Dallas Area Mechanic?

Howdy,
What kind of work are you needing done? We specialize in hybrid batter rebuilding and we frequently service the Dallas area, but we offer other services as well.
Jessica @ Prius Battery Repair of Houston

 

Me also!

 

I'm also in Dallas. I took the Prius V into Sport City Toyota for the 10,000 mile "checkup," and now — days later — all kinds of things are going wrong, and the "Requires Maintenance" sign stays lit. It never had a problem before this.

I have documented auto repair fraud in several other dealers and shops to the point that I'm pretty sure it's just standard operating procedure. To find a place that does not cheat you — even to the point of putting your life in danger — is extremely hard to do. I finally found such a place, and it's just a couple of blocks from my house! Only thing is... it's old-school and does not work on the Prius. I need a place like that which DOES work on the Prius.

Has anyone found a place which keeps your car trouble-free?

By the way, here's how you tell if you're not being cheated: once a shop goes over your car and fixes things, they stay fixed. Furthermore, you don't find other problems starting to happen within a month of having it worked on. It's pretty simple, really. Cars don't just fall apart. They can wear out, but that's fixable. When you have recurring problems and/or problems that seem to multiply, you're being cheated by your mechanic. Another mechanic can often prove that for you. We had the AC compressor (not the Prius) replaced 3 times by one mechanic. We took it to another, and he showed us that the compressor was the original one. It had never been replaced. Same thing happened with the rack & pinion steering. The supposedly replaced rack had never been replaced. The problem had persisted, and after three visits to the mechanic, they were starting to suggest more expensive options. I took it to the place down on the corner, and they fixed it. Showed us the part, and it was the original one. Old, worn, with original information stamped on it. It had never been replaced, but we'd paid over a thousand for it over several visits. This is commonplace. In fact, I'm learning that it's pretty much standard.

So, how do we find an honest Prius mechanic in Dallas, Texas? Does anyone know?

Shooshie

 

I've got a buddy about to start a Toyota of Dallas. I think we can trust his work. I'll let you know when he starts.

 

Your previous service center was not Jiffy Lube was it? I would confront the shop with the paid receipts and the old non replaced part and demand a refund.

 

No, the bad guys in the stories above were at Quik Car by the Lake. Nice place, nice people... they just cheat the hell out of you. The honest place on which I now depend is White Rock Pit Stop at Gaston and Garland. They will not cheat you.

Also, I've learned something about the Maintenance Required light. It turns out that my trusted mechanic DOES work on the Prius. I just didn't know that. What he said happens is this: you take it to the dealer for your 10,000 mile checkup, and the odometer reads 10,050. When you took it in for the 5000 mile checkup, it read 5150. They reset it then, and 5000 miles later it comes on to tell you that it's time for the next maintenance. So, at 10,050 it hasn't quite made it to 5000 miles. The dealer forgets to reset it, and a week later, at 10150 miles, the light comes on.

There's a kind of complicated procedure to reset the light, involving turning the car on and off, then pressing some buttons on the dashboard until the dash lights up and the Trip A odometer resets (it doesn't really change Trip A, but resets the maintenance stuff). The dealer's mechanic just forgot to do that.

The "Maintenance Required" light is not tied into any actual problem detectors. It's just a mileage thing, a reminder that it's time to take it in. "Check Engine" is the one you want to watch out for, and take it to the shop when it comes on.

My other problem — low mileage — was due to a leaky tire that wants to stay at about 25 lbs. pressure. I'll get that fixed, and hopefully the mileage problem will work itself out. I've averaged 38 mpg (measured by me, not the car) since buying the car. Many tanks were at 42 mpg or better. The bad ones that bring down that average come from sitting in traffic that doesn't move while running the air conditioner. Since the low tire problem (coincidentally after bringing it home from the 10K checkup), it's gotten 33 mpg. I'm told that tires will make a big difference in mileage.

That's the story... hopefully I was just premature in blaming my dealer for screwing up something. I'm going to give them another chance.

Shooshie