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Extra Dealer Recommended Services

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by neweagle99, May 1, 2006.

  1. neweagle99

    neweagle99 New Member

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    I have owned a 2004 Prius for 18 months and put on 45,000 miles. During my 45K service at my local Toyota dealer, the service tech recommended 2 services to be performed at this time:
    (1) Throtle Body Service ($ 99.99) and
    (2) Fuel Injector Service ($ 89.99).

    Are either or both of these services necessary? Is the service tech paid a commission for extra service work? It seems that they were recommended based on mileage and not performance issues.

    Could I just put in a can of fuel injector cleaner in the gas tank? What are your ideas?

    Thanks
    Denis
     
  2. richard schumacher

    richard schumacher shortbus driver

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    Probably not.

    If they have planted fear, uncertainty, and doubt in your mind get a second opinion from another Prius certified service tech.
     
  3. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

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    Neweagle99, you have 45k miles so your injectors probably don't need cleaning yet. Unless you have bought some funky fuel among those 1000 gallons.

    The throttle body is somewhat different. Prius' Atkinson/Miller engine design allows some carbon (soot) to accumulate around the butterfly, and it does not take very long to become visible. Open the air filter box and perhaps you'll see it with a flashlight - just don't drop anything down there!

    A little soot means nothing. A lot can interfere with the motion of the butterfly, and then you get error codes. At 45k miles, you are probably somewhere in between.

    I think that if you did consult a different shop, you would find both of these services together for about $100. If you take your first cleaning at 60k miles, and then decide later how frequently this money needs to be spent, you will probably not go too far wrong.
     
  4. galaxee

    galaxee mostly benevolent

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    i agree with DAS.

    probably don't need the injector cleaning unless you're having engine trouble that may be caused by bad fuel flow.

    the throttle body may be acceptable if there's crap in there. really bad oil overfills can sometimes spew oil into that area.

    techs work on flat rate, there is no "extra commission" to speak of. they do the job, they get paid for x hours, no matter how long it takes them.
     
  5. azw

    azw New Member

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    Is cleaning the throttle body difficult? I've done other cars, but not a Prius.

    How do you do it? What chemical do you use?

    And what do I have to do to clean the mass air flow sensor?
     
  6. Blackfang

    Blackfang New Member

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    Our 15k/45k/75k comes with the Throttle body cleaning with it. I don't see why the injectors would need to be cleaned unless there is a drivability issue.

    Stay away from over the counter injector cleaners. By the time it even gets to the Injecter it is about as potent as your piss. It is diluted and has gone through alot and isnt even going to work.
     
  7. azw

    azw New Member

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    Thanks, Blackfang. I always wondered about those "pour it in the tank" products.

    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Blackfang @ Aug 14 2006, 09:41 PM) [snapback]303286[/snapback]</div>