The Subaru Dealership charges almost $600 for the 30,000 mile check up. I have a mechanic who I trust. Should I take it to him for an oil change and and a check of things and save $500. Thanks for any input.
John Morgan
Yup.
And if your car is still under warranty, keep your copy of the shop order as evidence that you’ve complied with the maintenance requirements, just in case you ever need to access the warranty.
Nope. You have a number of things that need to be done besides the oil change, right? I’d have them change the brake fluid and transmission fluid and coolant, and use Subaru’s fluids. You can have your mechanic do this, but make sure you do it.
AND spark plugs.
There’s a reason it’s $600…
Texases, I assumed that “and a check of things” meant do the 30,000 servicing per the manual.
“Per the manual” means that–at a minimum–the car needs the following at 30k miles:
Oil & filter change
Replace air filter
Change spark plugs
Change brake fluid
Rotate tires
Adjust parking brake
- a lot of “inspections” that are relevant
Additionally, Subaru dealers typically include a transmission fluid change, coolant change, and changing the fuel filter in their 30k service. Hence the hefty fee.
Yes, the above-noted regimen is expensive, but it is necessary in order to maintain warranty coverage.
If the OP’s trusty mechanic only plans to do an oil change and the inspections, I can well understand the major difference in costs, but skipping maintenance is…not a wise thing to do. The old expression, “penny-wise and dollar foolish”, comes to mind.
If the OP can convince his mechanic to do what I have noted above, the cost will be much more than the $100 that he apparently quoted, but the mechanic can probably still beat the dealership’s price. As texases noted, the OP should make sure that the mechanic uses only Subaru’s proprietary coolant, the correct transmission fluid, and that he uses the OEM spark plugs, as noted in the Owner’s Manual. Don’t let him cut corners in order to save a few bucks.
The 500 dollar difference raised a red flag for me. For a 100 dollars I’m assuming, right or wrong, that the only things that will be done is an oil change, check the fluid levels, and possibly rotate the tires.
I agree with ok4450. I can’t picture your mechanic doing the required work for $100.
lion9car–Since I said essentially the same thing as ok4450, albeit with a lot more detail…Can I assume that you also agree with me?
;-))
VDCdriver wrote:
lion9car–Since I said essentially the same thing as ok4450, albeit with a lot more detail…Can I assume that you also agree with me?
If it makes you happy, certainly!