Is there anyone out there who does their own maintenance with their prius and never take it to the dealer?

I'm thinking of going to the dealer for every other service cycle; so that means i'll do the maintenance myself at 8,000km and let the dealer do it at 16k , them me again at 24k and so on.

But is it really necessary to take it to the dealer?
I currently know some basic DIY about cars:
1. oil and filter change
2. air filter and cabin filter change.
3. spark plug change
4. tire pressure check (going to learn to rotate this summer)
5. serpentine belt check (i'll have toyota change it when there are 3 or more cracks per inch on the belts, usually at 96,000kms)
6. grease the door joints
7. and all the fluid checks (pretty easy)
8. wiper changing


so is there any reason for me to take it to the dealer if i already know all of these?

the only ones i really have to let them do is the
1. transmission fluid change
2. coolant flush
3. brake fluid flush
4. brake pads, drums, shoes, and rotors replacement
5. valve adjustments (usually at 96,000km or more)

but these are not very often, i think once every 2-3 years.

finally, i forgot to mention, do i need to change the transmission fluid after my car has been broken in?


any advice would really help,
thank you very much

 

Missing from your list are inspections of the braking, steering and suspension systems. The rubber boots on the CV joints and steering rods are not to be cracked or grease-stained on the outside. All of these are just like on conventional front wheel drive cars, so any competent mechanic could teach you.

I would say that changing the transmission fluid is still an open question. Toyota recommends only checking the level, and topping off if low. Some folks have requested fluid changes. Mine was clean, but not all of the others were. Hope that by the time you get to 100,000 km we will have advice for you in this area.

DAS

 

thanks again tochatihu,

regarding brakes and shocks; for the brakes i'll have it looked at by a buddy of mine, he's a mechanic, but i think with the regenerative braking it will take longer to wear out compared to regular cars. i'll just have him inspect it about 30,000km or when i start to hear squeals when i press the brakes; Toyota says they inspect for free, but they wont just jack up your car there in their shop without making money off you: 100% of the time i would bet they would want to change something even though they are still good.
how else are they going to pay for the nice air conditioning, sofas, lights, etc.

as for shocks, i think it's safe to have them inspected at 90,000km or more. the roads here are pretty good in toronto and this car is never going take a corner at high speeds anyway . I'm pretty sure it will last even longer than that.


as for the cvt fluid replacement; they are charging $88 at a local toyota dealer.
i think maybe it may be "cheap" insurance for the long run to have it done together with the first oil change.

****, it can be tough owning a car; one has to really know some DIY otherwise breaking the bank can be real. I just called toyota this morning and asked them how much it would cost to change the headlight bulbs provided that i had purchased my own bulbs. All i want is for them to swap it. the service rep told me $25 dollars per side. Ouch!

 

Hi,
There are things the dealer does better, especially when there are codes to 'read out.' But I bought my 03 Prius with 49,300 miles, well beyond the 3 year / 36,000 mile checks. At the sametime, I bought the maintenance manuals.

I'm doing some work in transaxle efficiency studies. This effort was motivated by a US Dept. of Transportation (DoT) study that showed significant drag at cold temperatures. I've subsequently found another DoT study that reported inadequate cooling of the transaxle oil and assembly at high power levels. Then when I changed the transaxle oil at 53,000 miles and had it tested, I had a "HOLY SH*T" moment.

I plan to replace the oil soon, ~57,000 miles, treating the first change as a 'flush'. I also plan to diagnose and correct the source of silicon in the fluid. At the same time, I will look at options for a transaxle oil cooler for Alabama summers and a heater for winter. These are part of my long-term study to extend the life of my vehicle and improve MPG for all seasons.

The fleet data suggests that somewhere after the first year, MPG appears to drop off. I suspect (NOT ASSERT) that this MPG drop off occurs from degredation of the transaxle oil. So I would recommend waiting until your one year anniversary to change the transaxle oil. That will be soon enough to catch any problems early. Keep accurate MPG data and see if the transaxle oil change then has a measurable effect.

GOOD LUCK!

Bob Wilson

 

Your friction brakes are going to last much longer than you think, unless road salt corrodes them. Toyota still sells lots of vehicles with conventional automatic transmissions; profit from maintaining those will pay for the waiting-room luxuries.

Bob (also responding) is the expert on transmission fluid, but I will say that if you decide to have a fluid change, pay the extra $15-20 for a new pan gasket. That way they can remove any particles that may have collected down there.

In the classic Prius, exchanging headlamp bulbs is not difficult - re-aiming them is. Things may have changed a bit with the new model though.

DAS

 

Thanks bob,
the dealer is the best if longevity is a priority; no question on that one. I'm planning to keep my car for 5 years before trading it in for another prius (next generation) or whatever is the best hybrid car at that time in the prius price range. I think i'm hooked on this hybrid technology. that being said, i going to try and drive my car as much as possible in that time period so that means i have to maintain it and keep it happy so it will serve me well; until i have to let it go. This is my first toyota car, actually only the second car i have ever owned; and so far it's been a blast to drive it. My first car; in less than 2000km on it I already lost count on how many times the engine light came on for irritating things like o2 sensors, camshaft pulse generators, all sorts of electrical problems. I plan to never own another one of those agian.


So regarding the transaxle fluid; that's the CVT fluid right?
i should change it after one year or 24,000km, correct?

Regarding my first post, i think I can avoid servicing at the dealer for simple things like oil change and only have them do more complicated things like brake change, cvt fluid change, and belt changes. Just enough for the car to last at least 5 years with no problems.

Good luck with your study!

 

Thanks again tochatihu,
I was just looking at the brake rotors at the front and i did notice some rust.
this definately tells me that they are not being used that much compared to a conventional car. Where as my other car's rotors were always clean and has no signs of rust.

So at least now i'm glad to know that the brakes wont be a big issue thanks to the regenerative braking.

Regarding the headlamps on the new prius; they look easy to replace when reading the manual. a little bit hard in real life as everything is tightly fitted from the factory. I think i just need more guts to pry things open under the hood . I'm just scared i might dislodge something, I'll have another go at it soon.
I'm trying to replace the regular bulbs with brighter white bulbs (not those blue ones the rice burners love). I just got used to driving with brighter white lights because my other car has xenons built in and i have been driving with those for 5 years now

 

The transaxle service interval for my NHW11 is 60,000 miles (~100,000 km). By doing an early change, 53,000 miles, and sending a sample of the used and new oil to a testing service, I've gotten a good idea about what happened. In my case, I've also changed to a synthetic and have plans to provide filtered air to the transaxle breather port.

In your case, I would recommend that at your 24,000km change, you send a used and virgin oil sample to a testing service, $15/sample. This will give you a baseline about how well it is wearing. In the NHW20, Toyota uses Type W. If the numbers are pretty close, double the mileage before the next test, 48,000 km and test the used oil. This will give you two data points and the baseline so you can then determine how long to go until the next change.

Bob Wilson

 

Thanks bob,
i'm glad i'm speaking to an expert about this; I'll follow your recommendations; i'll try changing first at 24k and see how it's like. I just want to make sure my transmission lasts; it's practically a vital component like a lung or heart and also very expensive to repair so i have to make sure it's in top shape.


best regards,
gj

 

Actually you are incorrect. I have yet to get any vehicle I take into a dealership service department back without some sort of goof up. I always end up with bolts/screws not tightened up, paint/interior scratches, oil over fills, incorrect oil. One time they even left a new oil filter on loose! Good thing I noticed oil dripping on my garage floor. Dealership service goons are the worst! From now on I do my own service work.