Newbie to Prius- Everything on the 2012 Toyota Prius V is under warranty for 3 years, but I had terrible time trying to find a volvo service dealer in Chicago that I thought did good work on my old car. I now use an independent mechanic but he says he does not work on Prius. Is there any way to find what Toyota rated service departments in the Chicago area? Are there any independent Prius certified mechanics in Chicago people have been happy with?
Try the Mechanic files on the Car Talk website. Enter a zip code and Toyota and then read the reviews. Consider the shops with many reviews and then call for Prius experience. Of course you may want to consider what work you want them to do since not much goes wrong. Could ask if they have worked on a Prius and what did they do? In my opinion, oil changes, rotations and dead 12v batteries are the most common services, all of which are pretty simple. Even brake changes are not likely unless you keep the car a long time. Ten years from now, when and if you need something significant, call around at the time since the shops will have much more experience by then.
For routine maintenance, any competent tech should be able to handle it. Just make sure they are using the required 0w20 synthetic oil for oil services.
