SINGAPORE – Servicing is an essential part of car ownership. While cars are immensely complex pieces of engineering, modern machines are typically very reliable and do most of what owners want with little complaints. They just need a little TLC once in awhile.

What’s the best way to get your car serviced, bar none? Sign up for a service plan with your authorised dealer/distributor (AD), book service times at your convenience, and let the professionals handle the rest.

You might get strange looks from dissenters, or the insistence that servicing at ‘outside’ third-party workshops is cheaper. They may be right, but only in one sense. Here’s why you’ll be even more right, pleased and relaxed with official servicing.

Servicing at an AD saves you money
Cynics may extoll the virtues of a garage in Batu Pahat where their mechanic Ah Seng charges RM15.00 for an oil change, but that’s being penny wise and pound foolish on multiple levels.

Any proper AD will have a range of service packages which are designed to deliver complete care of a car while saving you money with a ‘bulk rate’ at the same time. You can also sign up for loyalty schemes, just like with an airline or coffee joint, and enjoy other freebies and benefits.

Most cars now come with an extended five-year warranty, but warranties can only be upheld if, in all fairness, what’s been done to the vehicle has been carefully documented. ADs will do this – but third-party workshops don’t – so the latter puts the validity of a car’s warranty in question.

Speaking of carefully documented, going to an AD also means you’re guaranteed the car’s being serviced with genuine parts, because the alternative can be just as bad as not servicing at all.

Lastly, all this helps you immensely when you want to sell your car. If you were on the market for a pre-loved car, what would give you more peace of mind? A car with a full service history from the AD or a bunch of scribbled receipts from Batu Pahat?

Servicing at an AD saves you time
Servicing a car usually involves things like an oil change, cleaning an air filter, safety checks and so on. That old maxim about ‘good, fast, cheap – choose two’ does ring true, but you certainly can’t rush service when there’s a big an investment as a car on the line.

The truth is, servicing your car anywhere will take time, but why not service a car at a place where parts are always on hand and the service staff are professionals that know the car best, and have all the tools needed to take care of your car?

Here’s another reason the proper way saves time: The AD for Toyota in Singapore, Borneo Motors, for example, lets you book your service online and also offers express service packages. For instance its Toyota Express Maintenance  guarantees the job done in 60 minutes or less, while Evening Express lets you service your car after office hours – and they’ll even give you a decent dinner to go with.

Servicing at an AD delivers peace of mind
Orderly workshops, highly-trained staff, genuine parts, a comfortable lounge – but when it comes to the ‘back end’ of taking care of a car, it’s actually the bits you don’t even see which matter just as much.

ADs like Borneo spend huge efforts and money to deliver a seamless customer experience. Like its Central Parts Depot which stocks 14,000 parts at a time and has a floor area of 78,000 square feet. And that’s just for parts alone. Compare that to a place whose back end is literally a backyard and the pros of going the AD route are pretty obvious.

Servicing at an AD can be a happier experience
The talent and resources of a larger company also allow the creation of a place where the staff obviously put their heart and soul into delivering the best experience for customers. It’s not just about having an air-conditioned place to sit, but going the extra, human mile. Think about it: If you’ve bought your car from an AD whose sales staff are happy where they are, and all about delivering what you need, rather than hard figures and numbers, could there be any place better for taking care of the service you, and your car, deserve?