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Ever been lied to at a shop?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by JayGen4, Apr 10, 2020.

  1. JayGen4

    JayGen4 Member

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    Ever have the classic experience? I'm sure some have but maybe there is helpful experience here from the tricks some shops might have pulled on you that are unique to the Prius.

    Even so, whatever stories you have, feel free to share and go into a little detail, especially about how you found out and what you did after.
     
  2. hotelprisoner

    hotelprisoner Member

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    The last time I was at the dealership for a service (a long time ago), I was sitting in the waiting area when the tech came by with a cabin air filter that looked like it had been to hell and back. He tells me that my filter needs replacing for $55 CAD. I had been replacing my own filters at that point for quite some time and had been marking the in service date and odometer with red marker on the side of the filter. The one buddy brought had no marks. I politely suggested that perhaps he had me confused with someone else as that was not my filter. The tech insisted it was mine and confirmed my model and year. I looked him straight in the eye and suggested, much more strongly this time, that he was confused and that was not my filter as mine were marked. He turned bright red and retreated with his tail between his legs.

    As I was leaving the waiting area to get my car, I saw the same tech heading for an older lady with the same beat up filter in hand. This was the last straw after several incidents and I’ve done everything but recalls on my own. Since then there has been a change in management and I’ve heard things got better.


    iPhone ?
     
  3. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Great idea to label them. I will start doing that.
     
  4. KennyGS

    KennyGS Senior Member

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    Same for me. The only shop where I've ever been lied to was the dealership.
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    When I was questioning a (padded) bill, the Service Manager tried to justify the amount, saying "well we tooned the carburetor". The car was fuel injected...

    On the flipside, there are some good guys, dedicated and thorough, but yeah, I heard some whoppers, lol.
     
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  6. JayGen4

    JayGen4 Member

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    That is as classic as the experience gets. The air filter...
     
  7. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    I've told this story already.

    I don't remember if I've told the one about the freeze plug. A search isn't finding it just now.
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  8. robsnyder20

    robsnyder20 Active Member

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    If I take it to another toyota dealership in my area for the $25 synthetic oil change or should I say stealership they try and sell me a brake flush which might be a good idea should I have left my cap open and exposed the entire system to air. Toyota was however smart and installed a see thru reservoir so you can check it without ever opening it up, and I have never need to up to 70k miles now. Also it might be a good idea to change it when bleeding the brakes, and then again, no brake change yet. They also said my intake throttle body is cruddy, checked it myself and it was super clean. Never the less I sprayed the throttle body intake with cleaner since having it exposed at that point.
     
  9. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    Not exactly a lie, and not really a Prius anecdote. But once when I took my Honda Fit in for routine service at a dealership, they wanted to charge me over $100 to change the cabin air filter and the engine air filter. Both which are not expensive parts, and can even be replaced by someone as DIY inept as myself in literally minutes.

    Up to that point I had felt the Dealership service department had been pretty fair, reasonable, honest with me. But that attempt to IMO rip me off, was so egregious, that ended my relationship with that service center.
    The service adviser kept asking me if I wanted them to go ahead and replace those filters, while they had it back, and all I could do was stare at him for what seemed like minutes silently, like I was hoping he'd realize how stupid he'd been in presenting me with such a ridiculously obvious rip off. I was so mad...I couldn't even get mad....if that makes sense.
    So I eventually just said "No",
    And paid them for the Oil Change and Tire Rotation, and then NEVER returned.
     
  10. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    I always try to at least defend the :"Dealership" service center as a possible outlet for maintenance and work.
    So it's really sad to see spin offs, and duplication of similar cons. Across the nation, and from so many different people including myself.

    Given the cost of an both an Engine and Cabin air filter, and the ease of replacement, it's a a shame it seems so many service departments have embraced what is just an obvious attempt to make a abnormal amount of profit.
    I feel sorry for the elderly or maybe totally mechanically ignorant that when presented with these ploys, may easily not know enough to simply say no.
    Reports of this happening, and it actually happening I think are so damaging to the entire dealership service industry, that I think it should be something that could be reported as fraudulent.
    I'm sadly sure they get a good enough percentage of people that simply OK the filter change. Then they snap in a $30 filter, in less than a minute of time, and enjoy the profit margin.

    Maybe this behavior could be curtailed if more people read their owners manual, or if their was a section that outlined EASY DIY maintenance, and included instructions showing how easy replacing a Cabin Air Filter or in most cases an Engine Air Filter is....

    If you have that knowledge then I think it's buyer beware, if you don't at least investigate how much an Air Filter can be purchased for? Then it's kind of on you.
     
  11. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    The cabin air filter change is more daunting than engine filter (which is a cakewalk).
     
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  12. George W

    George W Active Member

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    I took my Prius to a hybrid repair shop after I purchased it. Fortunately, I had taken pictures under the hood so I could compare with work they were supposed to address. Not only did they fail to do all of the work I paid for, they didn't even bother to reinstall my upholstery they remove d to check the Hybrid battery. They actually handed my car over to me with trash in the back seat and the carpeting uninstalled.

    I reported them to my local Better Business Bureau and gave them a terrible review in both Google and Yelp.

    Sometime later I noticed that their location was closed. I'm sure it was coincidence. So far I haven't discovered any other hybrid shops in my area, but I'm getting good at DIY stuff.
     
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  13. kithmo

    kithmo Couch Potato

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    Not lied to but a try on. At one service I had they advised me they had put fuel additive in my tank and it was an extra £20 on top of the bill. I told them I didn't want fuel additive as I only used premium fuels which have detergents already I them and if I did use a fuel additive it would cost me half that price to put it in myself. When they told me they had already put it in I told them to take it out again or drain the tank and refill with the same amount of fuel. They waived the charge. Since then they have always asked me before the service if I want any other items.
     
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  14. Classic Car Guy

    Classic Car Guy Active Member

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    I that a trick question?:p
     
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  15. Montgomery

    Montgomery Senior Member

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    For me, it has been both the local independent mechanic and dealerships over the years that got me. Always expensive, and, always finding out after I leave that the repair was partially done at best. I try to do most of my own repairs, and, like all of you and thanks to smart phones, I take lots of before pictures!! Some of these guys are just too good at fooling people. The most recent one that still pisses me off is in regards to my son's car. He took it to a "recommended" mechanic instead of checking with me first! (big mistake). $1,800 dollars later, the car was partially fixed...............but promised by the mechanic that it would be ok. That "ticking" noise will go away" he said, but I knew better. Car eventually broke down within a year. Gave it away to one of those "Kars for Kids" places. You ask why I didn't go after the nutheads? The car should not have been taken there as it was on its last leg and I would have suggested to my son to junk it. But the service was done before I knew about it. Like I said, I do as much as I can on my own. I just costs less overall.
     
  16. Stangar

    Stangar Active Member

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    "Kars4Kids" benefits an already wealthy segment of society . . . Jewish peoples organization promoting the cause of being more Orthodox Jewish. Not anything involving disadvantaged kids.