Crooked Dealership Experience

[Zyo81]

I took my FR-S in for my oil change last Saturday. 32k miles. The service advisor comes to the waiting area and tells me I have a lot of carbon buildup on my throttle body and if I don't clean it my "gas pedal will stick", wtf? I simply say I'll skip that.

Later that day out of curiosity I take the intake hose off and sure enough, my throttle plate looks like a mirror.

I took my parents camry in for them there recently too. They gave me a laundry list of needs that totaled over 5k dollars. for a 15 year old camry. Half of which was blatent lies, and the other half I performed myself for pennies on the dollar.

I expect this sort of thing from a Jiffy Lube or something, but from a dealer? Pretty ridiculous. Anyone else having these problems with their Toyota dealer? The Ford dealer near here never pulls this crap. Almost makes me look forward to my warranty being expired so I don't have to take it in anymore.

[Twin4Life]

They arent called Stealerships for nothing.

[Braces]

You need to find a single service representative in the dealership that you can trust. Always use that same person and build a positive relationship. When that person builds a personal connection to you ... they will typically take care of you.

[Tcoat]

Took mine in the other day for a major service.
They only did what was on the list were fast, efficient and courteous and the experience was a pleasure.
They even called me to say my TRD drop in filter was very dirty and asked if I wanted them to clean it for an extra $20. I said yes since the cleaning kit cost almost that all by itself. I have never had a single concern with my Toyota dealer.

The local Ford dealer on the other hand...

[Eighty 6]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Took mine in the other day for a major service.
They only did what was on the list were fast, efficient and courteous and the experience was a pleasure.
They even called me to say my TRD drop in filter was very dirty and asked if I wanted them to clean it for an extra $20. I said yes since the cleaning kit cost almost that all by itself. I have never had a single concern with my Toyota dealer.

The local Ford dealer on the other hand...

Does the Trd filter make a big difference? I was thinking of installing one... And how much did it cost you. Sorry for the was trying to find a suitable meme but failed.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Eighty 6

Does the Trd filter make a big difference? I was thinking of installing one... And how much did it cost you. Sorry for the was trying to find a suitable meme but failed.

Makes a cool noise. Not sure that it does much more but I think I have a miniscule improvement in throttle response.
It was a freebie with my car (along with a bunch of other goodies) but I think you can pick them up for around $60 if you search hard enough.

[Zyo81]

Originally Posted by Braces

You need to find a single service representative in the dealership that you can trust. Always use that same person and build a positive relationship. When that person builds a personal connection to you ... they will typically take care of you.

That's sound advice, problem is I think every time I go in they have a new team of people. So either they have a lot of turnover or there's some kind of Nicholas Cage face/off scenario going on.

[Sideways]

I usually prefer driving to the Subaru dealership that is over an hour away rather than the one thats just 20mins from my place for the same reason and its worth it. I know the service guy there and only deal with him and he make sure to take good care of my car...plus I get loaner vehicle from them!!

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Sideways

I usually prefer driving to the Subaru dealership that is over an hour away rather than the one thats just 20mins from my place for the same reason and its worth it as they take good care of me and my car...plus I get loaner vehicle from them!!

Yep. For good or bad not all dealers are created equal. Find one you like and stick with them.

[Cole]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Makes a cool noise. Not sure that it does much more but I think I have a miniscule improvement in throttle response.
It was a freebie with my car (along with a bunch of other goodies) but I think you can pick them up for around $60 if you search hard enough.

Yup, think ft86speedfactory did dyno runs with a bunch of different filters. They were mostly the same.

Pick whether you want oiled or dry, then pick your favourite brand

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Cole

Yup, think ft86speedfactory did dyno runs with a bunch of different filters. They were mostly the same.

Pick whether you want oiled or dry, then pick your favourite brand

Yes they did. Most showed about a 5 or so HP bump. I have my doubts on that since 5hp is within the operational variation of a dyno.
Does really make a cool sound though.

[strat61caster]

Doing your own maintenance will not prevent you from warranty coverage as long as you document it and do quality work.

My car will be three years old in a few weeks, 44k miles and it's never been back to the stealership.

[stevesnj]

I'd rat them out to Toyota. Otherwise they will keep doing this to others. This is a crime that he said this. Paying for a service never rendered. That's stealing.

Toyota USA customer service. I called Scion a few times and always got a human on the other end

Phone: 800-331-4331

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by stevesnj

I'd rat them out to Toyota. Otherwise they will keep doing this to others. This is a crime that he said this. Paying for a service never rendered. That's stealing.

Toyota USA customer service. I called Scion a few times and always got a human on the other end

Phone: 800-331-4331

He didn't pay for a service not rendered.

But...

At the same time telling him that his "throttle will stick" due to build up is just as dishonest. Not only that but it shows a deep lack of knowledge on how these cars even work since he apparently didn't know it is drive by wire with no throttle linkage to jamb up.