Using impact guns on my bolts, as well as not knowing how to put the TRD skid spacers in correctly was enough for me to stop going to Toyota. If they couldn't do that right, an OEM Toyota part, no way they can do other stuff correct.

Ya gotta wonder how many dealerships are just draining and refilling the oil and not changing the oil filter ?

This is the reason I do my own changes. It's a hassle to drop the pan and replace the filter, so I'm afraid they just won't do it.

Once made the mistake of taking my ‘02 Tacoma TRD to Walmart for an oil and filter change in 2008. That was the first time and my last time. They drained the oil into the skid plates. They didn’t change the filter, instead tossed the new filter, still in the box, into the engine bay, which settled down on top of the skid plates. When I took the truck for its next service, the Pennzoil shop I still patronize, they were laughing and asked if I took the truck to Walmart. They took me out into the shop and showed me the mess, as they had the plates on the floor and had rolled the truck back to show me.

Did my first oil change on the 4Runner last night. And throughout the whole process was wanting to go burn the dealership to the ground. First issue, my skid plate was missing a 12mm bolt. The second issue... the plastic oil filter canister would NOT come off! I was shaking trying to put all the muscle I had into it. Since it was my first oil change with the new plastic canister, I started second guessing myself and did some research to make sure I was on the right track. Yup, I was using the really nice motiv (spelling?) 64mm wrench and lefty loosey. It would not budge. Then, Unfortunately I had to get a breaker bar. And yup like breaker bars do, it broke one of the plastic tabs off! At this point, I was pretty pissed. Ended up, folding a piece of paper and putting it between the socket and canister and thankfully it came off. I was able to change the filter and reused the canister. However, I’ll need to replace it in the future.

Moral of the story: service techs (some... maybe not all) do not care about your vehicle like you do. All they know is use the impact wrench on everything and good enough will get by.

Can we start to name and shame these damn dealers now???

This is precisely why i havent got a 5th gen yet. Had a 2006 v8, loved it but wanted something different - a major reason i sold it was because im not mechanically inclined and the dealer experience was pathetic. Horrible. They almost always never put any of the tire caps back on, twice they didnt even put the oil cap back on. I opened the hood and it was sitting there on top of the engine (central NJ dealer). I never want to deal with Toyota dealers period. I dont even have a 5th gen yet (looking) but this is already pi&&ing me off.

If there are any reputable Toyota service centers in central NJ please let me know, i might change my mind and finally get a 5th/6th gen. These horror stories reflect what i went through.

Dealers are catching a lot of flak in this thread but honestly I don't trust oil change places either. There's just as many horror stories (if not more) about them. Which is why I do all maintenance myself. Nobody will care for your baby like you will.

I agree. Every time I have chosen a dealership to do my work I ask who the best tech is and develop a relationship with them. It makes a huge difference.


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With 1,500 Toyota dealerships in the United States I'm guessing that not all of them have drooling morons for mechaics.
For every one forum member there must be hundreds or thousands of Toyota owners.
So we are, and aren't, hearing a subset of a subset, and only hearing the negative stories.
Of the many occupations I've had, I was a mechanic. I was always conscientious that my work, my craft, affected the lives of thousands. But I also know that not everyone takes pride in their work. I have seen that in all of the fields I have worked in and been a consumer of.
That said, I do as much of my own vehicle maintenance as possible.
"Man bites dog" is a headline. "Dog bites man" isn't even a story (unless currently it was a pitbull)

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Problem is the oil changer is typically not a mechanic. Often just some clueless kid they got cheap.

True story> When we bought our 2011 FJC new we went in for the "free oil change and tire rotation".
So the dealer had some "concierge" type guy wandering around the waiting area- I asked him what was taking so long- he told me->

That they only had one gimbal rack for oil changes- it was a special rack they put vehicles on that would tilt the vehicle sideways and front to back about 45 deg to make sure all the oil was drained out. Since it was crucial to do that it took a little longer to change the oil.

I'm not kidding.

Dick Dyer Toyota in Columbia SC.



And as stated there may be thousands of owners for every one owner on this forum- can you imagine how may people have issues like the wrong short filter element and never have a clue?

Buying Toyota reliability is mooted if they destroy your engine/transmission with bone head moves.

Years ago when I had my Tacoma took my truck in for the first oil change. Then after my mechanic I use all the time had him do the second oil change and he pointed out to me that the dealership never changed the oil filter. I believe they do this all the time and not change the filter. Had them do my first 2 on my 17 Pro. Even tho your not paying for it when you go to have it done for the first 2 since you already payed for it when you bought the vehicle I’m taking mine to my own mechanic this time for my 2020 Pro.

I was at a tire and lube place getting new tires for the wife's RAV4 last night and the closest lane to the waiting area window was an oil change lane. I watched a 3rd gen Tacoma pull in and get an oil change, I'm not 100% sure but the new oil filter he put in looked shorter, like the ones I use for the RAV4. Then when he put the skid plate back in place the bolts were zipped into place with an impact, not hand started. Two of the bolts started right out with uga-duggas so you know they were cross threaded.

Just to let you guys know why this happens all the time at the dealership, is because every job is allotted a specific time and billed accordingly. If the standard oil change is allotted 30 minuets and the tech does it in 10 minuets he still gets paid for the 30 minuets. And it doesn’t matter if it’s brakes, oil change, spark plugs or a transmission rebuilt, it’s all allotted a specific billable time frame. So there is financial incentive to rush through the job and on to the next because you simply make more money.
So think about the environment this creates? There is literally cash available all dictated on how much you want to work and how Fast you work.

100% true. I used to work for a very reputable Audi dealership: back when the new (2009 through early 2010s if I remember correctly) Audi A4s came out, they developed a ring problem where they would fail. The techs would fight for these ring jobs because they were billed at X amount of hours, but they could finish the work in half the time. Their work was always excellent, but because of them being able to finish it in half the time, they could get more jobs in/more money.


Based off the testimonies in this thread from everyones respective dealers: quantity over quality.


Ive had three oil changes and a tire rotation done at my local dealership (most recent and final dealer oil change was < 500 miles ago) and havent had any issues as described.