Brought my Toyotas to the dealer for service over the last few days...

[eckertmg]

I brought by two cars to the dealer (my car which is a 2011 T4R limited with like 45k and my girlfriend's car which is a 2010 Camry SE with like 20k miles). Did not bring them in for any issues, but they were both due for an oil change / tire rotation so should have been a relatively easy visit.

On my car (the T4R), the service advisor came out and told me that I needed the following:

-Fuel and Air Induction System Service - Carbon build up in induction system
-Terminal Treatment - Terminal ends are corroded
-Replacement of Wiper Blades - Wiper Blades are streaking
-Rear Diff Service - Rear Diff fluid is Dirty

My natural inclination is to decline anything recommended that is not something you can visually confirm or is required by Toyota. In addition, my car has the extended Toyota Care included on it, so anything Toyota required should be inherently covered and just taken care of by them. Given the car only has 45k miles, I wouldn't expect much. I also had just replaced the windshield wipers within a few weeks, so I knew there was nothing wrong with them and I thought I had remembered seeing the terminals which looked just fine.

I just went out and took a look at the terminals again, and to the untrained eye, they look perfectly fine to me. I have had cars in the past that definitely had a problem, and these looks perfectly fine. Any thoughts on the attached?

My girlfriend also brought her car in for a similar service and they did not try to sell her anything, but they said at 20k miles its required to have an alignment. Not knowing any better, she said do whatever is required and they never even provided the before / after results. In my opinion, the car felt like it was properly aligned, at least enough to not impact driving it. Is this standard practice? I thought they are supposed to evaluate it first and then tell you if you need one, vs making you buy a service that is potentially not required?

I would not be so worked up about this, but it is not the first time this dealer has trying to pull this stuff on me and it really annoys me when I bought their stupid service contract, and they still try to oversell me on stuff. Not to mention, I just got an email indicating that I declined service on a handful of items that were CRITICAL and they are asking why I declined. These items listed in the email don't even reconcile back to what the advisor had told me.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[buchaja]

-Fuel and Air Induction System Service - Carbon build up in induction system
-Terminal Treatment - Terminal ends are corroded
-Replacement of Wiper Blades - Wiper Blades are streaking
-Rear Diff Service - Rear Diff fluid is Dirty

My girlfriend also brought her car in for a similar service and they did not try to sell her anything, but they said at 20k miles its required to have an alignment. Not knowing any better, she said do whatever is required and they never even provided the before / after results. In my opinion, the car felt like it was properly aligned, at least enough to not impact driving it. Is this standard practice? I thought they are supposed to evaluate it first and then tell you if you need one, vs making you buy a service that is potentially not required?

I would not be so worked up about this, but it is not the first time this dealer has trying to pull this stuff on me and it really annoys me when I bought their stupid service contract, and they still try to oversell me on stuff. Not to mention, I just got an email indicating that I declined service on a handful of items that were CRITICAL and they are asking why I declined. These items listed in the email don't even reconcile back to what the advisor had told me.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated. Thanks!

OK, here are my thoughts:

Find another dealer/mechanic. Don't know anything about the Air Induction system, but based on everything else, I think they're trying to screw you. Your terminals look fine, you said yourself the wiper blades are new and you can check diff fluid yourself (that may need changing, IDK).

Alignment numbers should have been provided before and after service. The before numbers indicating whether it was needed, and the after showing the improvement.

Good luck, just my $0.02.

Edit: Just saw your Toyota Care extended warranty. If all this is payed for by Toyota - ignore my advice above. Except I still don't think your girlfriend's car needed aligning.

 

[eckertmg]

Thanks for the quick response. Once we are out of the Toyota care and bumper to bumper warranties, we will definitely be finding another mechanic. Thanks again!

 

[philsey]

You might as well face it and deal with it. ALL svc depts are going to try and upsell everyone on this stuff. Some of it is needed, some is no harm, and some is outrageous. Women are particularly susceptible.

I never let my wife, my mom, or my sister approve any of this stuff, without getting it in writing and showing it to me.

 

[Lester Lugnut]

..................still looking for the battery terminal corrosion.

 

[FactoryRide]

Doesn't Toyota recommend the diff service at 60,000 miles? Less if you're wheeling it pretty hard?

 

[mtvp]

And that's why they have the nickname "Stealership" ! It is sad business model.

 

[dekeman]

You're getting hosed. Ask all your friends and colleagues for a trustworthy shop, Toyota or independent, and once you find it, go there and build a relationship. Either that or learn how to do the work yourself - then you'll know it's done right. Almost all the service work is dead simple (alignment notwithstanding 'cause you don't have the tool). Even major work can be figured out with some research and manuals, and lots of people on here will be happy to help out if you have a problem - except if you ask whether 285s will rub.

