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Dealer Service Bloatware?

Discussion in 'Gen 1 Prius Plug-in 2012-2015' started by ptv, Dec 17, 2015.

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  1. ptv

    ptv Junior Member

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    I just did my 30K service and was told I should do a throttle body service ($149), cabin air filter ($54), and hybrid battery service ($270). I think my car runs as well today as the day I bought it and so declined these add-ons until I could research. So...

    Bloatware or perfectly appropriate for a 30K PIP?
    Los Angeles based prices.

    Thanks!
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome! that is scary!:eek: look at your manual, you should check/replace the cabin/air filters.:)
    oil and filter, tyre rotate, you're good to go. dealer name please?
     
  3. Munpot42

    Munpot42 Senior Member

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    Yeah, I want to avoid those rip off artists. So dealer name pretty please?
     
  4. sillylilwabbit

    sillylilwabbit Active Member

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    From my memory, looking at service records for the car I purchased, it is only some sort of "inspection", oil change and brake fluid flush.

    Cost, I don't know.


    iPhone ?
     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    details on the 'hybrid battery service'?:p
     
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  6. sillylilwabbit

    sillylilwabbit Active Member

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    Here you go, I found the 30k receipt, see pic below for your viewing pleasure:

    [​IMG]


    iPhone ?
     
  7. ptv

    ptv Junior Member

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    I’ll check the manual, the recommendations were made after inspection. I’m unsure if these are common issues at this mileage point and came here to ask for other owner perspectives, thanks to the quick replies!

    The dealer is Toyota of Glendale and in all fairness it's unknown to me if their recommendations were made because of immediate needs of my car or if their MO is to extract $$$ from customers with unnecessary or premature maintenance.

    I think I’ll take it down to Diane's for a second opinion, thats where we bought it and I trust her.
     
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  8. mrbigh

    mrbigh Prius Absolutum Dominium

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    Hybrid battery Service????????? that's crazy
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Maybe fan cleaning?? Still steep though.

    Hybrid UK offers a hybrid health check, for 39 pounds, a bit more reasonable. Doable here but hasn't caught on as yet. Basically hooking up and running an analysis. Each check up at least extends warranty for another year too.

    Hybrid Cars Health Check | Toyota UK
     
  10. RRxing

    RRxing Senior Member

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    Throttle Body Service @30K? I don't think so...
    Cabin Air Filter? Do it yourself for less than 1/2 the cost.
    Hybrid Battery Service? Are they out of their "fluffy bunny" minds? (Must be a boat payment due)

    Bottom Line - Go elsewhere
     
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  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    boat payment and wallet flush, sorry.
     
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  12. GregP507

    GregP507 Senior Member

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    Toyota's fine reputation is being undermined by sleazy after-sale tactics. I'm very happy with the car, but since I bought it, I'm constantly fending-off attempts by the dealer to pick my pocket.

    A phoney e-mail, forwarded to me, that pretended to be an internal request for a model exactly like mine to put on the lot, smelled like stinky cheese.

    The fact that the aux battery goes dead when you leave it parked for a week, and it gets damaged, so you have to take it in to get replaced... Why couldn't it be a deep-cycle battery? It draws no starting current, after all.

    The fact that the computer registers the car's speed exactly as accurately as a GPS, while the speedometer reads 5% low, just because that's the federally-mandated accepted tolerance limit, and it 5% helps to boost the mileage figures... "Son, I am disappoint."
     
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    well, two thirds of your complaints are to toyota, not the dealer.

    the battery in the new prius is under the hood, and presumably larger.

    the speedo and mpg meter do not affect the epa monroney sticker mpg rating.
     
  14. CharlesH

    CharlesH CA HOV Decal #5 on former PiP

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    I think that the speedometer actually read a larger number than your actual sped. In previous discussions about this, it was suggested that the overreporting of speed is actually mandated in some countries, with significant penalties for under-stating speed. They want to avoid drivers using their speedometers as a defense to a speeding ticket. Since it is all software, whether the odometer misreports distance traveled is independent of whether the speedometer misreports current speed.
     
  15. GregP507

    GregP507 Senior Member

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    Be that as it may, the speed reported by the OBD2 port appears to be much more accurate.
     
  16. CharlesH

    CharlesH CA HOV Decal #5 on former PiP

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    Yes, that seems to be the consensus.
     
  17. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    There's no connection between speedometer variation and the fuel economy display. The former is mandated, and I can think of a lot more pressing issue in this world of ours, lol. The latter is very likely intentional on Toyota's part, and is stink, but meh. By my calc the error is around 7.5%. But still, just an irritant.
     
  18. GregP507

    GregP507 Senior Member

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    And how can this be, unless it's a deliberate error?
     
  19. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    There are places where it can never read lower than you are going by any amount. So if you take a +/- some percent to the accuracy of the reading, you need to bias it so that at the worst case scenario of under-calculating the speed, it is not under-reporting the speed by even a fraction of a kph.

    The biggest factor for the error is tires. Brand new big tires effect the speedometer a lot more than worn out tiny tires. Speedo has to report the actual speed or above in all scenarios. As for the speed on the CANBus, that is what the car thinks the actual speed is with no bias, and yes it is correct most of the time and only off a little bit. Of course everyone's will be off a little bit, but a different bit.

    My Prius had a dead 12v battery for about 3 years, and it still started after being parked for over a week with no use. By dead I mean it registered 11v or less after sitting idle. By the time it died it was single digit voltages. And they make deep cycle (like Optima) direct replacements. That's what I put in mine when I replaced the original 10 year old battery since that car is the ski vehicle and airport hauler now.

    All the rest of the stuff is dealer crap. You don't need it according to Toyota and the stuff you do need you can do for pennies on the dollar. A hybrid battery check is laughable. I would avoid that dealership like the plague. Being in southern Cali you can probably throw a rock in any direction and hit a shop that works on Prii...
     
  20. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    "Deliberate error" is an oxymoron, lol.

    It's mandated that speedometer has to either be accurate, or err on the side of over estimating your speed. Deadly accurate is not achievable, so the manufacturers opt for speedo's reading slightly high.

    The reason: they're hoping to get people to go a bit slower. Good for mpg, saves lives, what's not to like.

    Speedometer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia