Time & Distance vs Longlife.

[LouCyffer]

It has come to passe that I did make a proclamation that ye longlife service is ye worke of ye devile. Much wailing and gnashing of teethe has beene heard due to this. I also claim that ye Earthe is notte flat, but it be round.

I do therefore charge that ye goode folke of ye Forum Of Goodness shall vote. In the light of opinion shalle ye truth be tolde.....

Stand forth and vote!

[JackG]

Ok now as a service advisor for Volkswagen I'd like to make some input here
And this is my honest opinion 

Longlife: 2 years or 20k
Let's take your Volkswagen passat tdi that's leased and it's driven by a rep everyday who covers 40k per year?
Your minor vs1 (longlife level 1) service will cost roughly around £180....this is due to the fully synthetic oil that's used
Your major service (vs2) will cost about £290 this cost mounts up due to the additional parts used like fuel filter air filter etc etc.
Now remeber this rep is doing 40k per year...that means he has 2 services a year wich will cost his lease company about £350 for the years servicing (excluding brake fluid changes etc). now if he was on the time and distance servicing (10k 1 year) then the cost at the moment is £129 for the minor and £249 for the major then he would need 4 services in 1 year costing his lease company around £700 for 1 years servicing 
The main reason cost differ is due to the fully synthetic oil used on longlife it's about £13+vat per litre as opposed to the bulk oil that's around £5 per litre on your time and distance servicing,
The longlife servicing is cheaper and better for the right customer in costs and the quality of the oils used

Time and distance (1 year or 10k): this service regime should only be offered to pepole doing around 11k per year
The cost of a minor service is £129 and a major is £249
So the first year the car will cost £129 for it's service.....not a bad price??
The 4th year or 40k it will then cost you £249 for a full major service...again not bad considering the other 3 years have cost you around £129 
The oil that's normally used on time and distance servicing is 10w40 bulk oil (it's from shell) but if the manufacture recommends using a fully synthetic 0w40 (or 50) then the dealer servicing the car SHOULD use what is recommended for the engine and keep the price of the service the same as the offer states (if you go back to the dealer 4 years later and need a new bottom end due to crap oil and they service the car then there will some red faces  )

Now my 2p's worth 
I wouldn't want to let my beloved ed30 run on the same oil for 2 years (although this is fine and that's what the oil is designed for) I happily have it serviced every 10k with the fully synthetic longlife oil purly for the fact I want my engine clean
If I was doing 40k per year then I'm sure when that service ping comes on then I'll get pissed off and wished I could have it done every 20k!
So to me the longlife servicing is brilliant if your the right customer
If your doing lots of miles then it's good....last longer...costs less to get it done too
But if your not doing lots of miles then your not getting any benefit from it!

Most dealers automatically offer longlife as a recommendation as most volkswagens now come from the factory on lonife anyway 

Hope this helps clarify a few scratching heads! Any questions just drop me a pm
Cheers
Jack 
   

[LouCyffer]

Thank you Jack. Very interesting indeed. Isn't there a point about short runs/low mileage trips should avoid Longlife, as well? I seem to remember my dealer advising along those lines.

[vRS Carl]

I am on long life servicing but will do my own oil, filter & pollen filter change every 10k miles

[JackG]

Thank you Jack. Very interesting indeed. Isn't there a point about short runs/low mileage trips should avoid Longlife, as well? I seem to remember my dealer advising along those lines.

Yes that's correct,
Have you ever seen the sensor in the bottom of the sump near your sump plug? That's the oil quality sensor
If your on the longlife and do lots of stop start journeys then the oil isn't getting hot enough and it's staying pretty thick.....over time this sensor will think "the oil is too thick" and then ping the service light on the dashboard regardless of miles, this again is from my point of veiw something that should be asked when buying a new car? customer should be asked how many miles they do and if the want longlife or not? Would stop all the confusion 

[jamma]

How do I know when my car needs a service? Does something flash up on dashbroard?
cheers

[StuF]

It appears on the dash - tells you it needs servicing in around 30...29....28 days every time you turn the ignition on.
Until the magic day where it says SERVICE NOW!!


Im on time/distance so every year I get the countdown, although next years will be cheap compared to this years £800 Service/Cambelt/Waterpump/Brake Fluid/CV Boot/MOT session!!

 

[JackG]

It appears on the dash - tells you it needs servicing in around 30...29....28 days every time you turn the ignition on.
Until the magic day where it says SERVICE NOW!!


Im on time/distance so every year I get the countdown, although next years will be cheap compared to this years £800 Service/Cambelt/Waterpump/Brake Fluid/CV Boot/MOT session!!

 

Yea mine has just said 1000 miles till service  and she's nearl 4 years so cambelt needs doing