So I landed my hand on a 2019 Limited Platinum hybrid with 75k miles. Need to do a multi-point inspection to clear off my head in case of oil leak/water pump failure/transmission issues/battery health. What was your experience if you ever went to one before for pre-purchase & safety inspection?
Thank you.
I have almost always used independent shops in the past, but last week I went to Round Rock Toyota north of Austin. My independent shop said I needed all new struts and shocks and control arms. $5100. Second independent shop agreed with struts, but said needed ball joints replaced. $3400. Took to Toyota for diagnostic check; said struts and ball joints and control arms are fine. Maybe next year for struts and ball joints, but okay for now. They said front stabilizer links needed replacing. $450. Also need alignment with the link replacement. While there I had brake fluid and coolant changed. Did recommended drive belt replacement which is rated at 100,000 miles. I’m at 112,000. Total cost was little under $1800.
@Mia
But according to some people, the dealership likes to rip people off 
Penn said:
@Mia
But according to some people, the dealership likes to rip people off
I have two Honda dealerships in my town. One rips you off every way they can - even their parts department is 2x the cost of the other one. The other place is the most trustworthy mechanic I’ve been to. Like two different worlds - both official Honda dealerships just 20 miles apart from each other.
@Oaklan
YMMV, there’s good dealerships and bad ones, same applies to independent shops.
Dealership services used to be more expensive but local small ones have gotten costly too, so now they’re similar. There are good and bad mechanics at all shops.
I go to the dealer for more complicated issues or services. Recently they needed to keep my car for a few days because the issue was hard to replicate. They also gave me a loaner (new RAV4) for free. Small shops would not have a loaner for me.
Also, had an issue they couldn’t find or reproduce a few months ago. Later when it happened more frequently they fixed it for free as promised from previous trip. I have a friend who had a major engine issue that required replacement. Toyota replaced it free because they said it was an issue they should’ve caught earlier.
I go to my small shop for oil changes and maybe nails in tire, tire replacement.
I had the same questions as you. Very similar situation, purchased a 2019 Limited hybrid with 86k about three weeks ago. Took it to a large dealership, and they found no problems other than telling me there was a recall on the fuel pump. No worries, that’s free and they are doing the recall soon.
@Ethan
How long did it take for them to do the inspection and price wise how much did it cost?
Clovis said:
@Ethan
How long did it take for them to do the inspection and price wise how much did it cost?
I can’t say for certain about the time because I dropped it off. I would guess it was a couple hours. Price was $180 for a pre-purchase inspection; they told me they just bill it as a diagnostic bill.
It’s tough. Techs are trained to look and find stuff that’s either out of spec or something that hasn’t been replaced if the car is a certain mileage. The guy you talk to on the phone can use that info to try and sell you on additional repair stuff so the dealership makes more money. Not all techs are bad, and not all of them are good. The bottom line is that you can use them as a reference, then find a reliable shop in your area that can do the same job for less.
@Dolph
I should just drive to Chicago and have TCCN (the car care nut) take a look at it.
Clovis said:
@Dolph
I should just drive to Chicago and have TCCN (the car care nut) take a look at it.
I have a 2019 XLE and have none of those problems.
Clovis said:
@Dolph
I should just drive to Chicago and have TCCN (the car care nut) take a look at it.
I have a 2019 XLE and have none of those problems.
Same.
Clovis said:
@Dolph
I should just drive to Chicago and have TCCN (the car care nut) take a look at it.
I would if I was within a couple hours drive.
Clovis said:
@Dolph
I should just drive to Chicago and have TCCN (the car care nut) take a look at it.
I would if I was within a couple hours drive.
300 miles away… I’m taking the vehicle for INSPECTION, not for fixing.
The problem with dealerships is flat rate. It incentivizes mechanics to be dishonest and upsell stuff that shouldn’t be. I’m not saying all mechanics are bad, but there’s a lot out there that do it. Find a smaller shop and ask around to see how they treat their customers.
No.
No. All dealerships are scamsters.
Bran said:
No. All dealerships are scamsters.
This is blatantly false.
Bran said:
No. All dealerships are scamsters.
What about the chain garages? The dealership quoted a 2-hour job; the garage said morning till noon.