Taking my car to a dealership for repairs for the first time - what should I know?
 

My car is part of a recall for that ignition key issue, and I have to take my car to an authorized dealer to get it fixed at no cost, so that they can officially mark my VIN as having completed the recall service.

I plan on telling them explicitly that I do not want any other inspection or service done to my car, and that I do not want my car washed even if it's complimentary (since many do a poor job and leave swirl marks). I also plan on placing a piece of paper on the steering wheel that says to not wash the car or perform any other service.

What other things should I prepare for?

Thanks.

That' about it, what you've already stated.

And be sure to just say NO to any other suggestions they may have. It's always so easy and simple to say no.

Approaching the dealership for the first time with a confrontational attitude, is probably not good, or necessary.

They are going to perform a free, corrective maintenance procedure, at the initiation of the manufacturer (Scion/Toyota)

JMHO

So combine the two and say no politely, but constantly. lmao

I actually purchased my car from that same dealership, so it wouldn't be my first time there.

Many people are incompetent in general and sometimes cannot follow through on the most basic requests. And unfortunately, car dealerships brought upon their negative reputation on their own, in the same way that lawyers have brought upon all the lawyer jokes.

Don't be condescending to them though that's not fair, they don't normally deal with gear heads like us on a daily basis. I created a good rapport with my dealer and am only using them for the first two years of free maintenance and if they did ever find anything they would call you first and you could just tell them no.



@billwot This is not a corrective maintenance procedure that would be called a TSB, this is a legitimate recall that the NHTSA forces them to do and record and store the vin numbers of vehicles effected and vehicles that were effected and fixed.

I received that recall mailing, and it was all about the ability to possibly remove the ign. key with the AT still in gear w/engine off. Due to some electrical wiring being poorly or not being connected. I personally tried to remove the key w/engine off and selector in drive. Would NOT come out of the ign. switch. Went to my closest dealer, (Note: I did NOT purchase car from them, but they HAVE done minor call back checks/repairs as well as the free 2 yr services. I was told that no further action was needed. They said they would not need any VIN or such, as if what I told them was the case. End of issue. This dealership has performed routine periodical service and some issues that were not critical to my perspective. They don't give a free wash, but give me coupons to use at a local Auto-Wash facility. I use them on my wife's car instead. :-) My FR-S is a 2014 AT White-Out w/ 11,500 miles. I love this car!!

The same could be said for many know-it-all customers who assume things.

At the end of the day, business is about relationships first.

-alex

Good idea I'm gonna do the same when my car goes for service in a few weeks. I'll leave a big note on the steering wheel that says, "DO NOT WASH CAR but feel free to VACUUM the inside". :lol::lol::lol:

LOL first time I've heard of someone bitching because the dealer may do to much, they ususaly don't complete what you call upon them for. First time I took mine in, was awesome experience. Drove right up to Scion, right into the bay, scion shirt came out bla bla bla took down some info, (I was there for a 45k inspection) said we'll be done shortly, we'll call you, enjoy the movie. By the time we got to the theater, he called, said car is good to go, all points inspected, enjoy the movie, see you when you get back. Picked it up, and he asked how was the movie lol

I'll be taking it back for diff and transmission service and to check out why my rubber seal gets caught on the window

I put a permanent record on my car profile stating no car wash. I also show up to the dealership with a clean and waxed car. Every time I show up to the dealership the person that helps me looks at my car with a nod of approval and says "No car wash."

Why?

By the way, why dealerships have such bad reputation?


People keep saying that supposedly they:


1. push unnecessary maintenance,
2. push unnecessary repairs
3. do shoddy job,
4. are overpriced.


I service my car (not a twin) only at dealerships, mostly one dealership. Let me comment on all the above.


1. may have happened, how do I know. But the car is almost 10 years old, 115k miles, and apart from a single early teething problem (covered by warranty and recall) and two lightbulbs, nothing has ever broken so far. Maybe that maintenance wasn't unnecessary after all.


2. well, one of the lightbulbs was for the license plate, and I did not notice it myself. So maybe it was actually fine, and they screwed me, and I unnecessarily paid $10 or so for replacement.


3. Maybe, but the car is being maintained and serviced by them, and is fine after almost 10 years and 115k miles, so maybe it's not so bad.


4. Maybe, but the car is being maintained and serviced by them, and is fine after almost 10 years and 115k miles, so maybe it was worth it?


Also, I can't really compare pricing of repairs/service with non-dealerships because I don't go there, but there is an exception. Recently I had three tire punctures within a few weeks. One was repaired at my dealership, two at two different non-dealerships.


Dealership: $18, they lost the valve cap.
Nondealership 1: $30, they put the donut in the trunk upside down.
Nondealership 2: $36, they put the wheel ornament on incorrectly, I lost it within a few miles.


For me, the dealership wins.

There is without a doubt good and bad dealerships. I am with you though in that I think the good outnumber the bad by a huge factor.
Classic case of people talking about the bad and never mentioning the good so the impression is they are all bad.
There is also the whole "I am better than anybody else at everything" mentality at play with some. I laugh my ass off when I read some joker that asks how to change his oil because he refuses to have "the stealership monkeys" touch his car. I do not know about the US but up here all the techs that work on the cars (yes even for oil changes more often than not) are extensively trained and licensed. They have all of the latest and best equipment and know how to use it. Some 19 year old with a $20 set of jack stands and a cut rate socket set working in his driveway can not do a "better" job no matter how superior they may feel. This of course does not mean that there are not people that can do just as good a job but those are not usually the people slamming the dealers.

i'll second this and say that as someone who works in the service industry, when someone comes in and immediately starts being an a$$#0le, they will typically get that same treatment back.

just be straightforward with the service advisor - be nice but let them know that you don't want *any* extra services done and if they try to upsell you at all (which, typically at a TSB/recall i've never seen happen anyways) do like nancy reagan suggested and just say no.

My absolute favorite is when someone walks in with a TSB in hand, and essentially telling the service adviser on how to fix a non-existent problem.

-alex

But a TSB is as good as a recall isn't it?


In reality I did that with the window freezing TSB. It was August and I walked in with TSB in hand and said "My VIN is included in this would you please be so kind to do this before it freezes". They read it through, said "Sure thing" and fixed it for me. Mind you I also had a dozen coffees and some doughnuts for them and we sat around and talked cars for 20 minutes before I asked them. They will practically push other people out of the way to take care of my requests now.

Not quite... officially dealers apply TSB as a fix for a known problem or technical issue.

If your VIN is under the TSB then the dealer may apply the fix and write it up as if you had the problem to begin with... but it is meant as a guideline to fix a problem (in addition to FSM), not a preventive fix. But as I have been saying since day 1, your relationship with the dealer is what will get stuff done, above all else.

I remembered that there was the ECU TSB that adjusted timing to prevent DI seal blowout. I mentioned to my friend at the dealer that there was a newer flash for my car and forgot to check the VIN range. This was weeks after I took delivery of my car...

He replied with "your car already has the ECU updated. If you want me to do it again I will, I'll just have to charge you"

-alex

LOL
You need to fix your sarcasm detector for that first line!




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