What do you buy with $50 for preventive maintenance of motorcycles and cars?

The basic and preventive maintenance of a vehicle is an unavoidable necessity and necessary for its proper functioning. It is also an investment in the present that will reduce damage and costs in the future. In this seventh work of the series that presents SuchWhich weekly to tell you what expenses you can cover with a bill with the face of Ulysses S. Grant –the $50 one–, the purchase of spare parts and accessories necessary for the optimal operation of cars and motorcycles is addressed

The basic maintenance services of a car or motorcycle are a mandatory commitment for its proper functioning. These procedures necessary for the vehicle to circulate in conditions vary in investment and frequency with which it is carried out, depending on the type, brand and model. However, many people find it difficult to comply with this requirement due to the insufficiency of the minimum wage, which to date stands at Bs 130, equivalent to $5.38, according to the rate of Central bank of Venezuela as of March 17, 2023 (24.12 bolivars per dollar).

What do you buy with $50 in sales of parts and accessories for cars and motorcycles with small engines? is part of a series of works that presents SuchWhichweekly -until mid-April 2023-, with which it seeks to show what is “the capacity of The Grant in Caracas”, a ticket that is characterized by the image of the 18th president of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant, and the Capitol.

The cost of tires, motor oils and filters, brake pads and kits of bearings for motorcycles, were some of the spare parts and services, both original and generic, that this medium consulted in various commercial premises and workshops on Nueva Granada and Quinta Crespo avenues, in the Libertador de Caracas municipality; place where many drivers go to lower costs.

For a car with a 1.6 engine (Corsa, Aveo, Gran Vitara, among others), you can buy with $50 Motor oil which, depending on the brand and quality, can be had between $5 and $7 each. The most expensive ones cost $10 to $15 per unit. These vehicles require four liters in each change. Brand name brake pads for this same type of engine cost between $30 to $45.

“50 dollars is enough to buy four oils and their respective filter either tablets of front or rear brakes that, depending on the brand, can be obtained for 30 or 35 dollars. This same service, but for a car with the largest engine, it would only be enough to buy a refrigerant which is worth 40 dollars. The brake pads are between 40 and 50 dollars, but the budget would be just enough to buy the front and rear ones,” said Alejandro Iglesias, a seller of a commercial premises located in Quinta Crespo.

Iglesias stressed that these prices are for Japanese, German and Korean spare parts, “nothing Chinese”.

In another commercial establishment, those in charge indicated that $50 buys only one of the four injectors that carries the car with 1.6 engine. They indicated that customers almost always go for oil, spark plugs and brake leaguewhich are worth between $12 and $13, depending on their viscosity.

With a budget of $50 for the maintenance of a motorcycle, various things can be bought, depending on the quality of spare parts. A battery (between $35 and $40); two rubbers generic ($25 each); or a kit of Bearing (between $25 to $35), said the manager of another location in Quinta Crespo.

Valentín Pérez, seller of a spare parts store located on Nueva Granada avenue, assured that in his store $50 is enough to do the oil change service of a 125cc motorcycle –oil and filter add up to $18–, change a spark plug and labor. “With all the original parts,” she clarified.

For his part, Luis Miguel, a Jaén motorcycle taxi driver for more than 17 years, said that “with $50 I buy a corotero for the motorcycle, I make a market for it and everything. I can buy you brake pads, brake bands, lenses and headlights all for $1, and if you buy from this side of town (west) it’s even cheaper.”

The motorcycle taxi driver assures that the budget will reach more in the Libertador municipality because the prices are cheaper than in other areas of the city; however, he explained that most of the parts and accessories that are considered “cheap” are generally non-genuine and therefore cheaper and less robust.

The Grant solves some services and spare parts for modest motorcycles; however, its range is short if it is about cars.

What do you buy with $50 for preventive maintenance of motorcycles and cars?