bigbudha

i am strong believer in preventative maintenance. my 2003 e320sport is about to
hit 60k miles. What things should i do to my car so it can give me another 60k worry free? vin WDBUF65J23A153156

edwinwalke

Just make sure you continue to have it serviced according to the manufacturer maintenance schedule. For your 2003, if the transmission fluid has not be changed you should have the fluid and filter changed.

jcat

these cars are pretty good about telling you/the mech what they need. Given that your car is a 2003 and only 60k miles on it (mines an 06 with over 75k..yeesh), you'll want to pay special attention to stuff that wears with age and not necessarily mileage. Definitely do your oil/filter (if the car or your mileage/time since last change dictates), sample the trans fluid and make sure it's alright. Even if it's still pretty red it may be a good step to do a few drain and fills (do NOT let a dealer/shop 'flush' the trans with a machine. this usually does more harm than good.) and change the trans filter. Check the rear diff for any leaks and change that fluid if it's not been done within ~30-45k, check under the car for all the rubber bits (ball joints, tie rod ends, bushings, endlinks etc.) that may be aging/cracking/too pliable, check out the coolant and replace if necessary, pull a few spark plugs and see if they look alright and change if necessary, clean the throttle body, other than that maybe a bottle of fuel system cleaner in the tank and a good wash and wax and you should be alright! Those 320s are excellent motors that were used for a very long time, by 03 a lot of the bugs were sorted.

bigbudha

thanks guys,

but the tranny flush thing i am not to sure about. i had a 88 lsc no tranny problems but my mechanic talked me into a tranny flush, boom three days later my tranny went.

jcat

Uh buddy...notice I specifically said NO flush, just drain and fill.

bigbudha

thanks jcat,

should i do the brake fluid flush also? whats a good price for these service at a indy shop?

jcat

meh, only if it needs it i'd think. Fluid should be nice and clear, i guess it couldn't hurt to drain and fill as long as the indy knows what they're doing when bleeding the brakes. If you're talking about everything I listed off you're going to be into it for a few hundred dollars on up to over a grand depending on the rate the shop charges and what you choose to have done.