Alternative to dealer maintenance

If they do good work keep using them for warranty repairs. $10 for filter labor is cheap, for a dealer. Save more by changing the filters yourself.

 

But then they have to open those darn packages :_> You might as well ask but don't be very surprised if they won't do it for less.

 

Yes, you are being picky. It doesn't matter how long it takes a mechanic to change a part or if he has the old one in his hand already. Labor rates are charged based on standardized book rates from Toyota. If the book (or computer) says labor to change an air filter is $10, it will be $10 regardless of whether it took the technician 1 minute or 1 hour.

At my dealerships labor rate you were charged for 8 minutes of labor to change each filter. That isn't bad to go get the new part, change the part, dispose of the old part, and fill out the paperwork. That said the air and cabin filters are only scheduled to be replace every 30K miles. Those filters should have be changed at 30K miles and 60K miles unless you live in a very dusty area.

However, there is no reason to pay dealer rates for Prius maintenance. The routine maintenance as called out owner's manual is no different that what is required for other vehicles. Any independent shop or DIY home mechanic can change oil, filters, and light bulbs.

 

I think you got a deal

 

I'm not surprised that the dealer charges $47 for a bulb. The dealer is almost always the most expensive place to buy parts just like they have the highest rates for labor.

I don't know what the proper procedure is to change a halogen light bulb in a Prius as I have HID's. Again, labor hours are charged by book fees set by Toyota. $63 for labor sounds low to me because most dealerships I've been to charge a minimum of 1 hour labor regardless of what they do.

If you don't like the service manager find another dealer or shop to do your maintenance.

 

You also asked if you are being picky, which I believe you are.

 

You might also try the Mechanic's Files section of Car Talk for repair shop advice.

 

That depends on whether the bumper actually needs to be loosened or not per the procedure in Toyota's manual. Again, it doesn't matter what the service manager said, he is just a middle man. What matters is what the book rate for the job is.

Toyota paid your dealer $47 for a bulb. A genuine OEM bulb costs $33.34 at Toyota Parts Cheap - Genuine OEM with a MSRP listed as $41. So it sounds to me like $47 is about right for what a dealer would charge. Again, the dealer is the most expensive place to buy parts.

I don't just blindly accept what a dealership tells me something will cost. I get an estimate AHEAD of time that is itemized with labor and parts cost. Then I decide if I want the dealer to do the work or not. I have only had a dealership work on my car once. That was to change the timing belt at 100K miles on my VW. They charged $150 more for a water pump than what I could get an OEM water pump online but I needed the work done quickly so I paid the inflated dealer rate.


Again, I think you are blowing things way out of proportion and simply don't realize how expensive it is to have a dealer work on your car. Notice that no one has posted that the prices you paid were way out of line. In fact, some have said you got a good price. That should tell you something.

 

The prices quoted by the OP are about middle-of-the-road.

Clearly, items like engine air filter and cabin air filter are huge profit margin makers for the dealership. These filters are *extremely* easy for the average driver, with average skills, to inspect and change

 

Which side light bulb did you have to change? I know you can do one side without removing the bumper, which is still kind of hard because of limited space. But one of the side is impossible without removing the bumper, unless you have very small hands. Let me know your secret in replacing both light bulbs without removing the bumper.

 

A little front-nose disassembly *does* make access to the back
of the headlight assemblies much easier, no doubt about that.
I just reverse-engineered how to do that on my '04, but I haven't
had time to do a page about it. If you have small hands then
the lamps are accessible without doing that, but it *is* easier
to see what you're doing if the third bolt on the headlight
housing is removed and the whole thing turned upward. So those
who are big and ham-handed [yes, deliberate phrasing] would
likely opt for the nose-disassembly route rather than surgical
precision.
.
_H*

 

Hey! I resemble that remark

 

Now that times are getting very lean, an obvious place to pad profits is with the service bays. No doubt there are dealerships out there who are outright ripoff artists

There are well known places for ripoffs and poor quality service. To avoid a costly legal suit, I'll refer to them with a phrase that rhymes with "iffy boob"