another dealer victim

[4RunnerL2016]

I'm coming to the conclusion that, as others stated, these dealer techs are useless. Just yesterday I had one tell me that a weird thing my engine has been doing at 5200 RPM recently was, in fact, the rev limiter....the red line is at 5800 RPM. (FACEPALM). Another once told me that all cars are supposed to have rattles in them. I can go on and on. More often than not, I feel like I'm telling them how to do their job, and, considering how much we're obsessed with our rides, I bet that most of you on here feel the same way.

 

[Zhaicne]

A lot of you guys on here are very good at fixing cars or know how to do most things. I am not a handy guy with cars but i can do regular stuff to cars without getting dirty i.e. filters, wipers, bulbs etc. I am good at diagnosing issues that may arise with my car but i don't have the tools or knowledge to be able to fix them. I wish i had someone to show me how to do it or had/have a car to be able to tinker with. I do take my car (T4R) (Highlander) to Firestone for regular maintenance but the dealership for repairs and/or recalls. If your an ASE certified mechanic, you are on the same level as other ASE mechanics right? No matter where you work? Now i understand that at Toyota, you will obviously know more about how to fix Toyotas than someone at Firestone, but it's all the same right? I have observed that a lube tech no matter where they work is the same "type" of person and has the same types of qualification. It just seems like a gamble no matter where you take your car too. Just cross your fingers and hope for the best. :shrug:

 

[Lester Lugnut]

If your an ASE certified mechanic, you are on the same level as other ASE mechanics right? No matter where you work?

Nope.

Are all NFL QBs, computer programmers, etc. of the same talent based on a rating?

I've dealt with ASE tech who couldn't find their ass in the shower. Dealerships are full of them. Part of the problem has to do with the pay system.

And in my area at least, I wouldn't dream of letting a Firestone mechanic work on one of my vehicles. What you've come to expect with Firestone may differ in your area.

 

[jhguth]

Just cross your fingers and hope for the best. :shrug:

not entirely, it's important that you read reviews and ask around for recommendations and do research before picking a mechanic

 

[ElectroBoy]

not entirely, it's important that you read reviews and ask around for recommendations and do research before picking a mechanic

True. In your search you may find that the best, most highly recommended mechanics are the ones who used to work at dealerships, got disgusted with their practices, and started their own shops.

 

[Hans Moleman]

While dealer mechanics have all the training and factory resources, they are less skilled than mechanics at independent shops.

 

[pointman]

Jim White isn’t much better. They left my tool bag in the cargo area and the compartment door off when rotating my tires. I still need to confirm the wheel lock key was returned.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oh crap. What exactly is supposed to be in that compartment area? I want to go check and see that the dealer returned all that should be there. Help!

 

[NW.OH.T4R]

Oh crap. What exactly is supposed to be in that compartment area? I want to go check and see that the dealer returned all that should be there. Help!

I'll take a picture when I get out of the office, unless someone beats me to it. Should be your jack, and then a rolled tool bag that holds the tire iron and I THINK a small plastic bag with the wheel lock key. I can't be sure about the key because mine is missing.

 

[the_fornicator]

lol a bit of a shame that I have free oil changes for life.

What a waste cause outside of the 3 mandatory ones I have to do to keep my warranty, I'll be doing the rest myself. Not terrible though. I'm getting one oil change a year so @ like $110 (mobil1 + the $20 oil filter package) per oil change, I'd only be saving $1100 over the course of 10 years. I'd rather pay that than have to deal with a dead engine due to oil starvation and/or have to fight tooth and nail to get cross threaded/stripped holes "fixed".

 

[Sky]

Dick Dyer in Columbia did the exact same thing to me, except they lost my lug key in the process. manager had to run all over the bay looking for it. Buncha morons there. All the techs looked like they were 16 years old, vaping and playing grabass. Never again!

Oh man- Dick Dyer Toyota- we bought a new FJCruiser from them in 2011- went in for the first "free" oil change/tire rotation. Noticed the still brand new spare was on the mount still- Toyota advises rotating all 5 tires on the FJ and even mounts it on the same alloy rims as the other 4.

So wife takes it next time and the service writer argued with her not wanting to rotate all 5 tires. Finally he agreed to.
What he didn't know is I had marked each rim with a number. She got home, I looked and the left rear was still on the left rear. Apparently they aren't going to do all 5 no matter what.

So next time I took it in- I sat there and watched them pump regular oil in, not the synthetic they showed on the bill- presumably paid by Toyota Corp.
Yes they only did 4 tires again.

Done with them. Just bought a new 4R this week- didn't even go by there to see what they had....

