Dealer is trying to rip me off on 100k Maint. Please help!

[wackyzacky110]

So I brought my 2001 limited to Jack Taylor's Toyota of Alexandria, VA (DC area). I bought the truck about 8 months ago and have done oil/fuel filter/oil filter change already. As it didn't have a service history, I wanted a thorough check by the mech. He recommended the following, which seems astronomical

Valve Cover Gasket Replacement & Engine Wash- $939 (6 hrs labor)
Timing Belt Package (pulleys, belt, & coolant)- $1,587 (7 hrs labor)
Spark plugs, wires, PCV replacement- $513 (3 hrs labor)
A/C Recharge- $172 (1 hr labor)
Rear Sway Bar Link replacement- $544 (2 hrs labor)

This all seems quite ridiculous. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you need to take off the upper and lower plenum and valve cover to do the timing belt job, so it shouldnt take 7 hours to replace the gasket while you're in there. Similarly, the spark plugs, wires, and PCV are readily accessible while doing the valve cover gasket job and shouldnt take anywhere near 3 hrs. I am not a super savvy wrencher but I"m inclined to believe I can do the rear sway bar links easily myself.

Can I get a sanity check on this stuff and if anyone has a reliable local shop in the DC area that would be better to get this all done at, I'm all ears. Thanks!!

 

[heat]

The plenum doesn't have to be removed for a timing belt change. It isn't that
hard to DIY; the main speedbump is r&r of the crank pulley. Lots of pictures
here on how to do it.

Plugs, wires, and PCV can be done on their own- nothing else needs to be
removed. $200 TOPS in parts, and hour of your time.

Valve cover gaskets and engine wash for a grand? Hard to overstate how
bad a rip that is.

a/c? $50 Harbor Freight gauge kit and two cans of R134a for $40. Their price
might be worth it for the aggravation factor.

I'm in Richmond, so I don't know your area. I'd seriously consider what it would
take to get tools and a place to do some of this DIY.

 

[phattyduck]

Do you have a history for the timing belt and other components replacement?

Timing belt job and valve cover gaskets are separate jobs and don't really have any crossover work between the two.

But for the cost of a valve cover gasket job and timing belt job, you should be able to get the spark plugs/wires, PCV valve/grommet, radiator, hoses, water pump, etc. all done for (near) 0 labor cost.

That said, those are dealer prices... that's what people pay when the go to the dealer.

Time to get some tools and go to town! Oh, and the engine is non-interference, so no permanent damage will be done if the timing belt breaks or is installed incorrectly.

-Charlie

 

[cblock406]

O U C H! I did all of that (minus the sway bar and AC recharge) last year for around $600 or so in parts. None of it is really very difficult. If you can find a buddy that wrenches to help you, even if you kick them a couple hundred bucks or lots of beers, you'd be WAY better off.

 

[Taylor20]

I'm not sure what their hourly rate is, but yes that is way too much. The dealership I work at would be far less.....$1000+ less for all of it.

 

[AntleredRuin]

$1500 seems pretty damn high to me for a TB job. The full TB kit from a reputable source costs MAYBE $350 max, and with 7 hrs of labor, that's over $164/hour. Most dealers are in the $100/hour range.
Add OEM coolant at like $32 a gallon, and you're still not close.

(Also, I guess I'm amazing. I did my TB with my dad a few months ago for the first time, and it took 8 hours, with a lot of breaks, and a couple trips to the store)

FWIW, Firestone says that the TB/WP job on the 3.4l V6 is only a 4 hour job. Seems the dealer would be better/faster at this, seeing as they are Toyota 'experts'.


Same thing with the Valve Cover Gasket job. Their hourly seems WAY too high.



You don't need to touch the air intake (air box, plenums, etc) at all when doing the TB, actually.
And you will want (but not NEED) to loosen the plastic TB cover and let it hang around the radiator to allow easier access to the fronts of the valve covers, though.

Either job will open up more work area and make the other job EASIER, sure, but they don't rely on each other at all.


Spark plugs should NOT take 3 hours, especially for a dealer. I can (and have, during my lunch break at work) change all 6 of mine, start to finish + cleanup, in an hour.
And yes, if you're already down to the valve covers, you can easily change the spark plugs while you're there. So that would add MAYBE 10 minutes to a valve cover gasket job.

The proper NGK/Denso Spark plugs cost like $25 total, Spark Plug Wires cost like $32 total, and I think an OEM PCV ran me $12.

This dealer is trying to screw you.

 

[spartacus]

look up research certified techs or garages in your area. I found a good tech on my HOA site next door . I just posted on the message board if any one would recommend a auto tech and I found a good one for when I don't have time. or better yet get the part numbers off of the writeups in this forum order parts online thru camel back, toyotapartsdeal etc and with money you save buy tools( my favorite part) and look at videos and writeups on this forum and do it yourself.

 

[octanejunkie]

There is nothing economical about going to a dealership, or many big box repair shops, as they all usually quote "book labor" pricing to do the job, and sell the parts at retail+ prices - they are covering their butts on T&M work with the worst case scenario to be profitable because it's a business.

Like others have said, you can do all of this yourself. The resources are here. The videos are here. The parts are out there and with some research and patience you can find and do all of this yourself.

You can start with the VCGs and do plugs and wires at the same time, then tackle the TB/WC. If the mileage is high, you might want to replace the radiator and hoses at the same time as you are going to do the thermostat with TB.

I had a local shop test/drain/fill my AC for $90 last summer, best $90 I paid someone else to do. Shop that around, it takes the right equipment to do but it's also not a dealer only service.

