A while ago I took my 2017 Prius Prime to the Dealer for a clicking/ticking noise coming from the left front wheel area. Without authorization they cleaned the calipers and greased the slides and presented me with an invoice for about $170 and justified it by saying that the diagnostic fee alone would have been more than the repair cost. The car was out of its normal warranty but still covered by the Toyota factory extended warranty. I was not familiar with a diagnostic fee, so I just paid it and left. On my way home, the sound was still there. I turned around, went for a test drive with the mechanic who was genuinely interested in solving the problem. He asked if it would be okay if he pulled the axles and lubed them. I asked the service manager to check first and make sure that this would be covered by the extended warranty. He contacted someone and got preapproval, so I said yes. Turns out the mechanic only lubed the driver's side axle, but that fixed the noise. I have given the Prius Prime to my daughter and we now have a 9th gen Camry which we love. I would like a better understanding of dealer diagnostic fees and when they are imposed. For example, if I bring my Camry in for any concern, like the driver's seat back making a popping noise, will they try to charge a diagnostic fee? I have the factory extended warranty on this car also. If I bring it in after the original warranty ends for a warranty concern, will they then impose a diagnostic fee? Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts on this matter.
Yes, a diagnostic fee is necessary. It covers the time to look at it and then come up with a repair estimate. If not, many customers would leave and either repair it themselves now that they know the fix or take it elsewhere. That business would be out of business within a month if they didn't recoup some of their labor and time costs. You pay a diag fee when you go to the doctor thru a co-pay whether you're well or not. Nothing is really free in our modern world; even the air one breathes or the water one drinks comes at a price.
generally speaking, diag fees are charged if the repair winds up not being covered by warranty, if there is any possibility of that. i don't know when they came into play, since the last time i took a car to a dealer for repair, there was no such thing. some dealers will credit the fee if you go ahead with a repair. and there may still be some who don't charge one, idk.
READ what you signed in that extended warranty!!! DO NOT assume!!! Most extended warranties ONLY cover SPECIFIC power-train issues - it's by no means a bumper-to-bumper warranty. That's your 3-year 36K mile new car warranty; after that your pretty much on your own. So unless that squeak is coming from under that short list of covered power-train parts - Your out of luck. The devil is in the details and running a dealerships is very expensive - so they can't be giving away freebees all the time. They need to pay staff, mechanics, rent, and utilities. On the plus side; it sounds like that dealership is a good one and genuinely cares about customer satisfaction. I've seen them hit customers with both diagnostic fees and repair cost; rather than roll it into the repair itself. YMMV
