Car dealers are using capped price servicing in an effort to build long-term relationships with customers. YOU'VE just collected your car from the service centre and there's a nagging doubt: did it really need the wheel alignment done again? The filters? The wipers? What you thought was a routine oil change turned into an expensive session at the maintenance parlour that's left you feeling gouged. Now there's a better way, at least if you believe the carmakers. Capped-price servicing has become the latest must-have inclusion in new-car deals. It's an idea that has gathered pace only recently, but it dates back to 2008, when Toyota was first to cap service prices across its range after trialling it on the Camry. Called Toyota Service Advantage, it introduced features that are now familiar in these schemes: known-in-advance costs for scheduled maintenance across a defined period, varying by model. Toyota said it was cheaper - saving a Corolla owner $400 over three years at the time - while guaranteeing specialist technicians and genuine parts. From Toyota's point of view, it has been remarkably successful at keeping buyers in its servicing network. According to the latest Deloitte industry overview, retention rates for three-year-old customers has risen from 50 per cent to 80 per cent. It has also helped dealers meet the challenge of increasing service intervals, which mean buyers return less frequently for work. While dealers make more money out of servicing than selling, the fact is that cars these days need less TLC. So where Toyota led, others followed. Mitsubishi and Nissan announced schemes in 2010, Ford in 2011. And that trickle has turned into a stampede that now involves most of the mainstream brands. As the adjacent table shows, the schemes vary widely. Some last the length of a vehicle's warranty period, some do not. Exclusions vary: some apply only to new car purchases while others allow those who have already bought access to the capped pricing for the remainder of their warranty. Some bundle additional lures, such as road assist. Costs themselves vary widely, too, making comparison shopping more complex than trying to work out the best phone/internet plan. For example, three years of servicing a petrol Holden Cruze costs $740 while the same period for a Nissan Pulsar adds up to $1638. Motoring bodies are warning buyers to beware and make sure they read the fine print. The Australian Automobile Association says the schemes have the advantage of convenience and certainty, but typically come with strict conditions. "There are examples where brands have requirements in terms of the regularity of servicing," AAA chief Andrew McKellar says. If that's down to six months, it's more than many people would think they require. Wendy Machin, president of NSW's NRMA, says the headline price is only the start. Usually, labour, parts and fluids are included, but wear-and-tear items will be extra. "Lots of normal items - fuses, wiper blades, brake pads and so on - can add up to hundreds of dollars," she says. Most think anything European will be expensive from the outset, and it's a perception European badges are keen to neutralise. It has seen them join in, Peugeot being the first when it capped service prices on the 508 two years ago. The newest recruit is Volkswagen, which committed to the idea in March in time for its new Golf. It's even spreading to the luxury marques. Mercedes, which is rolling out a range of small cars aimed at younger buyers, decided it needed a remedy for the running costs issue when it launched the Mercedes A-Class in February. A service contract for the first two years costs $1383. Others are using fixed-price servicing as a way to convince you to buy their cars. Until the end of the financial year, Volvo is offering three years' servicing and roadside assistance - as well as three years' worth of fuel. Some are going further and including service in the showroom price. Ferrari was first when it added a seven-year deal into the sticker in October 2011, following a similar move in Europe. Since then, the idea has spread. Almost all Land Rovers and Jaguars are now priced this way, so if you're tempted by the new F-type the $139,000 starting price doesn't look quite as steep. But what happens when the deal ends? One suspicion is that big-ticket items are being postponed until the service period, and warranty, have run out. McKellar says it would be naive to think the carmakers have not done their sums. The major manufacturers understand very well the maintenance cycle that comes with the vehicles they sell. Not every brand is convinced. Mazda rules it out, and in the Mazda 3 it has Australia's favourite car, while Honda believes its buyers will return without it. And there is nothing to prevent you shopping around. Machin says there is a widespread misconception that going to an independent garage will void a car's warranty, which isn't the case. "There are a lot of really good workshops out there and they go by the book," she says.