Oil, water, and other maintenance questions

[cdover73]

What is the general rule for performing maintenance when your car only sees a couple thousand miles a year? The maintenance schedule in the owner's manual is stated in a 'miles/time' frequency. So if you only put, let's say, 1000 miles on the car but you reach the 3 year mark, do you really need to change the oils/fluids because the manual says every 3 years or 3000 miles?

This applies to the following:

Engine oil/filter change, Transmission oil change/flush, Rear differential oil change, Brake system fluid change/flush, Radiator and cooling system flush, Power steering oil change, air filter clean/change.

Should I change the oil that may be like new just because I reach the time, even though I haven't driven anywhere close to the mileage listed in the schedule?

What do you do to your cars for this maintenance?

Thanks,

 

[Hirkophoto]

I suggest drive it more. That is what they are made for. I don't have that problem.

 

[Allan]

Would be a good idea to at least have the oil changed once a year at a minimum.

 

[cdover73]

Maybe I should clarify on what I was asking. I do drive the car more than 1000 miles every 3 years. I was using those numbers as an extreme example to find the answer I needed. I guess what I was asking is do the fluids break down just sitting there and therefore need to be changed regardless, or could the maintenance schedule be skipped/altered depending on how you use the car? I wouldn't mind changing the oils every week if it needed it, even though that would be useless not to mention very expensive. But the other end of the spectrum is how much is not enough?

 

[Dave1968]

I would change the engine oil every year for sure. Gear oil and Tranny oil would be ok, but at least change it once in the early life - say 1500 miles or so. I'm changing gear and tranny oil every year regardless. Antifreeze is good for 5 years, after that all you basically have is water that doesn't freeze - all the additives are depleated -more or less. So change it every five at the very least.

 

[cdover73]

Thanks! I have had the car since February and have put around 3000 miles on it. It has been in the shop for the last three months. With winter approaching I was trying to get a feel of what I need to do. Looks like pretty much everything. Thanks for feedback guys.

 

[Steve-Indy]

Brake fluid should be changed at least every couple of years with just street usage remembering that your clutch also uses brake fluid. The factory fill for your car used Mopar DOT 4...which over time gathers water and can cause fade and corrosion. Track usage requires a much more rigorous fluid change schedule...and often times a more heat tolerant fluid.