Sheepshanks said:

Max_Torque said:

The biggest cost of EV servicing is the "manditory" 2 year brake fluid change (not that you'll actually use the brakes more than once in those 2 years ime)

If they're not used much it would be a good idea to get the brakes stripped and cleaned, but good luck getting a garage to do that these days.

I purposely try to remember to use the brakes at least once on every journey, and every couple of weeks to give them a good use, get them hot, to try to keep them working nicely. Otherwise they just grumble and grab and rust away....

[Major T]

Had my I3 BEV for the last 4 of its 5 years.

I paid for one BMW service whilst in warranty at 2yrs old, at a discount but still too steep.

As others have said, they just change the cabin filter and brake fluid and givie it a wash.

3 years later, I'm going to check the brake fluid for water content and change it myself, if it needs it. No plans to take it anywhere for any more servicing.

[Digga]

Max_Torque said:

Sheepshanks said:

Max_Torque said:

The biggest cost of EV servicing is the "manditory" 2 year brake fluid change (not that you'll actually use the brakes more than once in those 2 years ime)

If they're not used much it would be a good idea to get the brakes stripped and cleaned, but good luck getting a garage to do that these days.

I purposely try to remember to use the brakes at least once on every journey, and every couple of weeks to give them a good use, get them hot, to try to keep them working nicely. Otherwise they just grumble and grab and rust away....

Most brake fluids, certainly Glycol-ether (DOT 3, 4, and 5.1) are hygroscopic (water absorbing), which means they absorb moisture from the atmosphere under normal humidity levels, so will deteriorate over time, with or without use. Basically, they go 'spongy' and boil at far lower temperatures. Silicone based fluids aren't hygroscopic, but won't shed moisture that accumulates.

[Sheepshanks]

It's not that I'm alluding to - it's that pads / sliders etc stick with lack of use. The brakes may start to feel very 'dead' or a pad will stick and wear away.

[jjwilde]

Isn't it the law that you can get the car serviced anywhere? Surely someone could check the fault codes for you and charge £20? Give you a receipt?

[Mr E]

Max_Torque said:

I purposely try to remember to use the brakes at least once on every journey, and every couple of weeks to give them a good use, get them hot, to try to keep them working nicely. Otherwise they just grumble and grab and rust away....

I occasionally drag the car on the brakes for similar reasons. Handbrake too.

[Mr E]

jjwilde said:

Someone left their dash cam on and all the dealer did was turn the car around in the car park, check the fault codes (none obvs) and clean the car.

£189 please.

Another owner who left the dash cam on caught someone pissing in a bucket and then using that to wash the car's windscreen, he got a new Leaf out of it (he had to sign a NDA and remove the video).

To be fair to them, they picked up that my can of tyre sealant was out of date last time, and offered to sell me a new one at inflated costs.

[Richyboy]

What about swapping the tires around to balance out wear?

Even for my ice car, first thing they do is rip out the wire to the dash cam and push it out the way of the complex work that’s need to be undertaken.

[aestetix1]

jjwilde said:

Isn't it the law that you can get the car serviced anywhere? Surely someone could check the fault codes for you and charge £20? Give you a receipt?

You can get the car serviced anywhere. You must service it according to the service schedule. For common EVs this will be no problem for a garage with a bit of EV knowledge.

[Mr E]

Richyboy said:

What about swapping the tires around to balance out wear?

That might involve getting hands dirty.

[gangzoom]

3 years and 37k not been for any 'service'. One set of new tyres, and I changed the pollen filters + HEPA filter up front my self for £100 in parts (HEPA filter was £80 by it self).

May get a 'service' next year, but than again not sure what the point it. Brake fluid is fine according to the £10 pen I got off Amazon.

Very strange owing a car that essentially needs no maintenance.....Though mine does go to the dealership often, every 4 months or so for warranty/additional work to fix/correct stuff that should have worked when it left the factory, due again end of this month .