 

[nb rob]

I had 10 free oil changes. I used 3. That was enough for a cracked filter housing and a mess to clean up each time, including oily fingerprints on my headliner. I decided not to keep rolling the dice.
I now drive one hour to the next dealership for any service that I can't do myself. These guys are a world of difference.

 

[pointman]

I'll take a picture when I get out of the office, unless someone beats me to it. Should be your jack, and then a rolled tool bag that holds the tire iron and I THINK a small plastic bag with the wheel lock key. I can't be sure about the key because mine is missing.

Outstanding. Thanks a ton!

 

[pointman]

lol a bit of a shame that I have free oil changes for life.

What a waste cause outside of the 3 mandatory ones I have to do to keep my warranty, I'll be doing the rest myself. Not terrible though. I'm getting one oil change a year so @ like $110 (mobil1 + the $20 oil filter package) per oil change, I'd only be saving $1100 over the course of 10 years. I'd rather pay that than have to deal with a dead engine due to oil starvation and/or have to fight tooth and nail to get cross threaded/stripped holes "fixed".

3 mandatory? I thought it was 10k and 20k.

Oh man- Dick Dyer Toyota- we bought a new FJCruiser from them in 2011- went in for the first "free" oil change/tire rotation. Noticed the still brand new spare was on the mount still- Toyota advises rotating all 5 tires on the FJ and even mounts it on the same alloy rims as the other 4.

So wife takes it next time and the service writer argued with her not wanting to rotate all 5 tires. Finally he agreed to.
What he didn't know is I had marked each rim with a number. She got home, I looked and the left rear was still on the left rear. Apparently they aren't going to do all 5 no matter what.

So next time I took it in- I sat there and watched them pump regular oil in, not the synthetic they showed on the bill- presumably paid by Toyota Corp.
Yes they only did 4 tires again.

Done with them. Just bought a new 4R this week- didn't even go by there to see what they had....

Did you confront them on the oil? Document the incident? Bring it to anyones attention? That is a significant error on their part and assuming the time essence is still within reason, I would not hesitate to make sure that your concern/observation is noted.

 

[Sky]

Did you confront them on the oil? Document the incident? Bring it to anyones attention? That is a significant error on their part and assuming the time essence is still within reason, I would not hesitate to make sure that your concern/observation is noted.

Waste of time to complain because no one from the owner on down gives a damn.

 

[85GT-79FJ40]

Let me premise this by saying my 4Runner is my 17th Toyota 4x4 and that I have made my living in the automotive industry for the last 20 years. Most of it in the parts end of things working for a european parts house but also at a dealer owned body shop and now at a vintage car restoration shop. I know what I'm talking about.

I would feel NO shame in not doing my own oil changes. This truck is really kind of a pain to change the oil on. If I wasn't doing it on a lift I would probably have a friend who runs an indy shop do it.

Dealers are a total crapshoot. When you go in for an oil change you're at the quick lane. Which is typically all the young guys who are quite often clueless and careless. You think they are bad? You should see some of the stuff I saw working as a writer at a high volume body shop! 3 months and I walked out. Talk about not giving a crap about people's cars...

But still if you can't find anyone competent there's absolutely no better way to get it done than to do it yourself.

 

[ZenArcade]

Some questions if I may ...

True that the 1st couple/few oil changes need to be done at dealer to maintain warranty? Numerous folks have indicated as long as receipts are kept for work (purchase of oil and/or work done at indy shop) coverage will be intact. However, just seems that Toyota (corporate) would be more difficult to work w/ if any issues develop and work done out of official org ...

I can speak from experience that dealerships mess stuff up ... all my '10 Subaru Legacy 3.6r work done at AutoNation (Denver). Tech comes out after one of the oil changes and asked if I knew that threads stripped on oil pan ... I reply that all work done at dealership. Helicoil fix needed. :rant:

Any experiences w/ service done at Groove Toyota (Denver)? Amazing Toyota indie shops that are recommended in Denver? Thanks much.

 

[the_fornicator]

3 mandatory? I thought it was 10k and 20k.

I think it was 3, but am not sure. However many, I gotta have it done through the dealer whether it's 2 or 3 or 4.

I live in Canada so the oil changes are whichever come first -1 year or 15K kms. 15k kms = 9300 miles so it's about what you're saying re: 10k and 20K. I also purchased extended warranty where every service the first 3 years is free so that may have tacked on an extra mandatory oil change or 2.

 

[Muzzle of Bees]

I would agree but my stay in Ohio was temporary and we lived in apartment complex didn’t allow us to work on cars in the complex.

My condo has the same language in the HOA docs, but that is really to prevent vehicles from being up on blocks and in pieces for long periods of time without penalty.
An oil change is so simple that it’s unlikely that they would complain. Also, the oil changes get faster if you are into building efficiency into your work.
This may be helpful for others that are considering simple work at a complex.