service indicator on dash

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Permalink Reply by Richard Higday on February 13, 2008 at 8:07am

I think i read somewhere that if the gas cap is not on tight that the service indicator could come on, you may want to try that first.

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Permalink Reply by smartster on February 14, 2008 at 10:04pm

If its due to you reaching your service interval, you can reset your service indicator by doing the following:

- turn the ignition on
- press the left button on the side of the speedometer two times to display the service interval indicator
- when it appears, push and hold the left button, then while holding the button down turn the ignition off
- now while holding the button down still turn the ignition on and hold the left button further for 10 seconds
- release the button and this should now reset the service indicator

If its not the service indicator and if you don't do the service with the above reset its not a good idea to do the above as it might make the next service level much higher and also can cause warranty issues if you don't get servicing done. The above is to allow people who service the smart outside of a smart dealership the chance to reset the indicator.

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Permalink Reply by Pete on January 13, 2009 at 2:58pm

Thanks for the info, smartster.

However, I tried it and I still have a spanner blinking at me :-( Are the timings critical (I guessed) or is there something else I should try?

TIA,
Pete

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Permalink Reply by SATO on January 13, 2009 at 5:30pm

I tried it many times and usually I am the one giving the advice on "how to" but this one stumped me. So much so that I had to go to the stealership to get them to do it.... Oh yeah they charged me 90 bucks to do so....... You can insert any and all superlatives.... HERE......

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Permalink Reply by Jan in West U on February 5, 2009 at 1:57pm

This just happened to me 02/05/09. I was told the flashing wrench was a 1 year service indicator that required a 10,000 mile check up and oil change. I only have 3,800 miles and my car is less than one year old!

I argued that I was told at the time of purchase that I had synthetic oil and and would not need an oil change or service until 10,000 miles. The serice manager, Eric, said it was actually one year or 10,000 miles. I would not accept the 10,000 mile check up but did get an oil change. I requested that infernal flashing wrench (the "one year timer") be disabled. Eric said he called the factory and was told it cannot be disabled as it is "hard wired" into the car's software. And it will come on EVERY YEAR from the date the car was built - not bought.

I don't know if they are blowing smoke up my skirt, but I told him next time the wrench flashed, I would bring it in and have them reset it. I monitor my mileage and know when I need an oil change. So I asked how much to reset it and Eric said they would do it for free, We'll see next year!

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Permalink Reply by Ian Pellant on February 5, 2009 at 11:14pm

Most interesting... date of build not date of delivery?

I ordered my car April 2008. It was built in July 2008... it took until the end of September for it to be delivered (in Australia). I was told the car computer was being reset and checked the week before it was delivered... so I trusted that the service intervals were set to start at the date of delivery... guess I'll have to wait till July to find out... or have I been "cheated" by two months of delivery time?

If the car is garaged when not driven, then deterioration over time should be minimal. But if left outdoors in a harsh climate; the annual inspection is a wise precaution regardless of low mileage... things tend to rust, rubber cracks, fluids absorb moisture.. there's more to age than engine oil.

What is hard programmed into the computer is open to our speculation. I was chatting to a guy yesterday... he was selling MB and smart for a few years. He was pretty sure that smart program the cars to increase engine performance as they break in. I tend to agree. I had "jumps" in performance at 1,000 km, 3,000 km and now after 5,000 km the car is smoother and seems to have more torque than it did when I commented a while back on rough running and chugging doing 60 kph in 5th gear. The car is now quite smooth and happy pulling at low revs... or I have grown used to it... as I have learnt to do smooth gear changes.

The service manager told me when I collected the car: it will tell me when it needs service - ignore time and distance; just book it in. For a three year, unlimited km waranty - I'll do just that. If something major fails, I don't need the hassle of arguing who's responsible.

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Permalink Reply by mr bad example on February 6, 2009 at 4:37am

i did my first oil change at 5200 miles, delivery date of 1-21-2008, the indicator went on 33 days ago, when i was getting the shifter serviced at 7,800 miles the tech recommended the "first service", i told them there was only 2600 miles on the oil and the only other thing to get serviced is the filters.

my smart, and the local smart tech have proven to be less than smart, i'll do my oil changes at 5000 mile intervals and just do the 20K services at the dealer.

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Permalink Reply by smarttask on February 6, 2009 at 5:26am

In Italy 20,000km's or 1 year (first service) 40,000km's or 2 years (second service) In theory if you miss these dates Smart could declare the guarantee invalid.
Normal guarantee is two years but you can extent it to three.
Like Mr.B I change my oil "Castrol 0-30 SLX"and filter at 5000 km's and in the last 20 years i don't think I have ever reached 20,000km's in any of my car's before i have sold them.
2 years max, always driving in guarantee.
Roger

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Permalink Reply by Ben on August 3, 2009 at 9:51pm

Prepare yourself. Your story sounds just like mine. My engine light has been coming off and on since I got it a year ago.... and yes I know about the gas cap excuse that they have given me. I finally told them I was going to evoke the lemon law (well done in Florida) and they replaced all three "major computer modules" ...whatever that means. The light came on last week for three days and then went off. Who knows what it is. Great little concept car, but their service ... and their electrical engineers all need to be re-educated. Basically I think the car sucks.

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Permalink Reply by Gene Treants on August 4, 2009 at 4:40pm

Well - my "service indicator" came on 1 year (to the day) from I purchased the car. I was only 300 miles short of the 10K miles and went ahead and got the service. Heck - with my other car it cost $450 every 500 miles. with the Smart - $230. I really consider this a bargain. I am not complaining at all.

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Permalink Reply by Gilbert's on February 10, 2009 at 10:35pm

1. Switch on ignition. (But do not start car!)
2. Select maintenance indicator (so it's in the display) within the first 4 seconds.
3. Switch off the ignition within the display period of 10 seconds. (Maintenance should remain in the display).
4. Push the service button (button on the left of the cluster) and hold it while you switch the ignition on.
5. Hold the service button depressed for another 10 seconds. After that the oil change interval display is reset.
6. After completing this task, the display shows the remaining distance (startup distance) for the next maintenance interval.

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Permalink Reply by David L. Crooks on February 21, 2009 at 1:51pm

Took me about 6 times before I got it to work today. So keep trying....

I went to the dealer on Monday and no one there knew how to do it....

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