Need Fast help, please!

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.

 

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.

 

I also had a dealer claim that I needed to replace a filter that was about 16 hours old.

 

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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

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?

 

Or figure on doing this sort of minor maintenance work yourself.

 

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.

 

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.

 

Maybe it has changed but there was a certain something about Dodge dealers in the late 1990s/early 2000s.