What (If Anything) Are You Guys Paying for Maintenance

Material costs for synthetic oil and filter can run you about $45. Add in labor and tire rotation and $90 for the dealership is pretty good.

 

if they really do all the inspections, doesn't seem bad. i just go to the local garage for oil and tires, probably around $45. i don't think my gen II was synthetic, but they can overfill it as well as the dealer.

 

it cost me $81.18 Feb 2012

 

I do my own syn oil/oil filter changes for about $22 in materials.

JeffD

 

My Prius has like 86,500 on it. Haven't done 85K maintenance yet, but I did clean my cabin air filter and the most recent alignment, balance, rotation happened at 81K miles. Oil is doing well too.

 

its a good price. i am paying tomorrow 89 for just alignment.

 

About $20 every 10k miles for high quality oil/filter;
Add another $10 for engine air filter when dirty and a good thumping is not enough
Cabin air filter from $10 - $35 depending whether simple or fancy carbon ones bought.

Dealer service charge ? Don't know, don't care

 

I do it myself (~$30 with denso filter and wallymart 5w30 mob 1 high mileage synthetic or less if you go with valvoline maxlife for example ) ... Or if no time wait for Firestone coupon and get oil change and inspection for ~$20 ... I think their Kendall oil is good .. Ok for 5k miles city driving or 7.5k freeway ...

Sometimes dealer runs oil change special for $35 here. Not sure who makes the Toyota oil but doubt any better than Firestone Kendall

 

What sealed the deal for me .. 10.00 syn oil filter change for life , 9.00 tire rotations
Have only been an owner for a year so not sure what ill be charged for check this
Check that in the future

 

I done everything so far, apart from the gratis brake booster recall it was just in for, so just parts. And been using Toyo's 0W20 which is at or under $6 per liter.

$90 for an oil change, inspection and tire rotation seems reasonable to me. What would you charge to do all that? Granted it's a lot easier with a hoist, but those wheels don't get any lighter

 

Materials are about $15 wholesale, so that leaves $75 for labor. I'm slow, so I'll say it took 30 minutes to complete.

So $150 an hour. Not bad, not bad. I know my son makes $10/hour as a physics research assistant.

 

If this is for bulk mineral oil then I would agree the price is excessive. My daughter in Irvine, CA pays around $30 for her local dealer to change the engine oil and oil filter, and she then has to decline the service writer's suggestions to uplift the services to be provided, saying she'll consult her dad first.

 

Prices are whatever people are willing to pay <<shrug>>

Now, if you are asking if other places are cheaper in your neighborhood -- call around. There is some hesitancy by owners to take the Prius to non-dealership shops, but this forum has lots of experience to say that the dealership can often be as sloppy and clueless as the lube joint down the street. That is half the reason so many of us do this simple work ourselves.

If you do end up having someone else do the work, check the oil level afterwards. Overfills are common and should be corrected if found.

 

Don't forget businesses have overhead. Employees get paid even if business is slow too.

 

^ You beat me to it. Consider:

The dealership has to invest in real estate, build an expansive service facility, acquire hoists and lifts, tools and sundry. Then hire and train personnel. Establish themselves with Toyota. Purchase a decent back log of stock, and keep on top of it. Re-train their personnel. And on and on.

They make it look easy when you roll in for an oil change and tire rotation, but consider instead the time expense and effort it takes you to do it:

First you need to get to the parts department (or somewhere) to purchase oil, drain plug washer, and filter, retail.

Then you're going to need a decent flat/solid concrete area, preferably covered, a decent floor jack and jack stands, wrenches, torque wrenches, various sockets, screw drivers, rags, pans.

Keep in mind an "inspection" is also included. I doubt the dealership would follow the inspection to the letter: Toyota's vague instruction to check main bolt torques for example. Well, if they'd specify bolts and torques they'd gain a few disciples, but as-is: where would you start? Anyway, there are lot of items worth doing, operation of lights and signals for example.

Now, you're going to "rotate tires". Well, my strategy would be to get the whole car up enough on safety stands that the wheels are clear of the floor, with 20 lug nuts pre-loosened. Then spin off 20 lug nuts. Then pull off 4 wheels.

Oh-oh, the two back ones are frozen on the hubs for some reason. Back a few years for me, that would mean re-installing lug nuts loose, then dropping that end of the car in an attempt to break them loose. Now what I do though is get out a heavy sledge hammer (got one?), put one lug nut back near the top of wheel, put a 2x4 flat against the inside face of a frozen wheel, then swing the sledge hammer across the slab and whack out the wheel at the bottom back, as hard as I can.

While you've got the 4 wheels off, good opportunity to roll them in bright light, looking for nails, prying out junk. Ok, now you get to put them back on, in their new positions, snug up 20 lug nuts, roll the floor jack back in and get the car back on the ground.

Then you go around and torque 20 lug nuts. What was the torque again?

Anyway..., haven't even started on the oil change yet. Time for a beer break?

 

my prepaid maintenance recently ran out and the 5k service is running me about $95 in the SF bay area. they wash it too (sometimes), and i can see the service history at toyota.com ... those 2 things are extras, but it's worth it imo