[FARUC]

I’ve always been super diligent in carrying out ‘checks’ and ‘maintaining’ my previous ICE cars often choosing to go way above and beyond specified OEM advice, hence I would like to think steering clear of any serious repairs and bills.

There is lots and lots of very good technical knowledge and detailed content on this forum (sometimes overwhelming as a recent/novice owner of an Ampera), I am still on a steep learning curve about what would constitute a good, diligent check and maintenance regime for my Ampera. Obviously I’d like to avoid any nightmare repairs problems before they might arise.

I wonder if I could simply ask the following question to create a maintenance regime, what are the TWO things you consider most important to keep an eye on and check/change each:

• week
• month
• year

Of course there may not be two things to say or there might be more! Thank you in advance for your input, and hopefully might help others starting out on their Ampera journey! 😊

 

[h8ten]

I would just keep an eye on the normal things you would have done with an ICE. Perhaps checking all coolant levels a bit more frequently as there is no temperature gauge to forewarn you of a leaking radiator and these are a bit more crucial on the Ampera. Also, check the brakes, moreso the rears as they tend to not be used as much and can start to seize up through lack of use. If you can then try and use the brakes quite severely to keep the disc faces clean and hard enough to use the rear brakes as well. Any extra maintenance will depend on your mileage and usage style.

 

[Spiny]

My take on this
1, Tyres - there is no spare! so check for nails / screws etc.
2, Fluid reservoirs. Keep an eye on them to detect any leak starting. Hopefully you have a grill fitted to the lower air opening to try and prevent this happening.
Brakes have a habit of rusting up through non-use, do try and use then now and again. (neutral on a quiet road will turn off the regen so you can scrape the disks and pads) the odd fast stop can use the disks and pads.
3,Do change / have changed the engine oil at the 2 year interval, This on a car that is mainly used on electric may get moisture in it,

I see @h8ten types far faster than me dam arthritis.

 

[h8ten]

My take on this
1, Tyres - there is no spare! so check for nails / screws etc.
2, Fluid reservoirs. Keep an eye on them to detect any leak starting. Hopefully you have a grill fitted to the lower air opening to try and prevent this happening.
Brakes have a habit of rusting up through non-use, do try and use then now and again. (neutral on a quiet road will turn off the regen so you can scrape the disks and pads) the odd fast stop can use the disks and pads.
3,Do change / have changed the engine oil at the 2 year interval, This on a car that is mainly used on electric may get moisture in it,

I see @h8ten types far faster than me dam arthritis.

Good extra comments added by @Spiny, I was trying to be the first responder so missed bits out.

 

[DomJ]

Sort of applies to all cars but do check your windscreen for chips, if it turns into a crack there can be a long wait for supply of a new windscreen, mine had to come from Germany and took over a month from claiming on insurance for it to be fitted.

 

[farmergiles]

Also check the tyre wear as often inside shoulder wear due to misalignment is not easily spotted, and of course for under or over inflation signs.

Change the 12v battery if it is more than 4 or 5 years old. Colder weather will expose a tired battery.

 

[FARUC]

Thank you all for sharing your experience and advice. Me thinks I now have the bones of an Ampera specific maintenance regime! A few follow ups if I may…

@h8ten @Spiny - Coolant Levels, this is the one which has confused from the beginning, how many coolants are there to keep an eye on (is it three?), and what does each coolant keep cool just so I understand, and can I assume all coolants are located under bonnet?

@Spiny - Engine Oil - As I have chosen to always do with my ICE cars, I was planning to change oil every 12 months regardless, however given the Ampera set up, would you say this is perhaps too much overkill?

@farmergiles - 12v Battery - Noted, not sure when the battery was last changed as I have only owned my car a few weeks So may go ahead and change anyway if not detailed in service history. Is there any brand / spec of battery recommended for the Ampera and is this located in the boot?

Thank you again for all the other pointers! 👍

 

[h8ten]

There are three coolant tanks. The manual I have on pages 145-146 has the details but basically looking into the engine bay from the front-
1 - Upper left of the engine bay is the Engine cooling system
2 - Front of the engine bay just behind the grille to the left is the High voltage battery cooling system (this may have an anti-tamper ring around the cap that needs to be removed to gain access)
3 - To the right of this one is the Power electronics and charger modules cooling system
If it works I have attached the PDF of the handbook that I have just in case your car didn't come with one.

