How often does your car need a tune-up?

Question

I have a 2002 Saturn with 60,000 miles. It has never had a tune-up. How often does a car need one?

Answer 1

Once a year, depends how much you care about your car I suppose.

I'd say you're about due for a tuneup though.

Answer 2

Modern fuel-injected cars are pretty much tuning themselves up all the time.  So the "tune-up" of old, where you get in and check carburetor adjustments and valve lash and stuff like that has pretty much faded away.

If your Check Engine light is off, your engine is doing okay.  You can get a reader to pull the codes out of the computer and find out what else it has to say - that can sometimes point out things that might be a bit out of spec but not enough to trigger the light.  But to keep your engine in good tune anymore requires being sure that all its sensors are working properly, like the O2 sensor in the exhaust system, the Mass Air Flow sensor in the intake system, stuff like that.  The computer can tell you which ones are reading badly; maintenance is a simple matter of pulling the old sensor and putting in a new one.

Get the Haynes manual for your car, and also the Haynes Emissions manual that covers most makes.  Both can go a long way to helping you keep your ride on the road on your own and under budget.

Good luck!

Answer 3

me i try to do it at least once a year.

Answer 4

the newer cars with the systems that they have and the plugs that are in use, 100,000 miles is about good. if you look in the owners manual, you can locate a maintenance schedule for the car. go by that and you can not go wrong.

Answer 5

i think a better question is how do you maintain your car?

i have a 1999 Nissan sedan, now with 270,000 kms.  I change oil and oil filter every 5,000 kms (on my rate, about every 3-4 months).  Weekly, i check the brake fluid, battery levels, transmission fluid and radiator water (just spot check their levels to ensure that there are no leaks).

twice a year, i rotate my wheels.  once a year, i change radiator water coolant. twice a month, i check my wheel pressure and ensure all four wheels are all 29psi. Once every two years, i perform a wheel and camber alignment.

don't forget to give a car wash when needed, but most especially, once a month,engine wash.

i have not really went into a 'tune up' for my engine.  my car is still in perfect condition and still could run 190 km/hr.