done 3rd servicing needs advice on serviced parts

Hi,

     I don't use my wagonR daily so end of year (3rd service time) speedometer showed around 6200km.

1) I asked MASS SA why its needed to change engine oil but he insisted as its given in service book. Was that really necessary? He also added some Oil additive. I want to know why its needed?

2) I also did wheel balancing and shocked to see he used almost 15 different weights on 3 wheels? Was that really necessary? As per SA it is. Question is did I drive bad? why so within a year it was needed to add that many balance weights.

3) I also got a page full chart of wheels. Don't understand those tables per tyre. Is there any referece information to know how balancing charts read?

The adjustments happened to Toe,SAI and Included Angle ranges. I am giving one of the front right tyre chart here.

"Oil additive"? Or was it "fuel additive"? Either ways not needed usually. Oil change was a good thing to do - usually 6200 KM is considered too early but oil (and oil filter) changes are (or should be) always welcome.

For the wheel balance, you should know the answer. Did you drive rough? Did the wheels take a lot of hits as a result of moving over bad roads at high speed?

Alignment - the SAI & included angle still look out of normal range and from the looks of it were not adjusted at all - before and after figures are the same.

1. It is recommended to change engine oil, at least once in 6 months. Though some of the manufacturers recommend a change in 18 months. In the dusty and polluted roads of our country, I personally feel 6 months to be the maximum limit, irrespective of usage.

2. It is not uncommon to use so many weights. It is not a question of whether you drove bad. It is more a function of the potholes that we drive on.

3. Can't understand the chart. Never bothered to understand it.

After the exercise, if your car moves in a straight line with hands off the steering wheel, you should be glad that all the above was done.

 Nice answer Anand - straight to the point. Especially "If your car moves straight..."

Yes I admit I had done some bad driving (bad condition of roads) so I was expecting some kind of wheel balancing but not this much to add so many weights. SA told me that even if half of the wheel rim is filled with weights we can still drive without a problem.  I even confused with that chart. some of the entries are  not matching to specified range. Looks like it can be data entry operator mistake.

I checked the bill again and yes its "OIL ADDITIVE" written.

BTW, what is that chart really, is it wheel alignement chart?

It cannot be a data entry mistake. Those charts are automatically printed by a machine which does the 'alignment'.

15 weights on 3 wheels is really not much. The wheel is mounted on another spinning wheel and weights are added to get the balance right. Sometimes (or most times), the weights are more than what is required, hence they add a counter weight at some other point to get the right balance. And even though, they are called 'weights', they really do not weigh much. Don't bother about it.

"Oil additive" looks fishy to me, Bunty. For one, engine oil IS supposed to contain many things - including additives that prolong the oil's life, provide enhanced lubrication, and also burn inhibitors which ensure that the oil itself does not burn or burns cleanly.

Three words- oil additive - scam.

MASS charged me Rs. 425/- for Oil Additive part. I did some google search on product BG-110-MOA and found this  and this product info

Well, IMO that item was uncalled for. Engine oils are made to good standards nowadays and oil additives are not needed at all (and the same is stated in the team-bhp forum post). Better be careful the next time you deal with them - these ASCs have a bad habit of fear-mongering and doing unnecessary stuff just to make money!

Point is, whatever be the claimed advantages of the additive, regular oil changes will simply mean that the additive will get washed out anyways along with the oil. So the putting in new additive only amounts to an extra expenditure more than anything else, since regular oil changes will anyways keep the engine in top working condition (my 10 years old santro has been getting regular oil changes and (touchwood!) engine is still in prime condition - this without any additives or speciality stuff in the oil or fuel)