Routine Maintenance and upgrades to system

[hdrygas]

I am getting my 15 K maintenance at my usual mechanic rather than the dealer because they did not rotate the tires properly the last time and said the tires did not have to be rotated at 5k. I am also getting my mud flaps installed. I lack trust. My question is this. Is there a way to find out if there are up dates to the car that are not recalls? Does this happen and can I find out about such updates to the computer system or do I just wait for recalls? I want to keep my car updated but can not trust the dealer any longer. What would you do? Take the car to the dealer every other maintenance interval? I don't know. The price I paid at the dealer for the 10k was fair but the service was not done correctly. I have a auto technician that has always gone above and beyond at a fair price but can not do Prius specific service as yet.

[Bill Merchant]

[font=Comic Sans MS:58f111774c]I started a thread in Dealers and Pricing trying to identify GOOD dealers. It seems mostly oriented to purchasing a Prius, but I'd love to see a thread where people have found good mechanics, particularly Prius technicians. I know I wouldn't deal with my closest Toyota dealer even if they paid me, since it's such a sleaseball operation, IMO. But I hate to learn by trial-and-error, particularly if someone else has found a place/person they can recommend for service.

I wonder if Toyota has a list of Prius technicians by area?

I think your best bet is to get your service done by the guy you trust, and keep reading PriusChat and keep asking other Prius owners you meet for recommendations for service.[/font:58f111774c]

[hdrygas]

I still have a major question and perhaps one of the Master Technicians can answer it or someone else. When you take your Prius in for routine maintenance do they check for up grades to the system that they will then do on the spot? I am not talking about announced recalls but something that should be done that is not general knowledge. Is there a way to find out about this? Also does any one have the link to the TSB site on the Web. I had one but can not find the link.

[jeromep]

This has been mentioned before, but...

There is a difference between TSBs and campaigns. TSBs are alerts to service personnel about new repair procedures, or updates regarding repair of specific areas of the vehicle. A TSB is not a mandatory fix, nor should all TSBs be completed on a vehicle unless that vehicle experiences that problem. The fuel gage and filler neck issue with the early 2004 models was something that most, if not all, affected buyers should get taken care of, but there are other TSBs out there which are done on an as needed basis.

A campaign is more akin to a recall and owners of vehicles in the affected serial number range will probably get contacted, however that is never a guarantee. Toyota kind of has to know where you are living and we all know that Americans move, a lot.

But, the dealer I have had oil changes with keeps records in the system of when my vehicle showed up in their service facility and by punching in my VIN they are able to identify work done on the vehicle, but also work that should be done according to Toyota's database of TSBs and campaigns. I'm not sure every dealer is that well tied to corporate, but if I were running a garage I wouldn't think of not being connected to corporate in that manner.

TSBs are online. Try alldata.com

[galaxee]

hdrygas, call up a dealer and ask them if your vehicle is eligible for any updates. they can look it up by your VIN i think. they should be able to tell you if your car is eligible for any updates, etc. if not, then keep bringing it to the guy you trust. if so, bring it to the dealer for the updates only.

[hdrygas]

Was alldata.com free in the past? They appear to want you to subscribe to the service.

[DanMan32]

Many have posted links to AllData that worked. Some of the search functions seem to require a subscription.

Punching in a VIN does not necessarily bring up TSBs that may apply to your vehicle.
EG038-4 came out in Sept 04. My car was made in June 04 and I bought it August 04. In December 04, I asked about the 40D and the brake switch issue. I didn't have the TSB numbers for the recalibration. They put my VIN into techinfo, and determined only the NAV DVD update was needed. Obviously the EG038 had not yet been implemented, but was not flagged.

Also, even if a dealer is aware of a TSB that may apply (many don't know about TSBs you may require), they may baulk about doing it if you have no symptoms.