I just had the 10,000 miles service at the dealer (not the selling dealer). Oil job (with 0W30) and rotation was just under $50.00.

 

Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it's fair or justified, but for some reason the customer gets a lot of satisfaction from the dealer "X-thousand mile checkups". I've spoken to a lot of people who love it (yes, they're pissing away their money). I can't convince them otherwise...there's a market for the "pay a ton of money to feel good about your car" service.
Lucky dealers!

 

Reading this is making me really happy I decided not to go with the whole 15000 mile package. I just went with an oil change for $69

By the way- how much/ how often should once replace the air filter and rotate the tires?

 

"The dealer's financial interests and the customer's are often in opposition."

Since when is this conflict only restricted to relationships for dealer-to-consumer? The same could be said of 'the local shop' as well.

It appears some are quick to discredit and grill a dealership for being lousy in providing service but I don't think that's always the case - I've never had a bad encounter (with my Volvo or Toyota) by going directly to the dealer.

Consider that if a small shop has an average of 1000 customers and they provide poor service to 10% of those; the likelihood us hearing the stories of customer strife would be less probable. Compare to it, that if a large reputable dealer has 100,000 customers and they provide poor service to 10% of those; they would quickly lose their stature as 'reputable' and trust-worthy.

I would think it far easier to have a conversation with a dealer manager about feeling mis-guided for paying $250+ for service and receiving an equitable result than it would be to have a chat with 'Mike' about how you feel he screwed you over on a $250+ service.

I do agree, in many cases there are instances where individuals have established a personal rapport with a mechanic and wouldn't take their car elsewhere - I would feel so lucky to have that situation. However, in instances where the heart-to-heart moments are missing, I have no issue paying extra for having certified techs deal with my car; knowing that if they screw something up, a dealership who is deeply concerned about public image and reputation will have to deal with me (or others).

There is value to relying on reputable dealer service departments that have established trust-based relationships with their regional locale.

 

On my older gas powered cars I would replace the spark plugs, air cleaner and antifreeze every 30,000 miles. Look in your TCH manual for the correct mileage.

The pink coolant last for 100,000 miles and includes the spark plugs. It's best to rotate and balance your tires ever 5000 miles. Some choose 7500 miles. I do my my own oil change then go and have the tires done.

I bought a lifetime walmart rotate and balance for about $29.95 when the car was new. That was the price without the tire pressure monitoring or TPMS. Be sure to tell any tire shop what tire pressure you want to run.

 

Never implied that the dealers were the only ones with 'ethical impairment'; that's unfortunately a widely spread affliction. The one positive with a dealership is that they're often provided independent feedback via the manufacturers customer service satisfaction surveys. These are often used to grade the dealer experience and provide various forms of incentives from the manufacturer.

One example of an 'ethically impaired' dealer practice is the 'lifetime powertrain guarantee' that a couple of the local Toyota dealers push. To get this 'free warranty', you must grab your ankles for the 'dealer service recommendations'. Over a 120K ownership period, this 'free' warranty would cost > $5K over and above what Toyota recommends for services. Now, to my eyes, this is outright theft: the consumer isn't really getting anything of tangible value, and is subject to a quite substantial cost.

Does this mean that independent service shops are above this sort of thievery? Hardly - examples of quick-lube shops selling various snake oils and not performing services they sold abound.

I normally do my own minor service - I find it more convenient than sitting in a dealer waiting room, and get a bit of 'bonding zen' from doing the basics. My most recent dealer service experience was the initial (included in purchase price) service for my 2008. The service took ~2 hours (my 'at-home' takes < 1, including tire rotation), and they used 5W30, despite my specific request for 0W20. The service rep didn't try to sell any of the 'snake oil' to me, although I overheard other "service advisers" try to sell them to other folks in the waiting room.

 

To the OP, could you itemize what's on the bill?

I suspect if they're rotating the tires, they likely did brake inspections as well. Just speculating, if what was involved was an oil change plus brake inspection, $250 is reasonable.

As other responders have said: read through your Owners's Manual, what they did (or should have done) is spelled out in there. If you take the time to gain at least a cursory knowledge of what's involved in each service, it will be better both for you and the service department.

You might end up electing to do some things yourself, or at the least be able to discuss with the service rep what items are essential, and what items might be waived.

 

 

Here is my $0.02 worth...

I've used dealer service for almost everything in the last 15+years and it is not a matter of the dealers being good or bad because they are the dealer, but they are good or bad because of how the owner/management run the dealership. You have to realize that each of the dealers is an independent agent of the manufacturer and each has a lot of latitude in how they choose to run their business.

For the most part the dealers I've dealt with here have been anywhere from adequate to excelent when dealing with maintenance/repairs. When there was staffing changes at one dealership and the quality of the people changed, I changed dealers. While being around the corner from a dealer is convenient for dropping a car off, driving an extra 10-15 minutes gets me to another and they all have shuttles to drive people to and from work.

The bottom line is, hold them accountable for what they will be charging you for, just like you did when you bought your car and don't be afraid to walk out and to another dealership.

 

Mendel Leisk asked if I could supply an itemized list of what was on the bill. Here goes:
Under LABOR - $192.60 -
CUSTOMER REQUESTS DEALER RECOMMENDED MAINT PER MENU
DEALER RECOMMENDED PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE SERVICE
PERFORMED LUBE OIL AND FILTER SERVICE, ROTATE & BALANCE
TIRES, CHECK CONDITION OF FRONT AND REAR BRAKES, CHECK ALL
FLUID LEVELS, CHECK EMISSION CONTROL SYSTEM, CHECK AND CLEAN
AIR FILTER, PREFORM BATTERY TEST AND SERVICE CABLES, CHECK
AND ADJUST BELTS, PERFORM MULTI POINT INSPECTION,
WASH AND VACUUM.
REPLACE CABIN AIR FILTER

Under PARTS - $106.00 -
OIL CHANGE $6.95
FILTER S/A, OIL *****
GASKET *****
OIL CASTROL 5/30 $14.15
M506 WASHER SOLVENT $2.99
00289-2BC00-99 PARTS CLEANER $4.99
87139-YZZ08 CABIN AIR FILTER $27.50
TOS400 OIL SERVICE $49.42
TOTAL - PARTS $106.00

MISC CODE
1BPARTS PARTS DISCOUNT -$6.86
1BSERVICE SERVICE DISCOUNT -$6.75
TOTAL MISC -$13.61


TOTALS LABOR $192.60
PARTS $106.00
MISC -$13.61
TOTAL $284.99

HAZ HAZARDOUS MATERIALS DISPOSAL $5.00

GRAND TOTAL $289.99

I requested the Cabin Air Filter replacement and I figured that it was going to cost me more than if I did it myself, but in the end they charged me over $260 for a oil & filter change, check levels (AND charge me $2.99 for Washer Solvent), rotate tires and balance (there was no out of the ordinary discernible wear on any of the tires - remember, 15,000 miles), check my brakes (also no out of the ordinary discernible wear on the rotors or pads - remember 15,000 miles), plus a multi-point inspection.

I did notice that after leaving that they had charged me $192.60 for all of the labor that included the oil change and then charged me $49.42 for oil service in PARTS + the cost of the oil and filter to boot. So they charged me twice to change my oil. Its my fault for not catching it before paying for it and leaving.

I got to believe that I can go to any tire and brake shop and they will rotate & balance my tires and do a brake inspection for a lot less than what the dealer ended up charging me.

I am going to make darn sure that when I go in for my 20,000 miles service that I am not getting things done that don't need to be done and that I am not being taken advantage of on what things should cost for regular service. That is why I asked the question in the first place about what it should cost for service.

Rod