And now, after all the hype and pics, here are some hard facts,
in cash.
Had some time today, so prepared some scans of all the service bills I've incurred till now. Some funny facts emerge (if you have the time, read through. Or else just scroll to the bottom of the post and see the summary):
The first service fell due in November. There was no expenditure whatsoever except what the owner's manual lays out. consequently, a non interesting, zero value invoice.
The second service fell due in March. This one is normally to be done by 9k kms/6 months (whichever is earlier). Since my car was far below the benchmark mileage, the service advisor suggested that I don't replace the diesel filter then and there (its a sturdy item and has a safe life till 10K kms). I took his advice and saved some money there. Instead, I went for a Teflon coating, underbody paint and interior cleaning session. If you scan the bill carefully, you'll see most of the cost is toward these cosmetics. Hyundai customer service week was going on, so I got a 20 pct discount as well.
In April, the accident happened. The bumper needed to be replaced, and it cost me almost INR 5K. Insurance paid most of it, and I was lucky to have the guy at fault (in the accident) own up and pay the rest.
In July, having completed 10k kms, I took the car back for the pending diesel filter replacement. Also gave the car a thorough wash and wipe.
This was in fact an unlikely romantic day for me and my wife. It was raining heavily since morning, and very few cars had turned up at the Hyundai service centre. For most of the afternoon the team was working on my car. The 2 of us snuggled comfortably in the AC customer lounge watching a movie on TV, listening to the raindrops outside, while watching the bay below us where the car was being worked upon. Unexpected marital bliss in the most unlikely of places
![Smile](https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.png)
.
Finally, on 30th September, the car was taken for the 3rd service. Usual disposables, plus another session of interior cleaning. Also taken care of were a dashboard noise, and a rattling right ORVM.
So here's the summary. In one year, I've paid a total of 11,354 towards service. Rs 5150 (45pct) of it is toward cosmetic enhancements alone, and Rs 1544 is towards taxes, VAT etc (sheesh!
![EEK!](https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/images/smilies/eek.png)
). So my
true cost of service is Rs 4660 only.
Obviously, this being the first year, I'm living in fool's paradise. From next year, the labour costs will come in, increased cost of disposables, as well as chances of mechanical repairs (outside warranty). Lets see.
In the meantime, I'd appreciate it if fellow Verna CRDI owners can do a similar exercise and come up with a comparative analysis of their service costs.