🔧 Car service checklist

Most of what keeps a car reliable happens between services, not during them — a few minutes most months catches a fault while it's still cheap to fix.

20 items

1. Monthly checks
2. Oil levelCheck on level ground with the engine cold — a hot check on a slope reads wrong either way.
3. Coolant level in the expansion tank
4. Screenwash topped upRuns out faster than expected in winter grit and summer bugs.
5. Tyre pressures, including the spareCold, not straight after a drive — a warm tyre reads higher than it will overnight.
6. Tyre tread depth1.6mm is the legal minimum in the UK; most garages will flag it before then anyway.
7. Lights, watched by someone outside the car
8. Wiper bladesJudder or a smear across the glass means it's time, not a full service item.
9. Brake pads and discs listened forA grinding or squeal at the wheel means pads worn to the indicator — waiting turns a pad job into a disc job.
10. Battery terminals checked for corrosionA white crust building on the terminals is resistance building before a cold morning it won't start.
11. Cabin pollen filterIgnored for years on most cars — a musty aircon smell is usually this, not the aircon itself.
12. Brake fluid checked against its change intervalIt absorbs moisture over time even unused — most manufacturers specify a change every two years regardless of mileage.
13. Any warning light noted with the date it came onWhich one, and whether it's solid or flashing — that detail is what the garage needs, not just 'a light came on'.
14. Unusual noises written down as they happen'A noise on the left when turning' is something a mechanic can trace. 'It sounds a bit off' isn't.
15. Service book or digital record kept up to dateA full history is the single biggest thing protecting the car's resale value — see it settled before you ever need to sell.
16. MOT advisories followed up rather than left until next year's testAn advisory is a fault caught early, cheap to fix. The same fault left a year becomes a fail.
17. Aircon regas checked every couple of yearsPerformance drops gradually enough that most people don't notice until it barely cools at all.
18. Cambelt or timing chain interval checked against the handbookMissing this isn't an expensive repair, it's a wrecked engine — the interval is a mileage or a number of years, whichever comes first.
19. Spare wheel or tyre repair kit checkedA flat spare is only found out about at the roadside, which is the worst possible time to find out.
20. Next service booked before the last one is forgottenBook it against the due date on delivery, not when the reminder sticker happens to catch your eye.