95k Service and dealership quote shocker

welcome!
on the first list, i would not do any suspension work unless the ride felt bad, or tires wearing unevenly.

tranny fluid is a good idea

brake fluid is a good idea

maybe coolant, see your o/m, it's probably time or miles, and you may have hit time, idk.

if inverter service is coolant change, see the o/m again

skip the fuel injection

throttle body isn't a bad idea, but you could wait until performance drops

serpentine belt can be inspected for dry rot and cracking on the inside, water pump at the same time is a good idea.

plugs at 120k

on your diy list, i check/clean/replace the engine and cabin filters on schedule.

oil and filter every 5k

brake inspection every 30k and lube the slide pins

i don't do any inspections, but it's not a bad idea as a car ages.

 

My experience in nearly 200k
Changed oil at 3k with conventional oil for $30 at dealer and all other fluids regularly, mostly every 50k. A few hundred dollars every 50k is peanuts.
Change plugs every 120k
Suspension depends upon observed problems either visually by inspection or drivability. I’ve only seen one front rubber bushing starting to show wear. Will not change it until I’m doing other components.
If I were doing suspension, I’d go to reputable local hybrid shop not dealer and probably go with OEM parts.

 

Shock absorber replacement front $1030<don't know
2) Shock absorber replacement rear $770<don't know
3) Transmission fluid change - $210<should be about half that
4) Hybrid brake fluid flush - $250<good idea, but should be about half that
5) Coolant flush - $190<not due till 100K (or 10 years), around $150 max
6) Inverter Service - $190<not due till 100K (or 10 years), around $150 max (assuming it's another coolant change)
7) Fuel Injection Service - $170<waste of money
8) Hybrid Throttle Body Service - $220<should be about half that, or DIY for free, not hard
9) Belt - A/C Belt - $285<seems WAY overpriced
10) Spark plug replacement - $280<not due till 120K or 12 years

 

I have done these services DIY except shocks. I would add replacing the PCV valve and cleaning the hybrid fan for a complete service. The cost for fluids and parts for everything if you do DIY should be around $300 plus cost of shocks. A mechanic can finish everything in 6.5 hours so plan for approximately 3 Saturdays with 6 hours each DIY.

Everything is pretty straight forward with plenty of info on this site and YouTube. I would skip the injector service. The most challenging is the brake fluid replacement which need Techstream and is different than traditional cars, and the cooling system that is difficult to bleed. Everything else is fairly easy.

One easy way to check shocks is to check for fluid leaking. Minor leak is normal but more is trouble. Also, lots of videos on that inspection.

 

Yeah third gen Repair Manual offers a non-Techstream brake bleed method, but not 2nd gen.

I've gleaned second gen engine coolant change is kinda daunting?

 

At 190k I had PCV valve removed and replaced proactively. Looked fine so may have been a complete waste of money.

 

The shocks are long gone if you can stand the ride forget that.

The only thing that’s really important is getting the water pump belt replaced. If it’s the original that’s very dangerous because if it fails the engine will over heat and you will never know as there is no temp gauge. Dash will light up upon motor severe overheat and usually that’s all she wrote about that motor.

The fact they mentioned ac belt shows that the service writer wrote this all up
Because there is no ac belt.

So they want to do a deep deep exploration on your wallet. Major rebuild.

 

Here is an interesting recent video from a Toyota mechanic, not specific to Prius but does mention hybrid vs ICE differences on fluid and maintenance practices.

 

Agree that the serpentine belt change is a good and relatively cheap item, even at the dealer. Mine was wearing on inside and wasn’t obvious until I changed it. Part is cheap. Probably change it every 100k at most.

 

Yes you can’t see how worn it is till you take it off.

I changed mine at 75000 miles and it had cracks in it. Florida heat is tough on rubber.

 

Dealerships are not good maintenance or repair resources for 14 year old cars.

Everyone likes to complain about neighborhood mechanics but at the risk of over-generalizing they're far more appropriate than dealerships.

 

Categorical statements are not always wisdom.
I go to the dealer for things the dealer does well and at a reasonable price for my 15 year old Prius.
My dealer will often meet or beat the price of a local mechanic for work on a Prius, e.g., an oil change for $30 or even other fluid changes and things the local shop has no experience in.
Your experience may differ.

 

First thing to realize is that it is a stealership's job to funnel your dough to their pockets. Never do maintenance at a stealership!

