Ball joint service on 2008 Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by pattytowne, Aug 9, 2015.

  1. pattytowne

    pattytowne Junior Member

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    I have a 2008 Prius with 56,339 miles and my dealer is recommending a $760 ball joint service and a $575 valve adjustment. Do these services sound reasonable based on the age of the car? Also, is it dangerous to drive without doing either of them? I am about to take a road trip and while I want the car in tip top shape for the trip, I do not want to do service on it that could wait until later since the dealer may be just trying to get some money out of me. :) I get regular service every 6 months on the car Thanks for any and all recommendations!
     
    #1 pattytowne, Aug 9, 2015
  2. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    Hard to believe you need ball joints at 58k much less a valve adjustment (do they even do valve adjustments on these cars?). It would be second opinion time for me.
     
    #2 rjparker, Aug 9, 2015
  3. pattytowne

    pattytowne Junior Member

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    Thanks! That's what I'm thinking. I drive pretty lightly - to and from work approx 15 miles per day plus some local weekend driving. I have a good tire dealer but my local Toyota dealer may not be quite as trustworthy. I am only going to them because of convenience and the fact that the car had been under warranty, but now...... not so much. I think it may be time to find another repair shop and, at the least, a second opinion.
     
    #3 pattytowne, Aug 9, 2015
  4. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    A little research on the site indicates the Gen 2 engine has bucket tappets that are swapped or shimmed to get to acceptable clearances. However many dealers do not recommend it if the engine is running fine because of the amount of work needed which includes breaking seals, removing the timing chain and camshafts, etc. On top of that, the valve clearances are often within tolerance anyway through 200k.
     
    #4 rjparker, Aug 9, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 9, 2015
  5. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    For ball joints just have a good mechanic inspect yours for looseness, but I agree that they are unlikely to need replacement. Adjusting the valves is a hard job and unlikely needed as Toyota engines require replacing solid lifters to be adjusted and they are seldom worn enough to need replacing.

    JeffD
     
    #5 jdenenberg, Aug 9, 2015
  6. pattytowne

    pattytowne Junior Member

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    Thanks, Jeff.
     
    #6 pattytowne, Aug 9, 2015
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    the dealer is just trying to do job of lightening your wallet.;)
     
    #7 bisco, Aug 9, 2015
  8. JTM2955

    JTM2955 Active Member

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    I am in agreement with the others above. If they, the ball joints, are truly worn out the car would have tire wear or steerability problems.
    58000 to have those worn out would mean you drive on very, very rough roads.
    As for valve adjustment, unless you hear the valves "clattering" there would be no need unless tolerances were way off. Did the technician actually measure clearances? I seriously doubt it.
    Unless you have a big drop in mileage or the Prius would not start well, don't let them touch it. Service Dept will create problems instead of fixing them.

    LG G3 T-MOBILE phone ☎
     
    #8 JTM2955, Aug 11, 2015
  9. dat2109

    dat2109 Junior Member

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    You can generally hear valve adjustment issues as ticking initially but can or will become misfires if it is bad enough. It wouldnt be common to need the adjustment, but if you have the symptoms than it needs it regardless of miles.
     
    #9 dat2109, Aug 12, 2015
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