Three ways to set the interval
| What it says | Use it when | |
|---|---|---|
| The maker's schedule | Kilometres or months for your model, whichever comes first | Always, if you can find it |
| AA New Zealand's rule of thumb | Every twelve months or 10,000 km | The book is missing or you can't read it |
| The AA's high-mileage advice | An interim service every six months or 5,000 km | You cover a lot of kilometres a year |
Why the maker's schedule comes first
The maker sets the interval for that engine, its oil and its parts, and the schedule says what's done at which visit. Oil and filter come every time; air, pollen and fuel filters, coolant and driveline fluids come round on longer steps. AA New Zealand notes that makers' intervals vary widely, from 15,000 to 30,000 km on some cars.
There's a warranty reason too. The MTA says a qualified independent mechanic should be low risk for a maker's warranty as long as the servicing follows the maker's guidelines and specifications. Extended warranties are another matter: the MTA says most of them need dealer servicing to stay valid, so read that booklet before you choose.
What if the car is a Japanese import?
A lot of New Zealand cars arrived second-hand from Japan, and the service book, if there is one, may be in Japanese or long gone. That doesn't leave you guessing. A mechanic who works on the make can look up the maker's schedule for that engine and tell you what's due at its kilometres, including bigger items like the cambelt (the rubber belt that keeps the engine's valves in step) on engines that have one.
Until you know, the AA's twelve months or 10,000 km is a sensible default, with the first service on your watch treated as a fresh start.
When your car needs servicing sooner
- Lots of short trips where the engine never fully warms up.
- Towing a boat, caravan or trailer.
- Dusty gravel roads or farm tracks.
- Stop-start city traffic most days.
- High kilometres: the AA suggests an interim service every six months or 5,000 km.
- A warning light, a new noise or a leak, whatever the date says.
How to work out your car's interval
Find the schedule
It's in the service book, the owner's manual, or the screen on newer cars. If none of those is to hand, ask a garage that works on the make.
Find the last service
The stamp in the book, a reminder sticker on the windscreen, an old invoice, or the garage's records. Consumer Protection notes that a garage you use regularly keeps notes on your services, warrants and repairs.
Count both ways
Add the interval in kilometres and in months to the last service. Whichever arrives first is when it's due.
Check the bigger items
The cambelt, spark plugs, brake fluid, coolant and transmission fluid often run on longer cycles. Ask at each service what's coming up next.
Write it down
Put the date and the kilometres in your phone so the next one doesn't sneak past.
Isn't the WoF enough?
No. The WoF looks at whether the car is safe on the day: tyres, brakes, lights, steering and suspension, the exhaust and the rest of the inspector's list. The MTA says it doesn't cover engine, clutch, gearbox or differential condition, or oil levels. A car can pass its WoF with tired oil and a cambelt that's overdue.
A service is what looks after those parts. AA New Zealand points out that a routine service also checks for safety issues ahead of the next WoF, so doing both on one visit makes sense when the dates line up. How often the WoF itself falls due depends on the car's age and the date it was first registered; the sticker on the windscreen shows the next one, and NZTA publishes the intervals.
What happens if you skip a service?
Usually nothing you'd notice straight away, which is the trap. Oil breaks down and carries more dirt, filters clog, and small leaks or worn parts go unspotted. AA New Zealand warns that skipped services tend to mean bigger bills down the line, and Consumer Protection makes the same point: regular servicing stops small jobs becoming serious ones.
If you've missed one, have the car serviced now, tell the mechanic it's overdue, and ask them to check the items the missed service would have covered.
What you can do between services
You can
- Check the oil on a cold engine every few weeks.
- Check tyre pressures and tread; the MTA puts the legal minimum tread at 1.5mm.
- Walk round the car once a month to check the lights, wipers and washer fluid.
- Keep the service book or invoices together in the glovebox.
Leave to the mechanic
- Oil and filter changes with the grade the maker specifies.
- Brake, steering and suspension checks on a hoist.
- The cambelt, coolant and other long-cycle items.
Where we'd start
We'd find the maker's schedule for the exact model and follow it, whichever of kilometres or months comes first. With no book to go on, we'd use the AA's twelve months or 10,000 km, and step up to six-monthly visits if the car covers big distances, tows, or lives on gravel.
Lost track of when it was last done?
That's common, especially with a car bought second-hand. Tell us the make, the model and the kilometres, and put 'not sure when it was last serviced' in the note. The mechanic who rings can work out what's due from there.