Engine coolant and transmission fluid are often overlooked. If you don't do a transmission drain and fill by 60k, you are probably better off never touching it, and saving for a replacement from my experience. Not changing the coolant every other year turns into premature radiator and water pump replacement, then the engine head gasket.

Change your oil yourself at 2000, then 3000 miles, and note the differences. Some cars are just so tight and efficient, that the oil is still good at 3000+ miles. Others are coming out black as coal at 1500 (which is indicative of other problems obviously). Some engines don't give a crap about oil maintenance and run to 60k miles on the factory oil before dying, others will die very premature deaths on a 3k schedule.

Main thing is getting the car serviced regularly so that someone is looking over the fluids, the ball joints, suspension, brakes, and general overall mechanical condition. It's so much better to catch a problem early, and be able to come up with a cost effective plan to address it on your own schedule, than be stuck with a dead car that you HAVE to get working ASAP at any price.

My example from recently was noticing that the water pump was weeping a bit while doing an oil change. I ordered the right part at the best price on line and planned to address it in the coming month. The next week, the water pump fails catastrophically. I caught a ride home, grabbed my other car, tools, and the part I had on hand and repaired the car on the side of the road during my lunch break. Total cost was $80. Book cost was closer to $800 if I had to take it to the first shop I could get towed to.