(1) and (2) you can ignore if you're front and rear end aren't bouncing around on you as you go over bumps. Springs take the bounce on bumps and shock absorbers stop the bounce. If you're not bouncing all over the place or hearing weird squeaks then nothing to worry about.

(7) is also an ignore. I have never done one and have run at least 6 vehicles above 200,000 miles. If you use top tier gas (toptiergas.com) you have nothing to worry about. If you have injector issues you'll need to address it but the service is a waste of time at a stealership.

(9) my daughter's 2007 has 295,000 miles on it and drives like a champ. She recently took a 3000 mile road trip and the only thing I was worried about was the A/C belt (9). My local mechanic did it for just over $110. The belt is only $20-30 and I normally change them myself. There wasn't much room to do it on her Prius so I just let my mechanic do it. Looks like he charged me $80 or so. Seemed fair to me.

Good move on the wave goodbye.

 

The G2 does not do a bounce test. Don’t believe me try bouncing it.

As it gets older and shocks are gone it just hits like a sledgehammer over bad bumps. Onlyquestion is if you can stand it.

What does make a big difference is the top strut bearing. When you replace that the steering ease improves greatly. Over time as it wears out you never notice how the steering effort increases.
So with any strut replacement always replace that with a factory oem bearing.

 

Never buy factory OEM anything unless there is no other option. If I had to replace that bearing I'd head over to the local bearing shop and buy a high quality one. Press out the old and in with the new.

How on earth could that bearing ever wear out? It doesn't even spin one revolution. It might move 45 degrees. Na, no OEM Toyota for me at $150 each. They're less than $50 each at any parts supplier and the bearing itself is probably cheap as dirt.

 

Sure head right over to your local bearing shop and ask them for a 2007 Prius strut steering bearing I’m sure there’s plenty in stock as it’s a big seller for them then take it back to your machine shop. Sure…..lol….

Press it out? It’s a one piece bearing that you have never seen before but that doesn’t matter your an expert on it.

It wears out because the entire weight of the cars front end is on them.

Never put a Chinese piece of crap part on a Toyota.

Unless you like replacing that part soon again. It’s more expensive because it’s a quality part. Would be great fun to have to take the struts back off because your a cheap skate.

We see this here often. So often we have to ask posters is it a Toyota part?

 

Hi. I would do the AC belt for sure. Cost me $14 for an OEM belt from my Toyota dealership and I replaced it myself in about 15min. If you have a mildly auto skilled friend. Watch a you tube video 3 times and you can do it. It is ridiculously easy IMHO.
the shocks new KYB OEM cost me $575. I did that myself took about 4 hours. I had 110k did it make a difference yes. Much better. But the previous guy is right no bounce test. Just speed bumps and potholes feel HARSH. Depends on your comfort level.
Decide on how long you are going to keep the car. Another 5 years. Do the shocks. You can also watch a you tube video and have help from a friend. Rears are easy. Fronts more difficult. Transmission replacement and coolant refresh are along good ideas. I did those myself. Clean the hybrid fan. Again you tube has videos on everything. With 93k it’s a young car. IMHO. We have 2 and love them. Driving them into the ground is our plan.

 

I have a 2008 with 194k miles and during the last dealership visit they said we needed a list like that with suspension parts, but I think it was mainly the control arms. The car rides fine, no clunking, no weird steering, and I assume the struts have some life left in them too. When it was my wife's car she was good at declining the dealership's advised service as a lot of it is based on miles and not seeing an actual problem. There are some things better handled by dealerships, and OEM parts are typically always worth the money with a Prius. I found a good local mechanic with stellar reviews and he even owned a 2Gen Prius, but he was clueless about most of the known problems with the car, his fix for our bad injectors was a fuel system flush and new coils, so not all mechanics know how to troubleshoot.

I would skip 1, 2 unless you notice a problem with the ride. 7 never did anything for us, the injectors themselves intermittently gave us a rough idle, replacing them with refurbs fixed it. I would do the coolant changes on the inverter and engine and belts as other have mentioned.

 

The bearing house sells quality bearings lol. Bearings are bearings. U think Toyota invented a special one-off bearing and re-tooled some plant to just for this part? Highly doubt it. It looks like any ole wheel bearing (which happen to come in numerous sizes.)

Never pressed out a bearing eh? Try it sometimes. You'll like the feeling of saving tons of dough.