BRZ Service under warranty. DYI or Dealership?

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by BDKane01

During the purchasing I was so busy haggling to get the price I wanted that I forgot to get them to include a free service or anything of that nature.

Originally Posted by BDKane01

It wasn't something negotiated. I totally neglected it. I have heard that may be something. I will need to look into it and see if it is regional. Any ideas where to start?

When I bought mine a few years ago, it was a standard service package included in the price of the vehicle practically everywhere, and it was honored at any Subaru dealership. In fact, I had my first oil change done six hours away from my home dealership. They looked up my VIN in their computer to make sure I had the service included, then didn't charge me a dime. My home dealership also knew from their computer that one of my "free" visits had already been used.

If you're interested in taking it to one of your local dealerships, call their service department and tell them you think you have service included and want to make sure they'll honor it. They'll ask for your VIN, look it up and give you an answer.

As for why you might want to have them do it, that depends. For one thing, service at dealerships is logged and shows up on Carfax reports. So if there's any chance you'll sell the car in a few years, that service record might be a good selling point. Sure, some dealer service departments are terrible, but some home mechanics are even worse. If I'm buying a car from you, and you tell me you do all your own maintenance, I don't know if I'm buying a car that was properly maintained by an expert or neglected by an idiot.

Another issue might be cost. The dealership where I bought my car had a service policy where they gave a 50% discount on alternating service visits (100% on the first one, 50% on the next, 100% on the next, and so on). They already had fairly reasonable service prices, and the discount made it worth the money to just let them do it.

Unfortunately the shitty dealership near me where I live now gouges the shit out of their customers. Since I'm planning to keep mine long past when the maintenance records will make any difference, I'm probably going to start doing my own maintenance once the warranty is up and keep a log book.

One other thing to consider: Most of the quick change oil places will do a "bring your own" service for $25. I'm more than capable of doing my own oil changes on my Jeep, but as busy as I am, it's actually worth $25 to me not to have to get on the floor and mess with disposal. Since I'm providing the street rod oil and a filter they don't sell, I know they're actually doing the oil change and not scamming me, and I'm controlling the quality of the materials used. I may do that with the BRZ as well once it's out of warranty.

[BDKane01]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

When I bought mine a few years ago, it was a standard service package included in the price of the vehicle practically everywhere, and it was honored at any Subaru dealership. In fact, I had my first oil change done six hours away from my home dealership. They looked up my VIN in their computer to make sure I had the service included, then didn't charge me a dime. My home dealership also knew from their computer that one of my "free" visits had already been used.

If you're interested in taking it to one of your local dealerships, call their service department and tell them you think you have service included and want to make sure they'll honor it. They'll ask for your VIN, look it up and give you an answer.

As for why you might want to have them do it, that depends. For one thing, service at dealerships is logged and shows up on Carfax reports. So if there's any chance you'll sell the car in a few years, that service record might be a good selling point. Sure, some dealer service departments are terrible, but some home mechanics are even worse. If I'm buying a car from you, and you tell me you do all your own maintenance, I don't know if I'm buying a car that was properly maintained by an expert or neglected by an idiot.

Another issue might be cost. The dealership where I bought my car had a service policy where they gave a 50% discount on alternating service visits (100% on the first one, 50% on the next, 100% on the next, and so on). They already had fairly reasonable service prices, and the discount made it worth the money to just let them do it.

Unfortunately the shitty dealership near me where I live now gouges the shit out of their customers. Since I'm planning to keep mine long past when the maintenance records will make any difference, I'm probably going to start doing my own maintenance once the warranty is up and keep a log book.

One other thing to consider: Most of the quick change oil places will do a "bring your own" service for $25. I'm more than capable of doing my own oil changes on my Jeep, but as busy as I am, it's actually worth $25 to me not to have to get on the floor and mess with disposal. Since I'm providing the street rod oil and a filter they don't sell, I know they're actually doing the oil change and not scamming me, and I'm controlling the quality of the materials used. I may do that with the BRZ as well once it's out of warranty.

I called the dealership in Wilmington, NC to check on that. The service associate said she didn't see anything when she looked up my vin. I don't think I have it, but the service advisor is going to call me back. Additionally, I don't think they have any such programs especially at my closest dealership which is basically a hole in the wall.

[FitchAlcyone]

Originally Posted by BDKane01

I checked with 3 dealerships. This is not true for NC.

Hmm, good to know. I wonder what determines this program, but it seems to be regional. Most in the DFW area that I'm aware of include this plan with their cars. I've actually bought from two dealerships in the past six years and received this service agreement.


Good luck with the research!