Took my car to auto place for an inspection.. they told me tons of stuff?

Since your dad is such a savvy mechanic have him do the work. Replacing hoses and belts (I know, not mentioned - but it's a good part of proper vehicle maintenance) is ALWAYS a good idea. Every 2 to 5 years - depending on your climate zone and driving habits.

As for gasket leaks - they add up. Not only if you fail to keep after them you could end up running the engine with insufficient oil. Never mind the inconvenience of having to replace the gasket and spark plug tube seals - you're replacing the whole engine at that point. But "Father Knows Best". Sometimes. But probably not in this case. Changing the gasket is an easy job for him to do - again, only if he's capable of handling such a basic task.

Battery corrosion protection? Never heard of such a thing - but I've not heard everything in the world. Still, keeping battery terminals clean and tight goes a long way to making sure the car starts when you need it to. Dirty or loose terminals and you could get stuck at night in a dark parking lot with who knows what lurking in the shadows. Reliability can not be understated. Same goes for belts and hoses. Loose one of them at a bad time and you're really stuck out there.

Coolant flush - again it goes to proper maintenance. If the coolant is dirty you run the risk of clogging up a passage then ruining an engine because of excess heat. "HARDLY CRUNCHY"? What is your dad talking about? Brittle hoses are brittle. They WILL break. Sure, the mechanic may be padding his pockets with your money, but for you - it's money well spent. My neighbor ALWAYS goes until something breaks down. Then he calls me for help. He also asks why I never have breakdowns like he does - it's because of PROPER MAINTENANCE.

Fuel system cleaning? You can do that with a bottle of STP Fuel Treatment EVERY three months.

Lifetime alignment service? Sounds like Firestone. You'll probably spend more on the guarantee than you would if you only align the tires when there's a reason to. I'd say don't align the tires unless there's signs of uneven wear. But you can probably take the car to Less Schwabb for a free inspection. They'll tell you straight up what you NEED as far as alignment and suspension, as well as tires.

Don't cheap out on maintenance. The buck you save is only gas money for the tow truck driver when you break down and need a tow.

Hope this helps.

'av'a g'day mate.

'')

Unfortunetly Madeleine most mechanics will try to take advantage of the fact that most women don't know much about cars. From what you have told me that does seem to be the case here. I would suggest having your dad do the work and there are a few things that would be good as a preventative measure. 1, do the valve cover gaskets it comes with the tube seals this will keep oil out of the area where the spark plugs and wires meet. If too much oil builds up there you run the risk of an engine fire. A coolant flush is a good idea but a drain and fill is just as good you just don't get all of the old coolant out. But it is much cheaper. You won't need new radiator tubes unless they are super soft when the engine is cold or if you see bulges or they are cracking. Pattern corrosion protection is something I have never used but it is recomended and all it is is a goo you can get at an auto parts store for less than 2 bucks. You just apply it liberally to the terminals. Back to the radiator hoses if there is any brittle or crunch to them change them they can blow. Fuel system cleaning they will charge you to drop a bottle of fuel cleaner into your tank. It is something anyone can do. If you know how to fill your car with gas you can clean your fuel system not necessary but I do it from time to time. Do however get the lifetime alignment service AFTER you get the new tires, like right after you get the new tires or at the same time if you can. The purpose to all the cleaning is to prevent bigger problems from coming up latter.

Gasket valve cover and spark plug tube replacements.-- If leaks are minor, forget it, especially on an older Neon.

Battery corrosion protection.- This is crap. If the terminals are corroded, have your dad take them off, clean them, put them back on, and put some vaseline on them. Auto parts stores sell the little felt rings that go under the terminals for a couple bucks.

Coolant flush w/ sealer and condition.- More crap, if the coolant looks nice and green. If it doesn't, empty radiator and refill.

New upper and lower radiator hoses. The guy said they were "really brittle" but, again, my dad checked that twice. Once last night and once the other day, and said they were hardly crunchy or brittle at all.- If they are still pliable and there is no visible cracking, they are good. They aren't that expensive anyway, and are easy to change.

Fuel system cleaning.- A butt load of crap, as in a case of diarrhea. Modern fuels have additives in them. You could buy a can of Seafoam at a parts store for less than $10 and dump some in the tank.

Lifetime alignment service. Bullcrap. If the car isn't pulling or the tires aren't wearing on one side, the alignment is fine. Even if it isn't, never pay for a lifetime alignment.

If this is the place that is doing your tires, go somewhere else. Price new tires at Walmart.

Find a new repair facility.

Fix the leaky valve cover, get another opinion on the spark plug tube replacements.

