Just completed 30k maintenance at 29.4xx miles and it went pretty well.
I tried something new, I bought an OEM tool oil pump to suck the oil through the bar. Worked amazing for about 2 quarts of oil. After that, he stopped sucking and no more oil would come out.
So I had to do a normal oil change, which was no problem since I had all the tools and a bunch of drain plug gaskets.
Doing:
Changing the brake fluid
Changing engine oil and filter
Cabin and engine air filters
Tire rotation
Full inspection including differentials and CVT
*2 new longer bolts on my primitive Racing transmission slide due to grinding.
*Cleaning the brakes since I was in a dusty area
After doing all this, my thoughts were that the car is very easy to maintain and seems to be reliable. Everything was hard and dry. It only has 30k miles but the suspension looks good and the rear brakes have plenty of life left.
I was also surprised that all my tires were at 9/32 after 12k miles which is the same as my unused spare tire. So I don’t see any expense (knock on wood) until the next major maintenance.
For my questions:
1. I have seen some people replace their shift fluid at 30k. I chose to inspect only the changes, as required by the maintenance schedule. I’m all for changing fluids more often, but I didn’t really see the need. So did changing the fluid make any noticeable difference? And how was the quality of the old fluid at 30k?
2. I believe the next major maintenance is 60k? I think it requires spark plugs, are there any other important maintenance/mileage items I’m missing between 30-60k?
3. Does anyone have the Eibach spring lifter? I just ordered it for my Ascent and was wondering how it changes ride comfort?
