Have a ring round other Cit MD's before you commit, there can be some surprising differences in servicing costs especially if you go to more outlying areas....maybe tie the service in with a trip somewhere nice or even make the hell of relative visiting a little less gruelling by saving a hundred quid on a service.

A colleague used to take his Cit with him on the transporter when he was delivering cars to one particular dealer in a remote but beautiful area, they'd service the car whilst he had an extended breakfast break, about 2/3rds the price of anything in our midlands area.

Some dealers (my Toyota one for instance) will allow you to supply your own correct engine oil, which makes a big difference to the final bill, you can only ask.

It's not so much the third year in my mind, it's if problems appear after warranty has expired, a proper main dealer service history is very important to any goodwill consideration in years 4 and 5.

Edited by gordonbennet on 18/07/2011 at 12:24

I seem to recall this issue cropping up a while back and that motor manufactures were no longer allowed to void warranties due to servicing with OEM parts by a competent third party

This is correct, however sometimes some manufacturers or some dealers may be obstructive & look at the servicing conditions with a veiw to negating any warranty liability.

For example if a service item says "inspect & replace if necessary" & the servicing dealer decides it does not require replacing, 6 months later when you have a warranty claim, it may be argued that the said item may have required replacing.

Difficult decision; good luck