Why not do your own maintenance

Posted this in the 458 forum but curious to get more opinions on this.

So I have a 2011 458 Italia that I have owned for 7 years with 25k miles. I have done all the maintenance at the ferrari dealer but I am thinking of doing the basic things such as an oil change myself since the cost at the dealer is around $1k plus tax for just an oil change. I have worked on other cars before so the work isn't any issue.

My question is - does doing the basic maintenance yourself make it harder to sell the car down the line? Any other reasons to just take it to a shop and let them do it?

 

They are overcharging

I take it to my dealer as the stamp is great for re sale and also its not worth my time or risk to do so

 

Yes, shade tree maintenance will make it harder to sell.

I bought my Ford GT from a shade tree guy who owned a waste business with dozens of vehicles they maintained and had a great home garage. And as Hoovie might say, it still was the lowest priced FGT in the world (sub $200k in 2020).

 

This forum is full of people that do their own maintenance. That being said, a 458 may be a bit more difficult than a 360 or 430 as it's way more reliant on specialized computers, etc, but IMO as long as you keep good records, the money saved by DIY'ing if you are capable, will be more than the hit you take when selling it.

 

the more modern your car is, the more negatively affected the resale will be if you do your own maintenance.

change the oil, hell, replace the belts yourself on a 308, and nobody cares.

change the oil on a 458 yourself, and you will suffer a haircut.

 

Couldn't agree more

 

Documentation goes a long way if you're doing your own maintenance. Big difference between 'I do my own maintenance for simple items' and 'here is my log along with some photos (dates in the metadata) showing where I completed this maintenance."

 

I agree with Redneck - if you have the skills, the proper instructions ( factory level WSM) , the proper tools and equipment , buy the right parts and fluids there is no reason you couldn't do the simple maintenance tasks as well or better than some shops. People forget to realize than on the simple stuff , some places use a novice ( read kid) to work on your car. You will take pride in what you are doing and not cut corners. Save a few pics of what you are doing while you are doing it, receipts of parts etc and your resale value shouldn't be affected. You can always have a full major maintenance / check done at a dealer before a resale to show everything was checked over for those who would fel better bidding on your car

 

Doing your own service requires bending your back in painful positions. Having stuff drip and fall on you, smelling strange synthetic stuff. Lots of discomfort. It’s much easier for the guy who can afford a Ferrari to avoid the pain of doing their own service and just pay someone to do it and return to their job that they love. Doing your own service really isn’t that glamours, it’s glamours to drive the cars

 

If everyone had this manner of thinking, this site would never exist. Not sure how long you have been a Ferrari owner, if you are, but you'll see hundreds of examples of people paying absolutely insane amounts of money for simple jobs. I'd rather take the risk of needing an extra shower and maybe some ibuprofen than to pay someone $5000 for a $500 job.

 

I think if you don't care about potential resale issues, go for it. If you do, well, that's the answer.

 

Some do it your selfers are very skilled, most are not. My rule is if you ask, you are not one of the few skilled. If you are qualified you know and you are not asking here.

I know of a Ferrari owner who was recently encouraged by his friends to work on his own Ferrari without concern as to his abilities. He changed his own oil and started seeing a fluctuating oil pressure reading. He was intending to get around to asking about it when one day the engine stopped. He brought it to a shop and they showed him the hole where the connecting rod came through the block on his perfectly good TR512. Now he needs and engine. I see these stories all the time.

 

You’re gonna lose market but you’ll save money. People get the two confused. An oil change is an oil change is an oil change. Some people see that, others dispute it.

 

No different than fixing your appliances, heater, espresso machine..some.people have the skills or can follow and understand procedures where others make.light of the procedure and do it on a whim...

Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk

 

What procedure? Do you have any idea how many people here get into the middle of a job, get lost, come on here to ask advice and when I ask if they have the shop manual answer in the affirmative? Near zero is the answer. Its why I get so many ****ed up cars in here with a history of home service. They don't even try to know the right way. Sorry but I am one of the ones advising against buying cars maintained by do it your self owners. Too many ugly stories.

 

procedure meaning following a WSM when it actually describes it .. i would not ever do a job without factory level manual

But I can definitely see your point

 

Absolutely. I have a factory service manual for every car I do anything more than an oil change on. It's amazing the amount of misinformation out there by youtube mechanics, even the ASE certified ones.

 

ASE certification is a joke.

Actually a great many shops taking money working on these cars have zero technical info either. I get calls all the time wanting to know what the book says.

 

Hey Brian, would you be able to tell us what he did wrong? Never heard of a TR oil change going haywire besides stripping a drain plug.

 

Honest question.
Where did he fail in this oil change? Too little or too much new oil? Forgot to replace the drain plug? Messed up replacing the oil filter somehow?

 

It's called acquired knowledge. There are no shortcuts.

 

It’s like Clint Eastwood said man has to know his limitations. I can do basic stuff and diagnose to a degree but I’m not going to do something like a timing belt job. With that being said I factored this in to the cost of buying a Ferrari and while I obviously looked for the best example I could find I also made sure I had a cushion leftover after purchase for maintenance and unexpected repairs. As far as someone who is capable of doing their own repairs I would make sure to save all receipts and document everything but i.m.o. it still would diminish the value of the car a bit if you do your own repairs however an owner also may even out value wise as it will cost less than if you paid somebody labor to do the work for you.

 

Really good info; I would just add a few things:
1. I buy all my parts (except the oil) from my dealer; that way they know that I've done the maintenance (the parts are cheaper than on line, partly because I am an FCA member).
2. I love having stuff drip on me and enjoy the strange smells; it's Zen and how I bond with my cars
3. I bought a twin-post lift; best 2 grand I ever spent

 

This.

The main reason to go DIY is to save money. Not sure I want to buy a Ferrari on which someone opted to economize on service.

The 911 I bought a few years back - because it was a rarer model — had been maintained by its PCA member owner for decades and ran well, with clean oil, recent caps and rotors, etc., but when I had a major service done at the dealer the tech showed me several items, including the drive belts, that were overdue for replacement. Great car, but plenty of catch-up maintenance.



Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat

 

I am sorry to disagree ..money is not the reason for me ..the main reason is incompetence and no attention to detail out there .. if I found someone as picky and careful with the exterior and interior of my cars as me I would gladly pay a premium. As mentioned many times before , even if at dealer you can someone who is incompetent or doesn't care about your car.


You know how many times a car comes back from a shop with screws loose /missing .. surface scratches etc ,. overtightened plugs , incorrect gasket sealers ...wrong fluids etc





Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk