Greetings all, I purchased my '05 Prius from Marina Del Rey Toyota here in Southern California and, except for a couple of regular services when I happened to be out of state, I have been taking it here to get it serviced ever since I purchased the car. My last visit though I wasn't so happy. I brought my car in for a 90K service and they recommended I do a throttle bottle cleaning and replace the brake fluid. I declined both and decided to do a little further investigation... This past weekend I did the throttle body tear down posted on this site and there was barely any carbon to be seen (and the butterfly valve opened and closed without any problem). I decided to clean the throttle body anyway just to be on the safe side, and now it's so clean I could eat off it. While I was under the hood I also tested the brake fluid using the Phoenix System brake strips, and it came up very clean (between 0 and 10 on the rating system). I know the strips aren't perfect, but from what I've read they're pretty reliable and in no way indicate that I need to replace the brake fluid. So in all I'm feeling rather led astray by their recommendations. I have to bring my car in for 95K service soon and plan to play dumb and see what they recommend. If they come back recommending the throttle body cleaning again, I'm prepared to throw down, and I would like to have a back up dealership to bring my car to. On the whole, except for this throttle body thing, these guys have been pretty good up until now - fast, polite, no high pressure sales - but this throttle body experience leaves a bad taste in my mouth. So, any recommendations? I've had disappointing experiences with the Central Toyota in downtown LA as well as Glendale Toyota. Please let me know if there are any places - dealers and/or independent shops - in the LA area that you like and trust! Much obliged, Tara
I am in the same boat...I've only dealt with Toyota of Pasadena so far and you can add them to the list along with Central Toyota and Glendale Toyota.