 

[Americas High Five]

If it were me I would have asked all the questions you asked on this thread directly to the service manager...not strangers on the internet

 

[Moving Chicane]

If it were me I would have asked all the questions you asked on this thread directly to the service manager...not strangers on the internet

And why is this a great idea? Any facts to go with your opinion?

 

[blizz86]

Since you have the extended toyota care, all expenses the dealership would accumulate on this service would be billed towards toyota. That is most likely the reason they are trying to "perform" all this work. Battery terminals look fine to me, im unsure of the diff fluid change intervals. But if you are not getting billed anything, i would let them take care of anything they want to do unless you have had bad experiences (keying your car, etc) or if you are short of time.

 

[eckertmg]

I have come to find out that the Toyota Care only covers items required by Toyota up to 60 or 65k. I first found this out when they tried to get me to replace spark plugs at 36k and I ended up calling Toyota care. All this work they recommended was not required by Toyota but just recommended by them, and most of this they recommended at 36k with nothing more than street driving through snow for the most part.

And I started with "asking strangers on the internet" to get opinions from people who are not trying to make a profit off of me. I will be talking to the service manager this week.

 

[INDYMAC]

As gut wrenching as it is for me to take my vehicles to the stealership for maintenance, I realize that we need them to be there for most warranty work. I do most of the scheduled maintenance myself, but will throw them a bone on occasion. I write it off as paying taxes, but always verify that the work was done properly.

 

[mdogg]

My girlfriend also brought her car in for a similar service and they did not try to sell her anything, but they said at 20k miles its required to have an alignment. Not knowing any better, she said do whatever is required and they never even provided the before / after results. In my opinion, the car felt like it was properly aligned, at least enough to not impact driving it. Is this standard practice? I thought they are supposed to evaluate it first and then tell you if you need one, vs making you buy a service that is potentially not required?

Yes, this is generally SOP when auto servicing "professionals" see uneducated or ill-informed (about vehicles and vehicle maintenance) individuals bringing in a car for service - frequently women and older individuals.

 

[Americas High Five]

And why is this a great idea? Any facts to go with your opinion?

The OP clearly felt as if he was getting mistreated and trying to get taken advantage of. Just about every response on here agreed with him. The point I was trying to make was if he felt this way, better to speak with the service manager to rectify the situation.

 

[Whiplash Willy]

Doesn't Toyota recommend the diff service at 60,000 miles? Less if you're wheeling it pretty hard?

The Warranty guide never really tells you to actually "Replace" the diff fluids under normal conditions, just to inspect them every 15k miles. If you Tow, use a roof top carrier, or heavy loading, then they tell you to replace it every 30k.

I checked my rear diff fluid at 14k miles (of normal daily driving) and it was very dark grey, so I replaced it. The drain plug had some really nasty looking paste (diff fluid and metal particles) on it. I would hate to see what that stuff would look like after 30k or 60k miles!

Also, I wouldn't have thought the dealer would have tried to hose you on something that can so easily be checked like the battery terminals. I guess they are just used to dealing with people who never even open the hood of their vehicle...

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Sounds like these guys are trying to get in your wallet, I would talk to the service manager and explain why they are losing a customer.

As for the battery terminals, those are clean as can be. I personally will recommend terminals if I see evidence of corrosion getting inside of the positive terminal, the reason I do this is because I have found once its gotten in the nooks and crannies of the stamped metal shell it is next to impossible to clean properly and the corrosion starts again from those little "seeds" of left over blue crust. I did this on my 4Runner when I put a new battery in, I only recommend service that I would personally do on my vehicle.

But like I said, yours is fine and doesn't need to be replaced.

 

[1engineer]

...because I have found once its gotten in the nooks and crannies of the stamped metal shell it is next to impossible to clean properly and the corrosion starts again from those little "seeds" of left over blue crust.

But like I said, yours is fine and doesn't need to be replaced.

Coca Cola will get rid of all corrosion in every nook and cranny.

 

[ToyotaDoodz]

Coca Cola will get rid of all corrosion in every nook and cranny.

Baking soda does the same and does not leave behind a sugary mess like Coke does.:boink:

 

[Moving Chicane]

I understand your response here, but what I don't understand is why there is a belief that the service manager at the same dealership would have a different answer. Why would you think he/she would throw his/her employee under the bus by back-stepping the dealerships recommendation, or not wanting to make the extra revenue (either directly from our wallets or through warranty service)? Or do you have a dealership that is that politically divided?

The OP clearly felt as if he was getting mistreated and trying to get taken advantage of. Just about every response on here agreed with him. The point I was trying to make was if he felt this way, better to speak with the service manager to rectify the situation.