Skip on the battery corrosion protection. You can keep those clean yourself with a little baking soda and water.

Get the coolant flushed and replaced. It's likely never been done and that is usually a every other year project that people do once every 5 years or so.

Same with the radiator hoses. They wear out from the inside out and they crack and weaken over time. You don't know when they were done last, if ever and they aren't all that expensive. Do it at the same time as the radiator flush so you don't have to replace the coolant twice.

Skip the fuel system cleaning. Buy a can of Seafoam at the Auto parts store and follow the instructions.

Skip any lifetime service on a car this old if you have to pay extra for it.

Look at the tires. Do they still have life in them? Look for the date code. Are they older than 10 years? If so, replace them.

Date codes: http://www.barrystiretech.com/dotcoding.html

you don,t need all that stuff right now ! let,s go down the list ! valve pan gasket leaking could just mean the bolts need to be snugged up some, spark plug boot, not unless it,s jumping spark, battery corrosion protection ! you can clean the battery cables up good and use grease on them, coolant flush ? maybe if the antifreeze looks dirty, radiator hoses ? as long as they are not hard and no breaks in them they are still good , fuel system cleaning ? just change the fuel filter and fill it up with a good quality gas ! lifetime alignment ? well you could if your expecting to keep the car a long time ! if you want the charging system checked then auto zone will do that for free ! sounds like they are trying to get as much money from you as they can ! listen to your dad , sounds like he knows what he,s talking about !

GASKETS for the valve cover are CHEAP and prevent leaking! Use MOBI LONE 0W_30 wengine oil ONLY or use PENNZOIL ULTRA< if you can find it! it carries a 15 year, 500k mile wrranty against oil related engine troubles! have your TIMING BELT CHECKED< and change ALL The fluids even the BRAKE FLUID! this reuqires a PRESSURE BLEED! the reason is very simple Nearly ALL brake trouble begins with SPOILED brake fluid. IT ages, and turns DARK and turns into GOO and liquid sandpaper with time. IT will CLOG up calipers and master cylidners and stop the CLUTCH from working! IT absorbs moisture fromt he air and after 304 years, it is TOTALLY CORRUPTED! THis is true for ALL cars. The BATTERY thing a is a JOKE! POWER WASH your engine every 3-4 months to remove debris, ROAD SALT and other contamainants. Keep your IDLE AIR CONTROL VALVE and throttle body clean as SHOWROOM at all times. LEARN where they are and how to do this. The final AIR/FUEL Mixture occurs at the IACV and a dirty one will get you a clogged up CONVERTER and failed O2 sensors. >>>>>Remvoe the factory junk plugs and use BOSCH or DENSO IRIDIUM Plugs. They get you MORE power and better economy and protect the CONVERTER best. Same for the SPECIAL oils I recommend here. YOu can expect 300k + miles from your NEON< but only if you follow these simple rules. When you get your COOLANT FLUSHED< do not use PRESTONE EVER! Use MERCEDES YELLOW or TOYOTA coolan in there. ALso AUDI (Penstosin) is great DOMESTIC CHEAP coolant will RUIN head gaksets and other gaskets over time. TYPE Dexcool into BING and see why GM went into bankruptcy over something as simple as COOLANT and gasket issues. GOOD LUCK and keep my E_mail handy.

If you had listed the year make and model of your car we could have suggested what the factory recommends be done at what mileage on the odometer.

In any event, the dealer of your car or a trusted private mechanic will be more honest what needs to be done now and items to be done at another date.

If you elect to do nothing, the car will let you down in the very near future let alone a "few" years.

Sounds like your dad can do some maintenance on car and trucks ,Its not hard ,Just let him take care of it ,If you have a ck engine light come on ask him to look at it or take it in ,if you get a leak have him look at it im sure he can fix it , you are going to get different answers out of ereryone on her and some answers you can go with and some i would say you should not go with there is a lot of shops out there right now that need money but if you have someone to fix your car (your dad) they dont need your .Have a nice day

sounds pretty solid, and also sounds like you had a pretty good salesman. get a second opinion.

any inspection will have a coolant flush lol and usually hoses, and im surprised brakes were not thrown in as well.

does the car run fine? the rest of that can be done over time, starting with alignment.

like i said, it sounds like a solid car.

Alot of tire shops and rapid lube form places do state inspections to boot as vehicle fix shops. attempt typing "state inspection station, (Your State)" then click on the (your state) inspection station DPS link. it could have a place to form on your zip code. Then it fairly is going to grant you all diverse inspection stations on your area.