20k Service

[SilverT4]

Booked my Prius in for its 20k service today (The car is 15 months old) and the dealer quoted me £130.

I have just received a call from the service department advising me of a couple of 'extras'

1. The Air conditioning system has been checked and apparantly the pressure is low and therefore requires a complete service ! Normal cost £110 but todays special offer £69 !!. Why is the pressure low I asked. Well things like leaking seals, hoses etc she said. But the car is only 15 months old and still under warranty I said. Surely if seals or hoses are leaking then its a warranty repair ?

How often do you use your a/c she asked. I leave it on more or less constantly whilst I'm driving I replied. Toyota recommend using it in summer if required, and for 10 minutes each month in winter she advised me. So apparantly I have been overusing my a/c and therefore it requires servicing sooner than expected !!!

My last three cars have had A/c. I owned them between 2 and 3 years and never had the a/c serviced - apart from a filter change.

2. Toyota recommend a brake fluid replacement after two years - we recommend you have this done now she said. But the car is only 15 months old I said. Then we had some discussion about whether brake fluid is changed at 2yrs or 20k miles and she admitted she wasn't really sure.

I declined both the 'offer' of the a/c service and the brake fluid change and asked for a full written report of the problems. I will then take this up with the dealer and/or Toyota.

I think they are trying to rip me off !

I have also requested the correct oil grade this time as they got it wrong at the 10k service. They assured me that they know the correct grade - Fingers crossed!

[jerry phipps]

Hi SilverT4

£130 for 20k service is a very good price my friend. So i think all is well there. As for the brake fluid what kinda mile's do you do? If it was me i would get the brake fluid changed on the 20k service as after awhile the fluid goes thin and starts to get contaminated. And after all it's your life that you are playing with

But the air con i wouldn't bover with getting that serviced mate. Like you said all it needs is the filter changed every now and again. I've heard of some cases that some unit's have to be re gased. And like you said in the post if the gas is low and there is a leak then it should be covered in the warranty as there is a fault there some where ah?

Hope that is helps you out buddy

jerry!!

[SilverT4]

Thanks Jerry,

Re the brake fluid, I appreciate that it will deteriorate with time, but I wouldn't expect it to deteriorate with mileage. However I would always go with the manufacturers recommendation and the service schedule clearly states 2 years and not 20k miles. But I will query this with Toyota.

Re the A/c, I agree, it seems to me that if the pressure is low, then it was either low from when the car was new, or it has lost some pressure over first 15 months and is therefore defective and should be dealt with under warranty. I will be taking this up with the dealer and Toyota.

[jerry phipps]

Yes mate i agree find out if this can be sorted out under warranty with the air con as i think you shouldn't be paying for this if there is a leak of some kind mate. Good luck with this mate

jerry!!

[PaulT]

Re the A/c, I agree, it seems to me that if the pressure is low, then it was either low from when the car was new, or it has lost some pressure over first 15 months and is therefore defective and should be dealt with under warranty. I will be taking this up with the dealer and Toyota.

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Do you still get a blast of cold air when you turn the temperature right down? If so, the garage is winding you up.

If it doesn't get cold, a recharge is in order.

Paul.

[Braindead]

Hi

The £130 is about right. Had my 20k service in Jan.

Sounds like a garage trying to make a few extra bob to me. Mind you, when you consider what you get for a £130 service I think that's over priced anyway.

The comment about ten minutes every month in the winter is the MINIMUM you should use it to keep it in good order. They assume folks don't use it in winter as it's cold anyway so they recommend running it for a few minutes to keep it in good order.

My air con is on auto all the time - full stop!

Find another dealer!

[SilverT4]

My air con is on auto all the time - full stop!

Find another dealer! 

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I also leave mine on auto all the time - not much point in having an auto system if you don't use it!.

Unfortunately the local dealership pretty much has Toyota and others makes monopolised around my area. I would need to travel some distance to find another one.

[spwolf]

well, re-brakes, reccomended changing time is 2 yrs or 20k miles, whatever comes sooner. Obviously brake fluid is influenced by the miles you travel, isnt that a bit logical now? :-). I would definetly not be cheap when it comes to brakes.

As to the AC, if they found it low, it is an warranty repair...

[SilverT4]

Had a telephone call from the Service Manager today and he fully apologised for the attempts to 'sell' me the additional items. He agreed the brake fluid change should be 2 years and not 20k. The loss of pressure in the AC does happen, but it should not require a full service at this time.

As a consolation he has offered me free brake fluid replacement and free A/C service when I take it in for its 30k service.

I also have have to take the car in next week for the replacement brake light switch and he has offered me a full valet free of charge.

A satisfied customer !

[Braindead]

Had a telephone call from the Service Manager today and he fully apologised for the attempts to 'sell' me the additional items. He agreed the brake fluid change should be 2 years and not 20k. The loss of pressure in the AC does happen, but it should not require a full service at this time.

As a consolation he has offered me free brake fluid replacement and free A/C service when I take it in for its 30k service.

I also have have to take the car in next week for the replacement brake light switch and he has offered me a full valet free of charge.

A satisfied customer !

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Result. Was it prompted by your post or your complaint directly to the dealer? I notice that some dealers do take note of posts on here.

[SilverT4]

I had written a letter to the Service manager asking for clarification on the brake fluid change interval and whether the AC problem was a warranty issue. I did mention that I would also be writing directly to Toyota.