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Discussion in 'Prius v Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Kensterfly, Jan 3, 2014.

  1. Kensterfly

    Kensterfly Junior Member

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    My bride is at our dealer right now for her 5,000 mile check up. 2013 Prius v5. The SOW says she needs to replace the air filter. Says there is rat feces and urine in it. We do not have rats in our arage. No sign whatsoever. Shortly after we got the car in early September, we reported to our sales guy and the service department a peculiar odor coming form the A/C upon start up. He said it was probably condensation/mildew and to turn off the A/C a mile or so before we get home to dry out the condensor. So, if this odor has been here from the beginning I'm thinking the filter was contaminated when it came to us. It had been at another dealer almost five months before we bought it. They want $50 to replace the filter. I see them on line for as low as $6.00. A 'freakin' KN filter is only around $40!

    I told her I would order a filter myself but to argue the case that we have reported the odor months ago when we first got the car. If the SOW doesn't budge, she will talk to the Service manager and our salesman.

    What would you do? She's at the dealer as I write, so a prompt reply would be very helpful if anyone is on line right now.

    Thanks!
     
    #1 Kensterfly, Jan 3, 2014
  2. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
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    Order it and replace it yourself.

    Only if something was written down can you successfully argue anything about previous claims. My hunch is that the person gave you the 'mildew' answer and didn't document anything. Besides, without having checked the filter personally at the time, I can't see where you have much of a case. It's just too easy for them to blame you.
     
    #2 TonyPSchaefer, Jan 3, 2014
  3. Kensterfly

    Kensterfly Junior Member

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    Our salesman is a standup, supportive guy and he knows we reported the problem. He will support us, though it still may not do any good. I definitely won't pay $50 bucks for a cabin air filter. Official Toyota cabin filter on line is around $16.
     
    #3 Kensterfly, Jan 3, 2014
  4. rdgrimes

    rdgrimes Senior Member

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    The engine air filter has nothing to do with the HVAC system, or odors therein. But its well worth a look at the cabin filter too, since there could be similar issues there.

    Its not clear in the OP which filter you're talking about.
     
    #4 rdgrimes, Jan 3, 2014
  5. Kensterfly

    Kensterfly Junior Member

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    Okay, she just called back. After getting the Service Manager and our sales guy in on it, they decided the filter was just fine after all. Imagine that! Service Manager said the odor appears to be coming from the A/C. Imagine that!!! That's what we told them three months ago. They are currently doing a clean out.

    This is the second time a tech(mechanic) has tried to sell us an unneeded cabin filter. Previous time was for her Lexus RX. They brought out and showed her a cabin filter chocked with blonde dog hair. We do not have a blonde dog. No dog has EVER ridden inside her car and no dog lives in (and sheds in) the garage. And this was at most six weeks after I had changed the filter myself. Total scam. I talked to the SM about it and he proclaimed that the tech was one of their top mechanics. blah, blah blah, and it was just one of those unexplained mysteries.

    I'm going to start putting a secret mark on the filters so that we can prove the bad filter did not even come off of our car, should they try this again.

    Cabin filter. I clarified that in the later post.
     
    #5 Kensterfly, Jan 3, 2014
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i do my own. the charge is high for labor and a ripoff, but luckily, you get to decide what you want them to do and not do.
     
    #6 bisco, Jan 3, 2014
  7. xpcman

    xpcman Senior Member

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    I also had a dealer claim that I needed to replace a filter that was about 16 hours old.
     
    #7 xpcman, Jan 3, 2014
  8. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
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    That's exactly what I do. Only I didn't start doing it to keep from getting scammed, I did it because I kept forgetting when I put in a new filter.

    Funny how quickly the filter went from "rat feces and urine" to "just fine." What a joke. Time to call Toyota Customer Care.
     
    #8 TonyPSchaefer, Jan 3, 2014
    kenoarto likes this.
  9. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    Well it really sounds like you need to find a better dealer service department.

    I mean really? You shouldn't feel like you have to secretly mark your filters in order to prove you are being scammed.

    You need to find a new dealership, new service department that you feel has the integrity to NOT pull this crap.
     
    #9 The Electric Me, Jan 3, 2014
    kenoarto likes this.
  10. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    What you ended up with was having the AC coil cleaned. The start up musky smell is the coil going from dry to wet. Once fully wet and cold, the smell goes away. AC is used even the winter when using defrost or sometimes when set to Auto.

    Guess what? Toyota sells a coil cleaner kit and it is sometimes on ebay. The kit is just an aerosol can with a plastic hose plus a second air freshener can. You have to remove the cabin filter which is easy. You also have to access the condensate tube under the car. PS this is the same advice we gave you several months ago in a separate thread about the smell.



     
    #10 rjparker, Jan 3, 2014
  11. rdgrimes

    rdgrimes Senior Member

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    I 2nd the idea to report these clowns to Toyota and never go back there again. The mechanics don't have any real motivation to pull this, its the service manager who's pulling the strings.
     
    #11 rdgrimes, Jan 3, 2014
    kenoarto likes this.
  12. PriusC_Commuter

    PriusC_Commuter Active Member

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    You should definitely start going to a different dealership to get your services done if these things keep coming up. If you feel comfortable telling us, what dealership was this so others can avoid them or confirm similar stories?
     
    #12 PriusC_Commuter, Jan 3, 2014
  13. Air_Boss

    Air_Boss Senior Member

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    Or figure on doing this sort of minor maintenance work yourself.
     
    #13 Air_Boss, Jan 4, 2014
  14. sdtundra

    sdtundra Senior Member

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    Just yesterday fiance took her Corolla in for an oil change and they marked the tires at yellow (bellow 6/32) and the wear pattern at yellow. Costco had just installed new Bridgestone EP422 560 miles prior....they also tried to sell an A/C compressor cleaning for smelly vents for $159.99 which he then lowered to $129.99 after she called me. Still no go to his disappointment. Told her that mold could cause health problems if we let it just sit.
     
    #14 sdtundra, Jan 4, 2014
  15. Cape Codder

    Cape Codder Junior Member

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    Many years ago I brought my car to the Dodge dealer while still on warrantee.
    At every oil change, they "added" a can of Wynn's Xtend,(like STP) for $4-5.
    When I asked for an explanation of why they added it, yet never asked, they said they do it for all cars.
    I said OK, take me back there right now and show me the empty can in the trash barrel......the SM said he had no time, and wiped it off my bill.
    You could see and reach my oil filter fairly easy on that car. I started writing the installation date and my initials in permanent marker right on the filter.
    The next oil & filter change.....guess what.......they didn't change the filter (oh yes, they charged me for it)
    The SM, GM and I had a "frank" conversation.......I NEVER returned. Chrysler was contacted and supposedly investigated.......
    NEVER bought another Dodge either.
    Today, I really trust my Toyota dealer. 5 vehicles over time, with ALL maintenance done by them. Never a problem, vehicles have been bullet-proof.
     
    #15 Cape Codder, Jan 14, 2014
    ftl likes this.
  16. Air_Boss

    Air_Boss Senior Member

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    Maybe it has changed but there was a certain something about Dodge dealers in the late 1990s/early 2000s.
     
    #16 Air_Boss, Jan 15, 2014
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