Local service experiences

I have had my Prius worked on once there.. the tech seems to know what they are doing.. had the recall for the ECU reprogramming... told the service rep all the pit falls I had heard.. went back to the tech.. came back.. yep you are right, but have not blown a computer yet.. they did a good job... going back to get a TSB, a recall for the seal added, and DVD-NAV updated...

As a side note... asked about the brake sw... did not know anything about it... but bet by the time Nov 30 when I take the car in... they will ... They seem to be hard workers ... bit cramp for space...

While there I saw a Prius on the lot.. not sure if it was for sale now or waiting for the owner to get down and pick it up...

Ya'll have a fine t-day... drive your Prius safely... there are lots of SUV's out there..

 

Time for me to take my Prius in for its first service and I figured I'd see if anyone had any new info on Austin area service. I assumed I'd just go to Champion because it's closest to me, but my boyfriend works at Dell now and takes the Prius whenever he drives the carpool, so Classic is an option as well. Any new thoughts?

 

Champion has done well by me so far.

 

I got my 5000 mile service done at Champion Toyota in Austin in early July. They are very near my home. Told them 3 1/2 quarts and 40/38, and they did that exactly. I had a coupon for the oil change for roughly $12.50 and they rotated the tires for 19.99.



So today I took the Prius in with another coupon for an oil change for the 10,000 mile service; I intended to tell them I'd get the tires rotated later. When the service manager came out, I showed him the coupon and asked if we could do that today (because it was already after 3:00). He said he thought we could do better than that. "How many miles?" "Just under 10,000." "Well, all you should need is and oil change and tires rotated; and if you get the tires rotated I'll throw in the oil change." "You've got a deal." So the price was only $19.99. (I was so amazed that I didn't even think about 3 1/2 quarts and 40/38 until after it got dark tonight, so I guess I'll try to check or to get my husband to check tomorrow. We do have an air compressor in the garage.)

 

I sang the praises of Champion last July, but now I need to say that we need to be careful of service wherever we go, including theirs.

When I went in for the 15k oil change and tire rotation, the service guy told me it would run $130+. I showed him the service schedule booklet and asked if those items could run that much. Well, if the air filter change was not necessary, of course that would be deducted. He got someone to grab their Prius service schedule, and then reported that they would charge for an oil change and tire rotation. Before that, however, I had made my presence known. My husband had not checked the oil as I had requested--and, mea culpa--neither had I. My mileage had been in the tank for a Prius, and it had been getting worse. When I pulled out the receipt for the 10k, it showed 5 quarts of oil. So I checked the oil--5000 miles late--and it showed a half inch above the full line. I fussed about that, and they assured me that an overfill wouldn't affect the gas mileage and that anyway that amount would only be about a fourth of a quart in a dinky little pan like that. He brought out another guy to second the information, and they wanted to check what the specs were. I showed them in the book. They finally said that since it was my car they'd put in whatever I wanted. We agreed on 3.5. Oh, and they did ask me whether I checked with the MFD or calculated the mileage because the MFD "isn't accurate."

I made an impression, probably not too good, because when I called back to tell them the higher tire pressures I wanted, they guy recognized my name and said he would tell Alfonso what I wanted.

I'd been having to air up the tires, and it turned out that the slow leak was caused by a nail in the side-wall of the tire. The mileage had been running 46-48, with one 44 tank in there--even on my trips to and stays in Houston, where it had been running 52-54. The last one was 43. Frustrating, but not too bad for all the car was up against. The next tank was still below 50, but I drove 70+ for most of it, usually 75, to be in time for a funeral in Eagle Pass. Refilled on the way home, and I'm back to about 51, even though my husband drove home (and he doesn't worry about really trying for lower mileage). That's highway, and I believe that's highway EPA.

 

Just picked up my 2006 Prius at Universal Toyota in San Antonio last week. I live in Austin and have had a deposit down with a local dealer (Classic) since the first of October, but a Prius with all the packages and options I wanted became available from Universal prior. The buying experience at Universal was pleasent and they addressed all my needs/concerns.

I did have a blemish on the rear door that will require some work, but Universal and Classic have a 'friendly' relationship and Classic is going to take care of the repair.

I have purchased 3 Toyota products and 1 Hundai product from the Classic dealership in the past and have been satisfied with their sales and service departments.