Do you still take your car to a garage for a service when you have an older fiesta, it is a good £200 cost or do it yourself.

Being doing very very local driving is it worth it as you would only not get a stamp but save loads,still do oil and filter and check fluids yourself.

Do a lot do this now.

All the cars I’ve had go to the garage once a year for an mot ok the service book isn’t stamped but you can still fill in the book yourself and keep all the receipts at least any future buyers can see what has been done to the car in that time. Obviously some people can’t  or would prefer to take it to garage.

I think it depends on whether people are able to do their own servicing or not.  Lack of off-road parking, time or mobility issues prevent it being a possibility for many.

Personally, I've never had a garage service in the decade or so that I'd been driving.  Even when I could no longer get under the car I did the oil change using a suction pump...  But then I wouldn't trust a garage as far as I could throw them, and that isn't far!  

 

I'm a 'garage' man. Though I'm very fortunate to have found a local place that is exceptionally talented, competent, and trustworthy. (The owner even bought my last car from me as he knew how well it had been maintained - by him!). I must confess that I know how to do the basics, in theory, but now just haven't got the energy, strength, or motivation to DIY. Collecting 'stamps' have never been important to me, but I am meticulous in keeping all receipts of work carried out.

Totally your judgement, but as Tom says, much relies on how much you trust someone else to work on your car...

When I was younger I did all my own work even to rebuilding gearboxes.   I even built a very good Ford Corsair out of two scrappers that I bought for a fiver for the two.   However, when I lift the bonnet of my Fiesta nowadays and see what's facing me I'm happy to let the garage deal with it.   Apart from that, at 86 years of age I'm happy to pay someone else to do it.

1 hour ago, Bobr said:

even built a very good Ford Corsair out of two scrappers that I bought for a fiver for the two. 

When I was just a kid we used to have a Corsair 1600 V4, I can still remember the reg. JJU 623D it was part of the family. It used to like going regularly to the local petrol station for a good drink. I think it only did about 18 mpg 🤣

I service my own cars once out of warranty, haven't found a garage I trust to do the service to my standards and garages in my Area charge stupid prices. 

I might just do it myself as i can and then i can put what oil in i want and filter.

A normal service it mainly oil/filter and check/top up fluids as M.O.T check main things,i do know a few who dont trust a garage even more so a main dealer which i will never trust.

All depends on what you are good at and like doing. I've serviced my cars myself for 30 years and enjoy doing it. When I've come to sell cars or traded them in they've only wanted to know whether there is a service history and not where it was done. I always keep the receipts for the parts and I fill in the service book and it's always without exception been accepted as a full service history. I've probably saved a fortune as well ! My current car was bought when it was only three months old (ex demonstrator) and I've serviced that at home as well and have the receipts for the genuine Ford parts I bought.

I'm one for doing my servicing too. Always have done. 😂😂😂😂😂😂.

But didn't start doing servicing at 10years old. Was 17 when I started.🤣🤣

I could probably worry those of you that trust main dealers. I was servicing cars unobserved and even fitting tyres at the Honda dealership on school work experience aged 15...having never touched a ratchet before and really having little idea as to how cars worked!    

There had been a mix up with the bookings (you've all seen Inbetweeners work experience episode right? ).  Had a massive panic attack on the first day with the responsibility of handling other peoples '90mph, 1 tonne killing machines' but massive credit to the techs there, they persevered with me and within literally 2 or 3 days I was doing a full service on my own.  Sad as it sounds, still one of the best experiences I've had!

I was 19 when I briefly worked at Ford, but had been maintaining my own cars for a year or so by that point.  It was only my health issues that stopped me taking the full time job there.  I would have been a Master Tech by now if it wasn't for those.