Motor Vehicle Preventative Maintenance | Service & Repairs
SAC Automotive Workshops

Take for example a Sump Services, they are no longer happening in workshops or garages.

Many mechanics are too lazy to remove the sump and clean the oil pick up and the inside of the sump and replace it.

Many owners also don’t want to pay for the gaskets and this service.

But we don’t have to tell you how many engine failures are a direct result of this simple process not being done.

A relatively inexpensive sump service or an engine rebuild or replacement for around R50 000?

You know which one sounds better to you.

More often than not, fixing a car today is complicated even for highly skilled technicians at SAC who know the job and do it every day.

Can you really imagine a D.I.Y. or backyard mechanic who last saw the inside of a engine say 10 years ago, trying to do this job.

Generally speaking service mechanics who work from home or in a small garage or repair shop can help you fix an older car, a 1980 model or something like that, but don’t be fooled, they can’t fix today’s modern and far more complicated cars, often they can’t even remove an engine cover without breaking it.

Technologically speaking engines today can and sometimes do last for 500,000 to 700,000 km without catastrophic failure.

Our own delivery vehicles are testimony of this; we have one vehicle that has done more than a one million km.

Sure it has had many preventative maintenance and service related repairs done, but it still drives like it should, looks respectable and most importantly, it is reliable.

It’s only when a vehicle is not properly maintained that it ends up becoming very costly to own and becomes undrivable long before it should.

Failures don’t just happen, there will always be an explainable reason for a failure of any nature, and most times it’s as a result of inadequate service intervals and / or a shortage of water, oil, antifreeze or similar.

Now days with turbo diesels being all the rage in bakkies, SUVs and cars and the ever increasing move by manufacturers to bring out small capacity petrol turbo cars to beat the emission laws.

The hot topic is turbo failure and more so the unnecessary turbo replacement on turbo diesels for instance, 95% of them are oil starvation related so again an inexpensive oil change or a R20 000 turbo repair or replacement.

Again which one sounds best to you?

How often do you hear that somebody has had a turbo go on their vehicle, had the car in at the agents or even elsewhere and not too long after have the same problem again?

People are quick to diagnose the problem as being the turbo, but using the logic we have already discussed here, the turbo does not just blow, it fails because of some or other reason and unless that reason is identified and rectified, it will happen over and over.

The exact same thing happens when it comes to diesel pump repairs, again 95% are related to inadequate lubrication as a direct result of diesel filters not being replaced regularly enough and not the pump itself.

A diesel filter for a R100 or a pump repair for R10 000? You know the drill, which sounds better?

Preventative maintenance is not only linked to your engine, how often do you see relatively new vehicles with a windscreen scratched by worn or broken wiper blades, is that really necessary?

A windscreen replacement might not only destroy your no claim bonus on your insurance, but it could also cost up to R10 000 in hard earned money out of your pocket if you don’t have short term insurance.

It is the same when you run your tyres with the correct pressure all the time, you could easily see them lasting up to 70 000 km, yet while having them too soft or too hard could shorten their life down to say 40 000 km.

That means you are buying new rubber twice as often as you should, and you know that tyres are far from cheap these days.

What about your car’s exhaust?

A broken exhaust is not only noisy, it can cost you extra in fuel and even go so far as to burn the valves in the cylinder head as a result of your engine running too lean and result in an expensive repair bill that could have been avoided.

SAC offer a full range of exhaust repair and replacement options that include the fitment of OEM parts right up to the best in hand made stainless steel performance exhaust systems out there today.

The bottom line is that repair bills are drastically reduced by very basic maintenance and regular service intervals and we at SAC offer you a full range of service and preventative maintenance options to suit any budget.