 

[Spiny]

Engine Oil.
Like any car depends on use as well as time. If you are mainly on electric a yearly change is not going to be required.
If you change your own oil, the sump plug has a very low torque setting, there is a thread somewhere with the setting.

My Ampera even when I was doing 10,000 miles a year did @ 1000 or so on ICE, When changed at 2 years the oil was still looking new.
Now retired and holed up for a couple of years with the main petrol use being the EMM and FMM routines,the IC engine has done maybe 2/400 miles a year The dipstick is pristine!.
This month I've finally gone a bit further and we have maybe 100miles on the ICE!

 

[SHA222]

View attachment 153103

I’ve always been super diligent in carrying out ‘checks’ and ‘maintaining’ my previous ICE cars often choosing to go way above and beyond specified OEM advice, hence I would like to think steering clear of any serious repairs and bills.

There is lots and lots of very good technical knowledge and detailed content on this forum (sometimes overwhelming as a recent/novice owner of an Ampera), I am still on a steep learning curve about what would constitute a good, diligent check and maintenance regime for my Ampera. Obviously I’d like to avoid any nightmare repairs problems before they might arise.

I wonder if I could simply ask the following question to create a maintenance regime, what are the TWO things you consider most important to keep an eye on and check/change each:

• week
• month
• year

Of course there may not be two things to say or there might be more! Thank you in advance for your input, and hopefully might help others starting out on their Ampera journey! 😊

Here is a maintenance schedule for the Ampera. The coolant change and the A/C refills need to be done by the dealer. Other items are easy to do at home after the warranty has expired.

 

[FARUC]

There are three coolant tanks. The manual I have on pages 145-146 has the details but basically looking into the engine bay from the front-
1 - Upper left of the engine bay is the Engine cooling system
2 - Front of the engine bay just behind the grille to the left is the High voltage battery cooling system (this may have an anti-tamper ring around the cap that needs to be removed to gain access)
3 - To the right of this one is the Power electronics and charger modules cooling system
If it works I have attached the PDF of the handbook that I have just in case your car didn't come with one.

Thank you! That is very helpful…. will start incorporating that into my maintenance regime. Thanks again!

 

[donald]

View attachment 153103

I’ve always been super diligent in carrying out ‘checks’ and ‘maintaining’ my previous ICE cars often choosing to go way above and beyond specified OEM advice, hence I would like to think steering clear of any serious repairs and bills.

There is lots and lots of very good technical knowledge and detailed content on this forum (sometimes overwhelming as a recent/novice owner of an Ampera), I am still on a steep learning curve about what would constitute a good, diligent check and maintenance regime for my Ampera. Obviously I’d like to avoid any nightmare repairs problems before they might arise.

I wonder if I could simply ask the following question to create a maintenance regime, what are the TWO things you consider most important to keep an eye on and check/change each:

• week
• month
• year

Of course there may not be two things to say or there might be more! Thank you in advance for your input, and hopefully might help others starting out on their Ampera journey! 😊

Suck out and replace the contents of the engine expansion bottle every month or two, this will keep the coolant fresh and you don't need to replace it.

Unless the coolant in the motor/inverter looks anything less than transparent then leave those alone, but you can do the same with those, gradually replacing the coolant by replacing the contents of the tank. But for the HV battery drain and refil, disconnect the 12V battery and leave it for an hour before doing that replacement, else it may trigger a locked error (low coolant).

That being said, if you still have the low coolant level sensor, get it replaced with a fixed resistor on a well-made encapsulated connector.

The other thing to do is strip down your rear brakes every two years, minimum.

 

[h8ten]

This is the place I buy my oil from, buying in bulk saves money. The last time I bought some it was a buy 4 for the price of 3 offer and it included free delivery. I now see they buying 2 will qualify for free delivery. You will also be able to buy genuine filters as well so there should be no issue with not using genuine parts if a warranty issue arises, but then we know that Vauxhall will try to wriggle out of anything even if it is unrelated to what service items you used.