What services you need and what you don't

[Patrick Wong]

Originally Posted by FBear

... I have one further question; the serpentine belt. When should one start looking to replace it?

I replaced the serpentine belt on my 2004 at around 70K miles and posted about that experience including photos of the procedure and the old belt.
Service Schedule on Serpentine Belt
See my post #18.

The old belt had lots of fine cracks in it. This is considered acceptable for continued service, since no pieces of the ribs had broken off. However I prefer having a new belt in place, which cost $17 MSRP.

[JerryCS]

I use a high quality synthetic oil, and Amsoil EA filter. I change the oil once a year, or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first. The filter is guaranteed to protect for 25,000 miles in gas engines using synthetic oil.

[jayman]

I suppose you're using the Amsoil 0W-30? I know with the dealership oil filter and Mobil 1 0W-20, 10,000 miles the oil analysis came back very good.

[barbie.gee]

I've got a 2005 that I've been taking for service to the dealer. 26k miles only now, although I haven't been in since November of last year. Anyway, I asked for oil change & filter and tire rotation.

1st he tried to upsell me an Oil Flush, because "when you change the oil, you don't get ALL the oil out and there's stuff left behind that a flush will get out." I declined, mostly because it sounded stupid to me.

Almost all done, and he comes in and then tells me the technician says I need a new air filter, and I should have the fuel injection system flushed. "how much and how much time? What is that?" $125, 30 minutes, and "they hang a bag with some cleaning fluids in it (like an IV bag) and let that go into the fuel injection system, and then we run the car to flush it all out and through." The way he said it reminded me of my childhood, when gramps would say stuff like "take the car out on the highway, open 'er up, and burn the carbon off the plugs"!

I took the overpriced air filter, ($25) because I didn't feel like screwing with it, but declined the fuel injection cleaning as well.

This is the first time I've gotten this kind of upsell pressure from the service department, and I'm glad I brought my laptop with me so I could check it out while I'm waiting for them to finish. I bought the car here, but maybe now that it's out of warranty, it's time to find a regular service station to get the routine maintenance stuff done?

[paprius4030]

I'd find another dealer for service

[rusty houndog]

Originally Posted by barbie.gee

I've got a 2005 that I've been taking for service to the dealer. 26k miles only now, although I haven't been in since November of last year. Anyway, I asked for oil change & filter and tire rotation.

1st he tried to upsell me an Oil Flush, because "when you change the oil, you don't get ALL the oil out and there's stuff left behind that a flush will get out." I declined, mostly because it sounded stupid to me.

Almost all done, and he comes in and then tells me the technician says I need a new air filter, and I should have the fuel injection system flushed. "how much and how much time? What is that?" $125, 30 minutes, and "they hang a bag with some cleaning fluids in it (like an IV bag) and let that go into the fuel injection system, and then we run the car to flush it all out and through." The way he said it reminded me of my childhood, when gramps would say stuff like "take the car out on the highway, open 'er up, and burn the carbon off the plugs"!

I took the overpriced air filter, ($25) because I didn't feel like screwing with it, but declined the fuel injection cleaning as well.

This is the first time I've gotten this kind of upsell pressure from the service department, and I'm glad I brought my laptop with me so I could check it out while I'm waiting for them to finish. I bought the car here, but maybe now that it's out of warranty, it's time to find a regular service station to get the routine maintenance stuff done?

Technically, he was not lying about the oil incompletely draining, but all cars are the same when it comes to that. If it was such a bad thing a flush would be part of every oil change in the world. It isn't, so ignore that one.

The injector flush was a good thing to pass up. With the fuel system on a 2005 you do not have to worry about injectors, particularly using domestic gasoline; it's all detergent loaded.

You might try Walmart for your air filters; that's where many folk get theirs. If you don't want to ever buy another get the K&N permanent air filter; change only every decade or so? It's a permanent air filter over which much band width has been expended bashing it in this chat room. I love mine. It costs a little over twice what you just paid for a paper filter. Their web address:
[http://www.knfilters.com/]

[accessmark]

When should someone consider doing the "extreme driving service? What is the ball park cost for the factory required 30k service?
I just got zapped with a $600 bill for a 30k service at a Colorado Toyota Dealer. I found out after the fact that I was getting the "extreme driving" service vs. the standard. Also got the inverter flush which I thought was required and apparently is not. I come to learn that my dealer has 3 versions of their 30k service which of course they gave me the most expensive one w/o telling me about the others.

[jayman]

Time to find another dealer

[rusty houndog]

Originally Posted by accessmark

When should someone consider doing the "extreme driving service? What is the ball park cost for the factory required 30k service?
I just got zapped with a $600 bill for a 30k service at a Colorado Toyota Dealer. I found out after the fact that I was getting the "extreme driving" service vs. the standard. Also got the inverter flush which I thought was required and apparently is not. I come to learn that my dealer has 3 versions of their 30k service which of course they gave me the most expensive one w/o telling me about the others.

The local Toyota dealer in Sheridan, Wyoming, charges around $200. for the 30K Prius service. You might consider contacting the Better Business Bureau with the fraud they have inflicted on you. Ask the dealer for your money back; everything over the fee they charge for their "normal" 30K Prius service. Tell them you will contact the BBB . To be honest, contact the BBB whether they refund the overcharges or not; any refund only slightly mitigates their bad behaviour.

[richard schumacher]

*sigh* Everything that the car needs is shown in the Scheduled Maintenance Guide. Open the Guide to the correct page; show that to the service writer; tell them, "do that and nothing else". Normal maintenance on a Prius at 30K should cost you less than $100. You can save more by changing the engine and cabin air filters yourself, they're very easy.

If you stroll, waltz, or sashay in and say, "gimme yer X miles service", you are asking to get reamed. All dealers define their own bloated service packages and will charge you for that regardless of what the car needs.