I had a 15,000 mile maintenance at the Toyota store yesterday. The only thing that failed was the HEPA filter is dirty. They offered to do the following and I declined for now: Perform AC system refresh service (Found cabin/HEPA micro filter dirty) Fail $80.00 Replace cabin/HEPA micro filter (Found cabin/HEPA microfilter dirty) Fail $65.00 Are not both items the same thing? Do you really need to pay this much for a filter and do you really need an AC refresh service. What's that anyway?
You can replace the filter yourself for about $15.00. It is not paramount that it needs to be replaced immediately. Forget about the AC, they just want your money. If anything is defective it should be repaired / replaced free of charge due to your car being in warranty. We have over 40,000 miles, replaced the hepa filter once thats in the glove box, the air filter, and do our own oil changes. Thats it. al
If by "refresh" they mean the a/c system needs a refrigerant recharge, then there is a leak and it should be covered by warranty. Besides the dealer, the cabin air filter can be found at most automotive parts stores or even walmart. My 2010 owners manual shows how to replace it in the "do it yourself maintenance" section.
I feel totally stupid! I am always leery and cautious with Dealer service shops but I got caught this time. I just got caught up being too busy and it cost me. The first tip-off was they wrote up an order for their "B" service instead of what the Prius Maint. book lists. I knew better, but in a hurry. The second thing, they quoted $269. I said that was outrageous but I was in a hurry---- and I had a $50 coupon (which you had to present prior to service) but I had a feeling I was still going to pay something close to the $269 quote. When I was notified a little later about the filter and ac service, the quote was $501. I finally collected my wits and said HELL NO! I ended up paying $233. It seems they take coupons off before adding on the shop fees, which was $46. You get me once but not again. What a major rip off! I love the car but I'm not liking Toyota right now.
It's about impossible to determine what they did. If you Google "a/c system refresh" you see that some dealers remove and clean the a/c core, ostensibly to eliminate odors (mold?). Maybe that's what they did? Personally, I don't want my a/c system taken apart, unless there's a big problem... Some folks have used the Fram "Fresh Breeze" cabin filter, CF10285 here: http://www.amazon.com/CF10285-Fresh-Breeze-Cabin-Filter/dp/B001CEG90I Good luck.
They charged $80 to discover that the filter was dirty, then charged $60 to replace it? Wow. That's Madoff-grade scamming right there.
Toyota is fine, your dealer sucks. Find another, and take the time to learn how to do the simple maintenance on your car. You will save a lot of money, know it was done right, and appreciate the car even more as you get to know the workings a bit.
I would send a copy of your paid invoice to Toyota Corp.....let them help you recover some or all of your money....let them deal with this crooked dealer... Plus post his name and address here......so that your neighbors don't get ripped off
+1 to all above. This isn't Toyota's bust. The dealer there in Frederick, MD should be called on the carpet for shamming you out of about a hundred bucks, and trying to get you for a few hundred more. $500 for a 15K service?? If I had a car with those maintenance costs---it wouldn't have a Toyota emblem on the hood!!! I'd pop a flare over Toyota about this one for sure! Maybe show the dealer's General Manager this thread!!!
I totally agree with what is being said. It was as much my fault as the Dealer's. Some good may come out of it. I did send a email to the Dealership VP of Customer Relations. She sees a problem in how they handle or explain "Required" vs. "Recommended" with their customers. The Svs. Manager is supposed to contact me. I do some maintenance on my cars after warranty. I will start doing more on the Prius now and will be extra careful in making sure I take the time to explain to the service department, exactly what I want done and get an estimate--- then shop some other dealers. We do have more than one.
Good point about making sure you explain exactly what you want done. I have had two good service visits with my dealer and one not so good. The two good ones, I made sure the service advisor knew exactly what I wanted. The bad one, in the middle, I "assumed" the service advisor knew what I wanted since I explained myself the first visit Now, the service advisor and I go over exactly what needs to be done before he takes the car. The last service visit was a very pleasant one and the service advisor and I have gotten to know each other fairly well. He seems to appreciate knowing exactly what I want done knowing that he will have a satisfied customer afterwards. Take a copy of the Toyota Maintenance manual with you if you have to and review this with your service advisor to be sure they only do what is required.
