Looking for some help from people who know a little bit more about cars than I do! So, I took my Toyota Rav4 hybrid (2021) in for a check up before an upcoming trip. I got a huge list of things that “should be” done. The problem is that I can’t decipher what is “real” from what is “really not necessary.” This is what I was told should be done
cabin air filter replaced $110
factory maintenance 30K $80
engine air filter $70
fuel injection flush $230
transmission service $250
rear differential flush $155
Tire rotation $80
Some of this sounds unnecessary to me, like anything with the word “flush” in it, but I have no idea. Thanks so much for any advice/help.
The car came with a recommended maintenance schedule. You don’t need to rely on anyone else or do any wondering. Just find that booklet, and follow that schedule.
I change my air and cabin filter every 20k. Order oem on line. Also order oem oil filters. Use only Mobil 1. I have my trans, transfer case, and differential fluid changed by the dealer I trust every 30k. Tire rotation every 6000. Brake fluid every 3 years or so. Suit yourself.
I have a 2017 not hybrid I take for an oil change and tire rotation every year minimum to keep warranty, bought Dealer warranty at the end of 3 year lease, good through 2027 bumper to bumper, only 27k on it but no extra suggestions from the dealer.
Fuel injection flush is NOT part of normal maintenance. You can do it yourself by just adding a bottle of fuel injector cleaner at your next fill-up. Not sure what specifically is covered under Factory Maintenance for $80. The rest are necessary, but seem awfully pricy. Cabin filter for $110? It’s a 5 minute job and the OEM filter is $40. Engine air filter is also about $40 and is at most a 2 minute job. Do yourself a favor and find a good independent mechanic and have them do it or do it yourself and save even more money.
Neither is a transmission service for an automatic, but yet it is recommended by most..
But both the professional fuel system cleaning and the trans service is recommended in the MAP standards…
A professional fuel system cleaning is a decarbonization of the induction side of the intake system… fwiw
A FST is no more a repair than a trans service, it is a preventive maintenance item… But it can be added to a repair when a system is blocked from carbon or the valves are carboned up…
A bottle is like brushing your teeth, a FST is like a deep cleaning at the dentist…
@carbuyers123_194244 If you have not done so use your search engine for videos on changing the cabin filter and the engine filter which can be bought at Wally World . Not that hard to do but those are normal dealer prices .
I think the dealer quoted a lot of high profit items that are not necessary for the trip, but some are part of the preventative maintenance schedule found in the maintenance manual next to the owners manual, or it might be in the owners manual. Stick to that schedule and you will be mostly ready for any trip.
You do need to review when you last had your oil changed, how often (in time and miles) do you get the oil changed and how long your trip (in time and miles) will be. It is safe to go 10% over your normal oil change interval (OCI) for a trip. Beyond that, it would be better to get the oil change done a week before the trip to insure that nothing leaks from poor practices at the place that does your oil changes.
Now for the reason I have seen most people stranded by the side of the road, tires. If your tires are worn down to minimums or are more than 6 years old, they need to be replaced before going on a trip. Tires need a little break in period of at least 50 miles, so don’t get tires day of. Again, best to get them a week before.
You should have a tire gauge. Check your tire pressure early morning the day before. If you have your own tire pump, then pump them up to the pressure listed on the placard on the drivers side door pillar. I recommend adding at least 2 PSI above the placard recommendation for long sustained high speed driving because it reduces heat build up, the killer of tires. Make sure your spare is also aired up to its recommended pressure. No one ever checks these and if they ever have to use it, it is usually flat.
If you go to a trusted tire shop to get this done, let them know you are going on a trip and would like the tires to have a little extra pressure. Because you have to drive to the tire place, your tires will already be hot so thay have to add 3-4 psi above the placard for that, plus another 2 psi, BUT do not exceed the max pressure listed on the sidewall of your tire. A true tire professional should know all this and do right by you.
The OP can very easily go to Toyota web site and make an account and it will have ALL the owners manuals on PDF, it will also show you any recalls etc etc, mine shows me my current mileage…
Just to add to the FST point, back around 2013ish my 2006 Corolla had a recall on the ECM and I was told part of the recall was to replace the air filter and preform a FST before or while doing the recall, there was like 4 different possible ECMs and 3 in stock, mine was the one that had to be ordered, I did the FST and air filter and the dealer did the free recall part…
For those of you that are not pros, Ford used to have a bad issue with the old 3.0/3.8 and 4.0 (IIRC) engines having so much carbon build up that it 100% would stop the flow to the EGR, so you would have to remove the throttle body and some other things to hand clean the EGR ports (amongst other things) in order to get the EGR system working again… Well, for all these customers that we did the FST maintenance thing to, they Never had an issue with carbon build up in the induction side causing EGR issues..
An example of a shameless effort to upsell a service.
The recall is for PCM circuit boards that may crack and cause engine stalling or a no-start condition, that recall did not include a free fuel system treatment. The recall pays 0.7 to replace the PCM, technicians use recalls as opportunity to push upsells to make money.