Save your money and learn to fix/maintain your own car. DONT BE A VICTIM and don't rely on others (if you can avoid it)

Check out this thread here http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/82033-3rd-gen-4runner-buyers-guide.html specifically Post #7

Luck :rockon:

 

[Dephcon]

When you really don't want to do a job, bid high. If the person bites, then why not do it. From my experiences, dealers don't like working on older vehicals anymore. Nice clean warranty work is all they want to do. The prices might also seem high because they are priced seperate, the package to do it all together with shared labor between the jobs might be less, but imho, still not worth it.

 

[AntleredRuin]

I had a local shop test/drain/fill my AC for $90 last summer, best $90 I paid someone else to do. Shop that around, it takes the right equipment to do but it's also not a dealer only service.

Save your money and learn to fix/maintain your own car. DONT BE A VICTIM and don't rely on others (if you can avoid it)

I just recently spent $150 on replacing both u-joints with a 40k mile/3 year warranty. Seeing as how my last u-joint DIY took like 10 hours, and I ended up getting a junkyard driveshaft because I ****ed up my rear yoke, $150 was flipping amazing. Haha.

So yeah, OP, shop around, if you don't want to DIY. Don't go to that dealer. There are probably several other good shops around, even if they look kinda crappy.

+1 to using the NextDoor app.

 

[phattyduck]

Most dealers are in the $100/hour range.

That's HIGHLY dependent on where you are. I would expect well over $100 in the Los Angeles area... The OP is in DC, so also a high cost-of-living area and thus higher prices. Add book time and all OEM parts with a 20% mark-up and you basically get those costs...

-Charlie

 

[gamefreakgc]

When you really don't want to do a job, bid high. If the person bites, then why not do it. From my experiences, dealers don't like working on older vehicals anymore. Nice clean warranty work is all they want to do. The prices might also seem high because they are priced seperate, the package to do it all together with shared labor between the jobs might be less, but imho, still not worth it.

Yeah, did they push you towards a trade-in towards a vehicle in their inventory? Sounds very much like they are saying "this car's not worth your time, why not instead put that money towards a down-payment on a new Toyota [fill-in-the-blank]?"

Obviously, paying the entire value of your vehicle on simple maintenance jobs is a complete rip-off. I'm glad the dealers near me are much more level-headed.

 

[mtbtim]

Check out the YouTube channel [MENTION=102606]infamousRNR[/MENTION] and I have. We have videos that cover everything you need to do to your rig. Invest in some tools and become self sufficient in taking care of your automotive mechanical needs.
https://www.youtube.com/user/mtbtim65

 

[2016 4Runner SR5]

And this is why you NEVER go to the stealer for anything other than warranty work. NEVER

 

[gamefreakgc]

And this is why you NEVER go to the stealer for anything other than warranty work. NEVER

I go to the dealership all the time. They do alignments for $70, and have the best deals on new tires in the area. Not all dealerships are greedy slimeballs, just the one in the D.C. area lol!

 

[2016 4Runner SR5]

I go to the dealership all the time. They do alignments for $70, and have the best deals on new tires in the area. Not all dealerships are greedy slimeballs, just the one in the D.C. area lol!

I think it's the other way around. You might have found the only one that isn't full of clueless dumbass mechanics. Truth is, I won't even go to the dealer for the free BS toyotacare crap that came with my truck. I don't trust the "oil change tech monkeys" Thanks, I'll do my own oil changes and know it was done right. Way to many horror stories on literally every forum and not just when it comes to Toyota. We all know Toyota makes a great vehicle and I'm sure there are some great mechanics employed by Toyota but the people changing oil are by no means mechanics. As for dealer pricing, you pay more for OEM and they charge what the book says it takes. What that means is, if the book says plugs take 3 hours labor and it actually takes the tech 30 minutes to complete, you still pay 3 hours of labor. Find an honest local mechanic and have the work done there or do it yourself.

 

[LittleCaesar]

I have never been to them but try Capitol Hill Auto Service. I have two friends that work at the Navy Yard full time and they have said good stuff about them and not too expensive. I think they are located on Independence Blvd, maybe in the 600 block.

I had another coworker use a mechanic in Annapolis, and he loved him. Will inquire if need be.

Those rates, excluding replacing the end links, are about the norm for DC.

 

[Hepar]

I bite the bullet and have been getting all my major work done at my local Toyota dealership. Just been in a mode where my time is more important. I somewhat recently had my timing belt, t-stat, water pump, valve cover gaskets as well as a mess of other odds and ends. My total was just over $2k.

 

[Hepar]

$500+ for plugs and wires definitely seems excessive when considering the difficulty of the job.

 

[wackyzacky110]

Do you have a history for the timing belt and other components replacement?

Timing belt job and valve cover gaskets are separate jobs and don't really have any crossover work between the two.

But for the cost of a valve cover gasket job and timing belt job, you should be able to get the spark plugs/wires, PCV valve/grommet, radiator, hoses, water pump, etc. all done for (near) 0 labor cost.

That said, those are dealer prices... that's what people pay when the go to the dealer.

Time to get some tools and go to town! Oh, and the engine is non-interference, so no permanent damage will be done if the timing belt breaks or is installed incorrectly.

-Charlie

unfortunately the previous owner provided no service history as he was only an owner for a few weeks and the original owner passed away. the mech at the dealership said he didnt see any markings on the timing belt/cover that would indicate that the service had been done, and the water pump was original