stealer issue

[akoda]

Went in and had my oil changed, propeller shaft torqued, tires rotated and balanced and a Virginia state inspection on Saturday.

I must say my dealer service department sux. They told me my state inspections were free since I bought the truck there and proceeded to charge me $15 for it. I had a coupon that they wouldnt accept because they said they already gave me a discount and then they billed me for 8 quarts of oil, how do you put 8 quarts of oil in a V-6??

I will be going to see the service manager or dealer manager in the next day or so to get this straightened out.

koda

 

[LSUMBA]

Couple questions...

1. What did you pay for the oil change, tire rotation, state inspection, and shaft torquing?
   
2. What is a propeller shaft torquing?
   
3. Didn't the dealership have a base price on the service? Charging you for each individual item (i.e. 8 quarts of oil) seems out of place. I got my oil changed on Saturday & the dealership charges a flat $23 for an oil change, fluid top-off, and a full inspection regardless of what kind of Toyota you birng in there.
   [/list=1]

 

[akoda]

My total cost way $103. The 15k service he recommended was $299. I don't have the break down with me but I believe the tire rotate and balance was $49.95, oil change $29.95, Retorque the drive shaft $19.95, then they added 15 for the inspection and I guess the rest was tax and stuff. The total came to $103 after the supposed $30 discount.

I feel screwed and to think I was test driving an Avalon while they worked on my car.

Koda

 

[alpha]

8 quarts of oil???? crazy. only takes 5.5.. thats a lot even for the v8, which i think takes 6.5..

 

[CindyK1]

Similar thing happened to me - I had a coupon from the dealer for an oil and filter change for $24.95, but they wouldn't honor it, as the V6 takes more than the maximum 5 quarts of oil - 5.5 or thereabouts. They charged me for an oil change "kit" for an 8 cylinder, which cost about $5 more. At first I thought the "8" on the receipt referred to the number of quarts of oil, but found out it refers to the number of cylinders. I'm wondering what happened to the other quart or so of oil I paid for, since the V8's take about 6.5 quarts of oil, and they only needed 5.5 for my V6. So much for the V6 costing less to maintain, which was one of my reasons for buying it instead of the V8.

 

[LSUMBA]

My total cost way $103. The 15k service he recommended was $299. I don't have the break down with me but I believe the tire rotate and balance was $49.95, oil change $29.95, Retorque the drive shaft $19.95, then they added 15 for the inspection and I guess the rest was tax and stuff. The total came to $103 after the supposed $30 discount.

I feel screwed and to think I was test driving an Avalon while they worked on my car.

Koda

Wait...so you paid $103 for a $299 service? Sounds like a steal to me!

Also, $49.95 for a tire rotation & balance is robbery. $15 is what it costs me on my T4R. If the charge for the oil change was a flat $29.95, who cares what they put 8 quarts or 80 quarts on the paperwork?

And once again, what does it mean to retorque the drive shaft? I have never heard of that.

 

[nated05]

Similar thing happened to me - I had a coupon from the dealer for an oil and filter change for $24.95, but they wouldn't honor it, as the V6 takes more than the maximum 5 quarts of oil - 5.5 or thereabouts. They charged me for an oil change "kit" for an 8 cylinder, which cost about $5 more. At first I thought the "8" on the receipt referred to the number of quarts of oil, but found out it refers to the number of cylinders. I'm wondering what happened to the other quart or so of oil I paid for, since the V8's take about 6.5 quarts of oil, and they only needed 5.5 for my V6. So much for the V6 costing less to maintain, which was one of my reasons for buying it instead of the V8.

Ive used that same coupon (same price) at a dealer by my work and they never have any problem honoring it. Id say if possible, go to a different dealer.

 

[toybox]

Wait...so you paid $103 for a $299 service? Sounds like a steal to me!

Also, $49.95 for a tire rotation & balance is robbery. $15 is what it costs me on my T4R. If the charge for the oil change was a flat $29.95, who cares what they put 8 quarts or 80 quarts on the paperwork?

And once again, what does it mean to retorque the drive shaft? I have never heard of that.

There are bolts on the drive shaft that are to be checked/retorqued as per the service schedule. I tried my once and they were so tight that when I tried to tighten them I went past the required torque and they still didn't budge. I'm not going to bother with this anymore, well at least for a long time and then I might check them again.

 

[akoda]

There are bolts on the drive shaft that are to be checked/retorqued as per the service schedule. I tried my once and they were so tight that when I tried to tighten them I went past the required torque and they still didn't budge. I'm not going to bother with this anymore, well at least for a long time and then I might check them again.

How often do they recommend retorqued. I have never heard of it in other vehicles? Is this something that should be tied to the frequency of or the harshness of any 4 wheeling done with the vehicle?

Koda

 

[TRD04RUNNER]

any 1 know what the torque is on the propeller shaft ?? need to check my tonight.

 

[RayRay]

Similar thing happened to me - I had a coupon from the dealer for an oil and filter change for $24.95, but they wouldn't honor it, as the V6 takes more than the maximum 5 quarts of oil - 5.5 or thereabouts. They charged me for an oil change "kit" for an 8 cylinder, which cost about $5 more. At first I thought the "8" on the receipt referred to the number of quarts of oil, but found out it refers to the number of cylinders. I'm wondering what happened to the other quart or so of oil I paid for, since the V8's take about 6.5 quarts of oil, and they only needed 5.5 for my V6. So much for the V6 costing less to maintain, which was one of my reasons for buying it instead of the V8.

