Need help on prioritizing services

[ouki]

I took my 99 4Runner SR5 (132,500 miles) to the dealer and had them done a thorough inspection. They recommended a list of things but I do not have the time and money to have all done at once. I am looking for your help on prioritizing the critical services needed to be done ASAP. And the rest will be done in 3-month or 6-month. Here is the list of things the dealer recommended.

1. FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM, DIRTY
2. FLUSH POWER STEERING SYSTEM, DIRTY
3. FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT), OLD
4. FLUSH AUTOMATIC TRANS, DIRTY
5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE
7. AIR FILTER, R&R, DIRTY
8. FUEL INJECTORS, CLEAN
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING
11. WHEEL ALIGNMENT

 

[IanB]

This is all just my opinion, but here's what I'd do:

Shop:
-FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT) (this COULD be done yourself as well, but not everyone is equipped to deal with all the fluid from flushing)
-VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
-POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING (this won't be cheap)
-WHEEL ALIGNMENT (why are they saying this needs to be done?)
-DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R

DIY:
-FLUSH AUTOMATIC TRANS (do a series of drain and fills on your own, they are easy, and nobody has an old tranny fail from a drain and fill, power flush can't say the same)
-AIR FILTER, R&R (this is a 5 min job)
-BATTERY SERVICE (what's involved? do they just clean the posts and tighten the clamps? These trucks all used sealed batteries as far as I know)
-FUEL INJECTORS, CLEAN (there's all kinds of fuel treatments you can use to do this and clean the upper engine at the same time)
-FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM (easy to do with a 2nd person, even easier with a power bleeder)
-FLUSH POWER STEERING SYSTEM (there's a good DIY on here for this, another easy job)

By DIYing as much as possible, you'll save yourself $100+/hr shop rate, and lots of this stuff is really easy stuff to do. With the money you save, you can buy yourself some basic tools if you don't have anything. For any of these jobs, you can find instructions on here or other forums, or download the factory service manual and read through, see if there's any special tools involved that you don't have, and decide if you're up to it.

 

[ouki]

Thanks for your quick reply. These are the items I don't really understand how critical they are and how much they may charge...

5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE, POS BATTERY TERMINAL CORRODED
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING

 

[tbst]

From what IanB has said, if you can it is worthwhile doing as much as possible yourself. This is also an excuse to buy yourself tools. Pay the shop $100/hr having them do it, or pay yourself $100 per hour in tools? Your call.

 

[tbst]

Thanks for your quick reply. These are the items I don't really understand how critical they are and how much they may charge...

5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE, POS BATTERY TERMINAL CORRODED
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING

I don't know why they want to flush the power steering if you rack is leaking. I would check out the rack. A new one from toyota is about $800. Not worth. Go to a scrap yard, IMO.

 

[HCurphy]

are you having any problems? or are you just doing scheduled/preventative maintenance?

 

[ouki]

Hi @tbst and @IanB, thanks much for your DIY suggestions. Whether I DIY or take it to the dealer, I wanted to know which one(s) are more important to get done first. Please kindly advise.

 

[ouki]

are you having any problems? or are you just doing scheduled/preventative maintenance?

NO problem as I can feel at all. I am just doing preventative maintenance.

 

[Martinjmpr]

I took my 99 4Runner SR5 to the dealer and had them done a thorough inspection. They recommended a list of things but I do not have the time and money to have all done at once. I am looking for your help on prioritizing the critical services needed to be done ASAP. And the rest will be done in 3-month or 6-month. Here is the list of things the dealer recommended.

1. FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM, DIRTY
2. FLUSH POWER STEERING SYSTEM, DIRTY
3. FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT), OLD
4. FLUSH AUTOMATIC TRANS, DIRTY
5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE
7. AIR FILTER, R&R, DIRTY
8. FUEL INJECTORS, CLEAN
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING
11. WHEEL ALIGNMENT

Can you give us a little more info? For example: How many miles on this 4runner? When did you buy it? Any problems with it? Why did you take it to the dealer for a "thorough inspection?"

Tell us a little about yourself, too. Male/female? Age? Experience with cars?

You have to realize that there are a lot of shops out there that do this sort of thing as a matter of course. I took my 99 to get the brakes done a couple of years ago and they called me back with a big laundry list of parts that "needed to be replaced" including things like all 4 shocks. When I asked them why they needed to be replaced, I was told it was "based on number of miles and manufacturer's recommendations" or some such BS.

Well, I said "thanks, just fix the brakes like I asked you to." Here it is 2 years and about 20,000 miles later and I'm still rolling. My point is that a lot of this is unneccessary scare tactics by a company that wants you to spend a lot of $$ at their shop.

Sad to say, women or people who lack knowledge about vehicles are often victimized by this. It's not quite a "scam" (because they can legitimately say your power steering fluid is dirty, or your radiator hasn't been flushed in xxx miles) but it's pretty close.

Hey, times are tough, money is scarce and if the only way you can make ends meet is to scare people into thinking that their vehicles are only a couple of miles away from exploding or having the wheels fall off or something, then I guess you gotta do what you gotta do. But I can tell you that unless I thought there were serious problems, I would regard most of those "recommendations" with a large grain of salt.

Things like the steering gear "leaking" are a red flag but then again, I'd ask how badly is it leaking. Is it leaving a pool of fluid under your vehicle every time you park it? Or is it seeping a little tiny drop or two?

 

[HCurphy]

Thanks for your quick reply. These are the items I don't really understand how critical they are and how much they may charge...

5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE, POS BATTERY TERMINAL CORRODED
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING

valve cover gaskets aren't going to damage anything.
belts could break i guess if they are that bad-no damage just loose some function(power steering/alternator/ac).
steering rack leaking wont hurt anything unless you run it dry(check fluid levels).
i got nothing on battery service?--if you have the caps on your battery, you can see if you still got water in them--if not top off with distilled water--i dont know what else that could mean other then dirty terminals(clean them if you got to?)

 

[LittleCaesar]

10, then 11,then 5, then probably 9. The rest of the items on this list can be tackled here and there.

I would think 10 and 9 will cost you the most IMO.

 

[ouki]

Can you give us a little more info? For example: How many miles on this 4runner? When did you buy it? Any problems with it? Why did you take it to the dealer for a "thorough inspection?"

The 4Runner has 132,500 miles. I bought it couple of weeks ago from a private party. No problem as I'm aware of so I took it to the Toyota dealership for "Used Car Complete Inspection".

Things like the steering gear "leaking" are a red flag but then again, I'd ask how badly is it leaking.

I parked the car on my driveway every night. No sign of leaked oil on the drive way yet.

 

[Martinjmpr]

I parked the car on my driveway every night. No sign of leaked oil on the drive way yet.

Yeah, I'd thank them for their time and find an honest mechanic.

Where are you located? If you're in the Denver area I can recommend a great independent shop. I use it for my 4runner for everything. More than once I've gone in there thinking I'd need an expensive repair, only for them to make a minor adjustment and tell me it didn't need anything more expensive.