Do I need to ask for a “Tune-Up”?

When I was younger, I specifically remember my mom taking her car in for a tune-up. I wasn’t exactly sure what that meant but I knew it was for her car. At that point, a tune-up meant that you’d be replacing the spark plugs, distributor points, inspecting or replacing the cap and rotor and possibly replacing the fuel and air filters.

But is that what is needed now?

Cars are always changing. There are so many differences between cars from 10-15 years ago that there isn’t always a reason to do the same things you had to do before. A tune-up was a preventative maintenance operation that usually needed to be done about every 12,000 – 20,000 miles. Now, you may have more time before some of these things are replaced.

These days, spark plugs can last up to 100,000 miles. So, there isn’t any reason to take your car in to get them replaces every 20,000 miles. It is a good idea to get them inspected to make sure they are still working correctly because anything can happen.

There are plenty of things that can be done during a tune-up that can be done by just getting your car looked over. When I take my car into the dealer’s service area, there are certain things done depending on the mileage on the car. They know the recommended time to change things on your car based on the make. You can also check the owner’s manual for that information if you like to keep track of yourself.

So, do you actually need to request a tune-up?

Not anymore. Everything that used to be done during a tune-up can be done during your regular maintenance on your car, especially if you do everything during the time period you are supposed to. Remember, every car is different. Check the owner’s manual for the updated information on your car.