I just looked at the invoice for my last oil change and it only says 5 quarts, should i be concerned since i'm supposed to get 5.5 quarts on my v6?

 

[Good Times]

the shaft is not coming off. When I had to replace mine (after a small injury on the trail) it was a PITA to remove. I mean this thing was on soooo tight (this is after cooling the 4runner off in the garage too - like overnight!).

$15 bucks to check that and $45 to retorque it? sounds like they just pocketed $60 and said they did the job when they did not. Sad but true.

As for the rotation/balance... sounds lik you got ripped.. I get this done for free at Discount tires (cuz it comes standard as part of their service when you do buy their tires).

I never let the dealer touch my 4runner. NEVER. The only time would be for warranty related issues (TSB's etc etc). Outside of that, I either do it myself or take it to a trustworthy mechanic (private).

Good luck

 

[Jeff Kleb]

Went in and had my oil changed, propeller shaft torqued, tires rotated and balanced and a Virginia state inspection on Saturday.

I must say my dealer service department sux. They told me my state inspections were free since I bought the truck there and proceeded to charge me $15 for it. I had a coupon that they wouldnt accept because they said they already gave me a discount and then they billed me for 8 quarts of oil, how do you put 8 quarts of oil in a V-6??

I will be going to see the service manager or dealer manager in the next day or so to get this straightened out.

koda

Hey, I live near Richmond myself. We only have four dealers in the area (McGeorge, Haley, Priority and Mechanicsville) and I have heard both good and bad things about each of them.

If they charged you for a tire rotation, you got hosed. As part of the inspection process, they're supposed to check your brake linings/pads and have to remove the tires anyway. I guess they think they deserves something extra for putting them back on differently.

I have had my tires rotated at 6,000 miles. Wal-Mart does it for six bucks and I was in an out within an hour! Don't know much about a 'torque shaft', but is sounds as though the only one who was shafted is you, sir.
:bash:

I have a January sticker on my 4Runner, which I have owned for a year now, and will take it in next week for my VA state inspection. I was already told that it is free there for the life of the vehicle. I have only had my vehicle there two times (once for my first free oil & filter change and once because of an idiot light that came on). They were fast, prompt and professional both times.

A lot of that stuff that they show as 'maintenance' is not required on some vehicles. Heck, I don't even think new cars have grease fittings anymore; yet many dealers charge for doing a 'lube' job.

I try to avoid using dealerships, unless it is a warranty item, a free or included service -- or perhaps some type of unusual service that only they could provide.

 

[Boston_Runner]

Your 4runner have grease fittings, and I would do maintenance at pepboys, never mine Walmart.

 

[Jeff Kleb]

Your 4runner have grease fittings, and I would do maintenance at pepboys, never mine Walmart.

Well, the only 'maintenance' I got done at Wal-Mart was a tire rotation. They're actually not bad at doing that, you know.
:

As for grease fittings on the '05 4-Runner, how many are there and where are they located? When I leased mine, the sales rep told me that there were not any fittings that required lube. Did I miss something?

 

[Boston_Runner]

Sorry, I just notice you have a V6, I know the V8 have grease fittings, not sure about the V6.

 

[akoda]

The dealer charged 14.47 labor for the oil change, then 32.18 for oil and oil filter. This was at Mechanicsville Toyota.

I usually do the service myself but I didn't know how to torque the shaft. I have a very old torque wrench and I am not confident on it's readings.

I have complained to the Customer Relations Manager and I think they are going to give me a credit.

koda

 

[Jeff Kleb]

The dealer charged 14.47 labor for the oil change, then 32.18 for oil and oil filter. This was at Mechanicsville Toyota.

I usually do the service myself but I didn't know how to torque the shaft. I have a very old torque wrench and I am not confident on it's readings.

I have complained to the Customer Relations Manager and I think they are going to give me a credit.

koda

Dude.......You got hosed! For five quarts of Mobil-1 synthetic oil and a Toyota OEM oil filter, I do it myself for about $25 or so. For the $46 you paid, you did not even get synthetic.

Do it yourself and save a few ducats!

I don't know about "torquing a shaft" on my 4Runner, but I'll ask about it when I take mine in for state inspection on Monday. I am also going to inquire (again) about grease fittings or the lack thereof. Hardly any vehicles made today have them - outside of heavy pickup trucks and cargo vans.

 

[Kmvreter]

Not sure about torquing the prop shaft. The only time it has been looked at is to lube it.

(Also, a VA. question: Why do they put your stickers in such an awkward spot (lower center of windshield) that detracts from the vehicle appearance?)

 

[Jeff Kleb]

(Also, a VA. question: Why do they put your stickers in such an awkward spot (lower center of windshield) that detracts from the vehicle appearance?)

Yes, it is awkward......compared to PA, where it is in the left-hand corner of the windshield. Most cities and counties in VA also require a tax decal to be affixed adjacent to the inspection sticker (although some jurisdictions don't require those stickers anymore).

The state legislators obviously do not care about appearance, looks or awkwardness -- or they would not make us display front license plates as well. PA only requires one in the rear, at least for now.