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Not sure if this bothers anybody else, but recently whenever I access the Edmund's Forums I get the "car honking horn" sound effects! Can't say this is the biggest issue in the world right now but if you are trying to sneak a peak at Edmunds a few times during your work day it does alert other cube dwellers! Might be nice to silence the beast for that reason...
Mike
now that does sound like a typical catch - 'provided regular maintenance is done by the dealer'. Don't know how the rest of you feel about this - but I always thought that the dealer is proably the worst place to have your car worked on unless, of course, it is a warranty issue.
The better true mechanics, probably, independents because why let somebody else (the dealer) bill out my time at $80.00/hour when I'm actually getting paid $25. Getting your car in on a regular basis is a license to steal sometimes and maybe why they are 'giving away' oil changes - you would be amazed about the number of things found wrong that there is nothing wrong with. recommendation - if you aren't going to do the regular maintenance yourself, find a good and trustworthy independent mechanic.
Took my wife's 04 LTD Highlander into a dealership I had never used for the 5K oil change. First time there, so they had to take down all the details; car has approx 25K miles on it.
They completed the change & the service "advisor" came to me to tell me she needed her transmission fluid changed (it was dirty) and the cabin air filter needed to be changed (for $60). I told them we would pass & consider it at the 30K checkup.
Got home and just for grins checked to see if they had completed the 21 POINT FLUID TOPOFF they so proudly advertised. They had not & I proceeded to add about 1.5 qts of windshield wash into the reservoir. Got to thinking about the cabin air filter and looked into the manual to see what it takes to change it...gotta remove the glove box to even remove the filter...so how did they know it was dirty because I know for a fact the box had not been removed? Annndddd, they missed the freebie windshield fluid top off!
You got it captain2 - it is a license to steal & I pity the single female or even some guys who don't have a clue! The "advisor" scares you to death with his recommendationso he can lighten your checkbook! I am definitely in the market for a good independent who uses genuine Toyota parts. Not all dealers are like this but they are few & far between, in my opinion! I had an independent when I lived in Northern Va who worked on my Lexus - sure wish I could find one like him in Kansas!
zekeman1
Ordered the graphite interior with VS, CF, and PC as the only options. Paid $32024+TTL. For more details, see message #728 on the "Toyota Avalon: Prices paid and buying experience" page.
I would like to thank all the contributors to this forum for all of their great posts. These posts certainly helped me make an informed decision. The education I have received from reading 10000 or so posts tended to make me an "expert" when dealing with less informed sales people.
Because of this "expertise", I was able to recognize the "apples and oranges" comparisons as well as see the "snowballs" when they tried to roll them by.
Thanks to all of you, this was the first time I felt "in control" when making a vehicle purchase.
Rod
I don't know how widespread this practice was (or is), but I observed them skip dozens of paid-for front end alignments and tire rotations as well.
Conditioned by those experiences, I always mark an essential bolt, cover, or fastener with a paint line before leaving any car for service. Even now, I catch them red-handed about 25% of the time. Most deny it outright. Imagine how clever they were to change the transmission fluid and internal filter without ever disturbing the filler cap or one of the pan bolts.
Most people don't seem to understand that service depts. are under some serious pressure to not just make a bunch of money but also to maximize dollars per visit. This applies even to that little 'quik lube' place on the corner - an explanation of why you are deluged with all sort of extra (and likely unnecessary) work requests when all you wanted was a simple oil change.
I am 50 years old and still enjoy servicing and repairing cars - but, it is getting more difficult. My neighbors wonder why I spend my time this way, and scratch their heads when the see my new cars on stanchions in my driveway! But, in addition to my Av, I currently have 3 Nissans, with up to 120k miles and none has ever been back to the dealer.
Give them a call with the information about how you caught them not doing certain things and charging for it.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Upon return that evening, I quickly noticed the odometer had only advanced less than 0.1 mile (meaning no road test could have been performed), and all the paint marks were pristine. The subsequent interchange went like this:
“I had marked the tie rod ends with paint lines so I could see how much adjustment was required”, “the lines are undisturbed; are you sure they did not forget to do the work by mistake?”
(look of child with hand in cookie jar) “Let me call the Tech and have him pull the alignment rack slip.”
(Tech arrives, without a slip, and they confer privately) “When he measured the car on the machine, he found no adjustments were necessary.”
“Then why did you charge me for an alignment?”
“To cover the Tech time and use of the alignment machine.”
“If no adjustments were done, won’t it still pull to the right?”
(confers with Tech a second time) “We didn’t feel any pull to the right.”
“I wrote the odometer reading on the symptoms description sheet I gave you. It has only advanced less than one tenth of a mile. How did you determine there was no drift without actually driving it?”
(yet another conference with the Tech) “If you leave the car with us for another day, we’ll look at it again, and there will be no charge for the alignment.”
".....Just had my transmission oil change......"
