How to save money ahead of your scheduled car service

Yes, yes, we all know some of our owner’s manuals have never seen the light of day, but your owner's manual has a trove of useful information that can potentially save you money.

For one, it tells you what's involved in each scheduled service and when your car needs that attention – good stuff to know if you don't want to waste money on unnecessary service visits or simply want to be able to confirm if the service jobs on your bill match-up with the manufacturer recommendations.

Your owner's manual also contains a wealth of information about how your car works, as well as care and use recommendations that can help you minimise wear and tear. It will also have instructions for maintenance and parts-replacement jobs you can do yourself.

A warning light popping up on your dashboard is your car telling you something isn't right with one of its systems.

Some warnings can be a harbinger of instant, wallet-emptying mechanical doom. Others can warn of less urgent, less significant issues or simply be a reminder to replenish something as mundane as wiper fluid.

Knowing what your warning lights mean can help you make the right – and most cost-effective – call when the flashing starts. You'll have a better idea which ones demand urgent action to avoid potentially compounding the issue (and cost) and which ones are less pressing and/or could potentially even be remedied yourself. Yet another reason to read your owner's manual.

Letting a mechanical issue fester is a sure-fire way to increase the cost of remedying it, but what if there's no warning system to help you identify a problem and nip it in the bud?

That's where regular checks of your car's key fluids and consumables come into play.

Keeping a tab of your oil, coolant and brake-fluid levels and their condition, for example, can help you spot a sudden increase in consumption or simply determine whether your current fluid-change regimes are sufficient. A monthly check of tyre pressures and condition can help you quickly identify (and remedy) wear issues, increasing the lifespan of your tyres.

The modern car is a complex beast but even today it's still possible to take control of some key consumables and minimise your costs. One low-hanging fruit is windscreen-wiper blades, which can be sourced and fitted yourself for very little effort, and likely for fewer dollars than letting it be done in a scheduled service.

Another is lighting. Many head, taillights and other automotive lighting remain bulb-based and changing them yourself is simple – and cheaper than letting a technician do it on company time.

For advice on how to perform these kinds of low-level jobs, look to your owner's manual. You'll also often find information on how to perform oil changes, air-filter changes and other more in-depth, but still relatively simple mechanical tasks that can be taken on by the confident, careful DIYer.

For more handy do-it-yourself tips go to: ‘5 quick DIY fixes to save you money.’