Maintenance at 80K Miles

My VX is nearing 80,000 Miles and although I've had all of the regularly scheduled maintenance, it seems to be suffering from old age. Of course, I'm not much of a mechanic, so there are certainly things I could have overlooked. I've found a shop here that seems pretty good, and I'd like to take my VX in for some maintenance and upgrades (though I may do some of the easy stuff myself).

Although I haven't had any major problems, I have noticed a signifigant decrease in gas mileage over the years (my Calmini Air filter and PV Muffler could acount for some of that) and decreased performance in almost all areas (acceleration, top end speed, and especially in long hill climbs). I'd like to get my VX back into tip-top shape without spending a ton of money unnecessarily.

First, I know I need some rear brake pads, and the front are probably about due also. I'm not sure if the bearings have ever been repacked. The rotors appear to be in decent shape, to the best of my knowledge (smooth, no grooves or cracks). I could probably get by with just replacing the pads, but I'd like to make some improvements without spending too much dough. I'm considering replacing the pads all the way around, repacking the bearings, replacing the brake lines with steel braided lines, and possibly replacing the rotors. Does this sound like I'm going overboard?

Second, I've got a Calmini cone style air filter, but I purchased it used, so I didn't get any instructions with it. It was fairly clean when I bought it 4 or 5 months ago, but looks a little dirty now. A friend told me that most of these type of filters need to be cleaned and oiled every so often. What do I need to do to maintain this filter?

Next, I noticed some time ago that some oil had been building up on my engine, on both sides, especially around where the plugs go in. I originally suspected some sort of leak. I cleaned up my engine with some degreaser over a month ago, and it doesn't seem to been building up again. Could there be a leak somewhere, or is there some other explanation?

Speaking of plugs, unless it was part of one of the regularly scheduled maintanance sessions, I don't think the plugs have ever been changed. Is it about time?

About 5 or 6 weeks ago, I swapped out my regular motor oil for AMSoil 2000 series. I'm considering swapping my transfer case and tranny fluids also. I suppose this would be a good time to do that also. I understand I'll also need a tranny filter? Does AMSoil make one, or is there another decent brand I can get at G.I.Joes?

Is there anything else I'm overlooking that might be good maintenance or a good performance upgrade at 80K Miles?

hey kpaske,
I would definitely recommend downloading the service manual from Tone's site (if you haven't already). It has a lot of info as far as what needs to be done and when.

I also stopped by my local dealer and they gave me a list that showed what they do for each of their services (30k, 60k, etc). Your dealership may vary from the VX manual on what should be done and when, so it's good to check it.

I'm going through the same sort of thing as I purchased my VX used with 32k on it and didn't get any service records at all. Now, after I've exhausted efforts to locate the records (calling basically every dealership in Michigan!) I am at 40k and I am getting ready to take my VX into the dealer and get it up-to-date on all services.

I plan on saving $$$ by doing the simpler stuff myself (I already changed the oil and I will be changing the air and fuel filters and the spark plugs, etc).

I hope that helps. I'm sure one of the more expereienced guys will also reply to give us some guidance. :D

Joe

Well, when I lived on the East Coast I had a mechanic there who did all of my scheduled maintenance, up to about 60K. But on his recommendation, we only performed the services it needed at the time. It surely saved me from wasting money on unnecessary repairs. However, since I joined the service, I haven't been able to see my old mechanic, so I'm sure some of those services have since become due. I suppose I should go back through my old receipts and figure out what scheduled maintenance services haven't been done, and use that as a starting point for my basic maintenance plan. But I'm still hoping someone can answer some of my other questions above...???