And I'll bet you paid for an extra 11-12 quarts of ATF for "flushing" (and a disposal fee, to boot) that either went down the drain or was sold to a re-refinery
Nuff said.
for $45.95. (Bypass module required for some applications is $19.95)Claims 400-foot range. CarQuest store locations are listed at:
http://www.carquest.com/locator.htm
thanks
plz help
thanks
After 5,100 miles my '05 LTD transmission likes me. It is smooth and does not miss a beat. Love the car.
but i noticed somthing for the ppl who might get this prob when the passenger side button light indicates that means u have to do the things i did ! so when u see the passenger side button light dosent indicates that means its back to normal ! if that makes any sens tho !
anyway i got another qustion that i really wanted to know ! since i got the car i received 4 rubbers ! in plastic ! written on them IMPORTANT ! TO PREDELEVIREY INSPECTOR : INSERT THESE RUBBER PLUGS INTO THE HOLES OF THE CENTER FLOOR SIDE MEMBER EXTENSIONS. !!!
can anyone tell me where shall i plus thoes rubbers in !? and why is that rubbers for !
thanks aloot and appreciated :shades:
"This year you can write off your sales tax paid rather than your state income tax. Figure out how much you paid in local and state sales tax and how much in state income tax. If the sales tax is greater, you can deduct that.
This may help people who made very large purchases last year, such as cars or major appliances."
It should be OK to wait for your 5000 mile service, then ask the dealer to insert them.
My choice the Touring: personally prefer the harder and sportier feel and 'European' interior look, and specifically did not want to complicate the car with a bunch of electronics. Love the Xenons. Still the smoothest, quietest, and one of the quickest cars I've ever owned - but not nearly so isolating as my neighbor's Ltd.
Bought last April, now with 16k miles, not been back to the dealer except for the steering recall. 26.5 mpg overall, 70% highway - where we all drive 80 (Texas)
Regards
"To Normalize the power window"
1. Push down the power window switches of each front door and lower the windows halfway.
2. Pull up the switches until the windows close and hold the switches for a second.
I did this on mine the second time it happened and it worked. The dealer reset them the first time it happened. He said sometimes if the door is slammed hard or something, it will make them malfunction, so he showed me these instructions in the book.
Hope it works for you.
Good to hear from an Avalon owner way up North of us temperate Canadians!
It is reassuring that you opted for the FWD Avalon to replace your AWD Volvo S70, given your driving conditions.
Thanks for the tip on the Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires. Snow and ice are infrequent in Vancouver so I haven't used winter tires in the past, but your report of improved performance on icy patches is an important consideration. Did your Avalon come with Michelins?
havalongavalon
Thanks much to 05avforum for his advice.
BUT, if I have an Avalon Limited with Smart Key, I think there will be no way to avoid carrying the Toyota fob in order to open the doors and start it "locally". I definitely do not want to carry TWO fobs.
I'm wondering if there are Limited owners who have either
1) Found an aftermarket remote start that takes the place of the Smart Key fob in every sense
-OR-
2) Found a way to extend the range of the Toyota remote starter to something closer to the 1000ft range commonly found on aftermarket units.
I know this is a long shot -- just wondered if others have solved the problem. OR, if others have found that Toyota's range is actually much greater than the claimed 80 feet.
Please update us when you do get the firmware update. There are others of us (or at least me) still interested in integrating the iPod into the Avy. Thanks.
Max
Yes, the Avalon did come with the Michelins. They are the Enery MX type. Seem to be good tires.
We had some real icy roads today....snow melting, then refreezing, etc. The Blizzaks were great.
The FWD Avalon was a risk for me, but I felt better about it with the Stability/traction control included. Everything ok so far.
Didn't realize Vancouver saw so little snow! We can get anywhere from 35 inches to 120 inches per winter in Anchorage. Varies greatly.
denal1
Thanks again.
OldGuy1
Owners hve been commenting about the distortion in the rear window. There is a reason for this, cost. If Toyota can speck out a windshield without disortions, why can't they do the same for the rear window. Despite the issues, the car, overall, is a good one. ange1
Best surprises AFTER buying are the smart key and auto wipers. The car recognizes me when I approach and enter: I don't even need to push the memory buttons; the seat and mirrors automatically move into my positions. The Nav is everything I thought it would be, and more. Despite what others say, I find it easy to use and very accurate. I don't think of it as costing $2000; I'm really paying only $1 per day for it in my car payments, and that's really worth it.
Biggest disappointments are things I have yet to see mentioned here: the lack of a day/night mirror and the "automatic" climate system. The "automatic" rear-view mirror appears to respond to the total amount of light hitting it, not to the intensity of any one light source hitting it. So, a very small but intense source (like a distant headlight behind me) still is fully reflected in the mirror and into my dark-sensitive eyes. The mirror does not "green out" until the car approaches closely behind. In the case of the climate system, the automatic sensors seem to compare the *outside* temperature to my desired temperature, not the inside temperature. Even on a cold day, the car interior can be quite hot if it has sat in the sun; yet, the auto climate system will continue to blast us with hot air. (The reverse has also happened in the summer with the A/C.) I'm constantly adjusting the temp and fan to try to keep comfortable.
All very minor complaints, however. We're very glad we bought the Avalon (we had been considering a Maxima). We've never looked back, and we really like the car.