Service levels
We’d be pleased to service your car for you. First, you need to determine what level of service you require.
In a nutshell, different aspects of the car require checking or changing at different intervals, so our service levels together form a sequence based the factory specified intervals, plus additional items we have found that it pays to check, which achieves this without doubling up on any work.
At this age, many cars have lost their service history or simply haven’t kept up with it, so the question becomes one of where in the cycle to start. Some people like to reset the service clock by having a full service, others choose to enter the cycle at a different point after having considered what’s involved in the different levels in conjunction with what they know about the car’s history.
The different service levels are as follows (our labour rate is $115+GST):
Pre-1980 cars
- Lube – change engine oil, grease suspension, top up transmission oils and other fluids every 3000 miles maximum. Labour 1.5 hours.
Additionally, if the car covers limited mileage, change coolant to keep anticorrosive properties fresh and hydraulic fluids to prevent the build-up of absorbed moisture which corrodes cylinders causing them to need replacement. (additional 1 hour). These items should be done every 2 years regardless of mileage.
- Intermediate service – includes a lube as above (including hydraulic fluid change), a tune-up and a check list of items that need attention more frequently than the full service intervals below. This is based on the workshop manual 6000 mile check and service. Labour 5 hours
- Full service – The full 12000 mile factory-specified check list, plus other items which from experience we know can be checked and addressed if necessary before they become a costly failure. Labour 9.5 hours (HS carb models), or 11.5 hours (HIF carb models).
MGF/ZR
- Lube – every 6000 miles/10 000km: change engine oil, grease suspension, top up transmission oils and other fluids. Labour 1.5 hours.
Additionally, if the car covers limited mileage, change coolant to keep anticorrosive properties fresh and hydraulic fluids to prevent the build-up of absorbed moisture which corrodes cylinders causing them to need replacement. (additional 1 hour). These items should be done every 2 years regardless of mileage.
- Intermediate service – includes a lube (including hydraulic fluid change) as above plus a check list of items that need attention more frequently than the full service intervals below. This is based on the workshop manual 12000 mile /20 000km check and service. Labour 3 hours.
- Full service – The full 24000 mile /40 000km factory-specified check list, plus other items which from experience we know can be checked and addressed if necessary before they become a costly failure. Labour 4.5 hours. (5 hours if the car is due for new spark plugs and a compression check).
In addition, the cam belt(s) need changing every 60 000 miles (100 000km) or 5 years, whichever is sooner (usually 5 years).
If you don’t know where your car is up to in this service cycle, we recommend that customers “restart the clock” with a full service, and also get the cam gear bolts secured (where applicable) with Loctite (modern practice is that there is no locking device, but occasionally unlocked cam gear bolts can work loose with very expensive results). This takes an additional hour.
If you know the service history of your car, I have attached the schedules for the full and intermediate services to assist you in selecting which level you want to enter the cycle at.
Important Note
In the case of the intermediate and full services, the labour shown above is that needed to carry out only the service itself (including the tune-up, which takes 2.5 hours). Specifically, the times above do NOT include any additional time involved in addressing items which are checked and identified as requiring attention. Any items which require additional time spent on them are addressed only after consulting with the customer first.