Picked up our Prius II yesterday and wondered where we should have it serviced. Would it be a mistake to bring it to a reputable Toyota mechanic vs. a Toyota dealer because of the complexities of the Hybrid system? Dealer pros: Knows the hybrid system warranties Dealer cons: more expensive (?) Mechanic pros: less expensive (?) Toyota certified Mechanic cons: Does not know the hybrid system warranties (?) I have had our previous car (not hybrid) serviced by the mechanic in question and I've been very happy with his work and price. I assume he will tell me that all his guys are Toyota certified and qualified to work on a hybrid. Any thoughts, opinions or experiences? Thanks
(I have a 2009, so the maintenance schedule is not identical) If you read your maintenance schedule, nothing 'hybrid'y is even done in the first 100,000 miles. My dealer is doing the 5,000 miles service for $43 (no synthetic oil in the 2009) so I have no desire to go to an independent mechanic, but I would not fear to if they were cheaper.
I changed the tires on a Toyota at a mechanic's place. They damages the tire pressure sensor and cannot fix it, refused to refund me. I had to take it to the dealer where the warranty took care of it. Yes, I am right, I can argue, I will probably win, but my time is worth something and I shouldn't have to argue every time I change tires. I guess I'll never go back to a local mechanic again. The next time I change tires, it will be at the dealer. I think every once in a while, the mechanic will make a big mistake (we are all human) and destroy something very valuable. At the Toyota dealer, the warranty will take care of it. At the local place, you probably have to go to court. I don't see how a local place will give you $500 to repair a pressure sensor at the dealer. I don't know about oil changes either. They can lose some clips that holds the underbody covering or they don't have the filter in stock. The third time I had the oil changed at the mechanics, they charged more. I asked why. They said they changed the filter. I thought they should have changed it every time. Maybe I had a bad local repair shop. I've decided a few extra bucks is worth the peace of mind. But that's just me.
You get all kinds, and that's when servicing *any* car. I'd love to see independents more willing and able to deal with hybrids without even raising an eyebrow. Some of them have taken various training courses but those don't really give much more than a superficial view and leave out several important operational aspects, but those are the ones who will puff up and say "oh yeah, we're all 'hybrid certified'" and all. Because some guy threw you a few factoids and gave you a vinyl banner to hang over your bay door? I don't think so. A few of them genuinely care, like Art's and Lusciousgarage. I have so far totally failed to hear of anything on par with them on the East Coast, where hybrids are almost as thick on the ground. . _H*
My Bay Area dealership quoted $119 for oil change, fluid check, and tire rotation on my 2010. A local, trusted shop quoted $75 (with Toyota oil). I'll do my first couple of services at the dealer because I took them up on the Toyota Visa Card that gives you $250 credit for service when I bought the car (I have no idea what interest they charge on the card and don't care as I never carry a balance on anything past the grace period).
New tire pressure sensors only cost about $100 each, why would a dealer charge $500 to replace a damaged one? $ 400 labor when they don't even have to remove the tire to replace it. Even if they did have to take the tire off and put it back on and re-balance it, $ 400 labor to change a tire?
I was just throwing out a number. You are correct. I don't know because I had it fixed under warranty as I stated in my post. Assuming I am out of warranty. Sensor = $100. Maybe another $100 to take off the tire, put on the sensor, rebalance the tire, reprogram the sensor. So maybe $200. However, I stand by my basic premise. There are certain things only a dealer can fix and if the local shop breaks them, you are going to have a hard time getting the money from your local shop. Maybe Oil Changes could be done for less. But something major I'll definitely go back to the dealer. Since I had bad experiences with the local guy, I'll go to the dealer for oil changes also. No more - 1. drop off the car for tire change, 2. pick up car 3. notice to sensor problem, try to reset 4. drop off car for sensor repair 5. pick up car that is supposed to be fixed 6. notice to sensor problem, try to reset/fix myself 7. drop off car for 2nd sensor repair 8. pick up car and was told sensor can't be fixed. 9. drop off car at dealer 10. pick up car at dealer. A simple tire change should not involve 8 visits. Say each visit takes 1.5 hours (remember I don't have a loner car), I spent 12/15 hours on this project. How much is a day's worth of labor for me cost? I'm going to the dealer from now on for tire changes. It is my preference. The OP wanted my view and this is my view. By the way, I am not related to any dealership.
Here's my take on this (and has been since long before I became a service writer): Loyalty breeds satisfaction. If I have a customer who has been loyal to me in terms of customer-pay service and needs help with something which falls into a grey area, I'll fight tooth-and-nail to get the manufacturer to help them out. However, if they've been nothing but warranty, then once the warranty's up, the warranty's up. If you call in to Toyota for consideration on something which falls outside of the normal scope of the warranty, the first thing they're going to do is call the dealer to find out what kind of customer you've been. Goodwill is extended to those who show loyalty. The dealer is not Toyota. They are the face of Toyota. Any warranty consideration is done through Toyota's guidelines as it's Toyota's money. I work at a foreign car dealership as a service writer. When I had my Crown Victoria, it went to Ford for oil changes. When I had a VW, it went to VW for oil changes. When I needed help outside of warranty, I got it simply because I put in the effort (and the extra $5) to build a relationship with them.
Chris - I wish I had your kind of trust for dealerships. I still have a very bad taste in my mouth from the Ford dealership who repaired my car with non-Ford parts (under warranty) and then on the next visit tried to tell me my warranty was void because I had non-Ford parts on my vehicle. Ummm, when I showed them the paperwork from the last repair (with their name at the top) they got a little nervous. I just couldn't see being loyal to those guys?!?! Well, now I drive a Toyota... Dealer experience has been ok so far, we will see.
Well, back to subject I would really like to know where to take my car for an oil change. Also, is tire rotation necessary every 5K as the salesman suggested?
Take it anywhere, just check your manual for oil and oil filter type and ask the shop what they will use. If it doesn't match, go elsewhere. Yes, it is advisable to rotate tires every 5000 miles. If you buy your tires at the same shop that changes your oil, they will usually do the rotations for free.
I've taken a car, not a Prius, to a discount oil change place. The place tried to get extra business out of me by dropping the transmission pan and telling me I need a new filter. I told them to put everything back. Now I am afraid to go to these places for fear that they will try to do this again. I am sure they did not use a new gasket when they put the pan back. And I wondered if they used a clean container to hold the transmission fluid that they poured back. As I said earlier, it was not a Prius. That was a while back, I've since sold the car. If there is an oil change place that promised NOT to touch your car except just to change oil, I'll go. It is too bad that they do all these extra stuff to get money from you. Like, don't touch the air filters, don't mess with the transmission, don't open the transaxle to check the oil. The more they open, the more problems you'll have down the road.
