I have a 2010 Venza 4cyl, 10000 miles. needs oil change. The Toyotal Dealer is telling me I need to do an interim service - rotate tires/air etc. $80 service ($50 for syn oil). This seems excessive for 10K. Or am I missing something. They tell me it’s required Toyota Service. I say it’s a gimmick. I just want an oil change.
I would think that your owners manual would show what needs to be done. Do EVERYTHING it says. From experience in my family, warranty claims are a real pain if you have not followed the maintenance guidelines.
What does your owner’s manual require at this point?
“Or am I missing something.”
If you have not bothered to open the Owner’s Manual in order to read the manufacturer’s maintenance schedule, then you are missing A LOT.
I strongly suggest that you open the glove compartment, take out the manual, and take a look at the manufacturer’s recommended service procedures for both 5k miles and 10k miles. Anything that you might have skipped at 5k needs to be done now, in addition to the listing for 10k.
I assume (feel free to correct me) that this Venza has AWD. If you fail to rotate the tires on an AWD vehicle on schedule, you will wind up with very expensive repairs in the future. Normally, Toyota specifies tire rotation every 5k miles on their AWD vehicles, but I will defer to you to determine if this is listed for your Venza.
I don’t know exactly what the dealership is recommending, since your list is…not exactly specific (you could drive the proverbial Mack Truck though a variable like…“etc”.), and I’m not sure what the reference to “air” indicates. Is the dealership suggesting that you change the air in your tires perhaps? If so, feel free to ignore that recommendation.
I recommend that you make a copy of the manufacturer’s recommendations, take that to the dealership, and have those exact procedures done. If you don’t, you take the risk of voiding your warranty coverage and will have to bear the full financial brunt of future repairs.
Yes, read that manual. Note: you likely do not need to bring your car to a dealer to have the work done, as long as it gets done and documented.
Dealers are no better (or worse) than independent mechanics for almost anything you might need done on your car. They will almost always charge more per hour and often more for parts and supplies. They also tend to look at repairs a little different than the independent.
A dealer may well recommend work that strictly may not be needed, but could be connected to the problem or maybe replace a part when a little repair would fix it ALMOST as good a new.
There is no need to bring your car to the dealer for any service other than service that is going to be paid for by a recall or original warrantee. During the warranty period be sure to have all required (as listed in the owner's manual) maintenance done and to document all maintenance work.
I suggest that most people would be better off finding a good independent (Not working for a chain) mechanic.
Note: Never ever use a quick oil change place. They are fast cheap and very very bad.
The head of the General Motors service division stated in an interview about 15 or so years ago that they had just about given up all hope of getting any car owners to actually open the glove box and read the owners manual.
You just want an oil change? Well, tell them that’s all you want, period.
What would make me cringe about this particular post would be if this car has never even SEEN an oil change up to this point. Hello engine sludge and shortened engine life.
It’s a Toyota, it’ll sludge up anyways. 
Though I do agree with their statement about giving up hope. When I bought my Mazda, the salesman went over several things in the owner’s manual with me, and said they even have an abridged version of the manual that comes with the actual manual and service schedule. I guess the Toyota salesman didn’t bother to go over anything with this person.
“Rotate tires/air…” They’re not really trying to sell you air, are they?
What I cannot understand is how you could spend the money for a car like a Venza with a STARTING price of $27K for the base model and then balk at spending $80 (or $130 for synthetic oil)for manufacturer’s required routine maintenance? Don’t worry about reading your owner’s manual now, you’ll have plenty of time to do that while you’re waiting to have a new set of tires put on and having your engine rebuilt.
Happy motoring
At 10,000 miles, you’re overdue for an oil change and tire rotation. I would highly recommend you check the maintenance schedule that came with your car and at least get caught up on any services you may have missed. Failure to do so will make any warranty claims you may have to make be very difficult or impossible to get covered. Just because it’s a Toyota and they have a reputation for longevity doesn’t mean you can neglect it and expect it to be trouble-free forever. Same with Hondas, or anything else for that matter.
slebedeff,
I’ll just throw in that while you probably do need this work done, you can have it done at an indy mechanic’s shop for less money.
In most states it is AGAINST THE LAW for a dealership to void your warranty if you elect to have your P.M. done by independent technicians, so keep your receipts.
And of course, take a look at that owner’s manual. Contrary to popular belief, it contains far more than just common sense information.
There are other Toyota dealers.
Bring it there, and see what they tell you.
You can take the car to any tire shop, and have them rotate the tires for you, most of them for free.
But, like everyone else said, you should hunt down your owners manual, and look to see what Toyota recommends, and then make your own choices as to what you want serviced.
BC.
I just went one step further, just for you!
I went to Toyota’s website, pulled up there link at the bottom of the page titled “For Owners”, and went to the “Scheduled Maintenance” section.
On this page, you can input the info about your car, and get the required servicing for each mileage point. Here’s the link:
http://smg.toyotapartsandservice.com/guides.php?v=33&y=2009&int_id=2
For 10k miles, here’s what the page says:
Replace engine oil and filter 1
Rotate tires
Visually inspect brake linings/drums and brake pads/discs
Additional Maintenance Items for Special Operating Conditions:
Driving While Towing
Re-torque propeller shaft bolt (4WD) 3
Tighten nuts and bolts on chassis and body
Driving on Dirt Roads or Dusty Roads
Inspect ball joints and dust covers
Inspect drive shaft boots
Inspect engine air filter
Inspect steering linkage and boots
Re-torque drive shaft bolt (4WD) 3
Tighten nuts and bolts on chassis and body
Applicable Footnotes:
- Reset the oil replacement reminder light (“MAINT REQD”) or the message “OIL MAINTENANCE REQUIRED” on the multi-information display after engine oil replacement.
- Includes operating on roads which road salt has been applied.
I doubt you were towing with it.
So do an oil change, and rotate your tires, and have someone look at your brake linings.
Good luck to you, and try to know what your car needs done before you get to a shop next time.
BC.