Another stealership horror story.....

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I agree with everything you say, except the cost. It's a Chevy. I had the battery replaced on our BMW E90. $172.50 labor, $287.00 for the battery, $459.50 total. In late model BMWs the IBS (Intelligent Battery Sensor) needs to be reprogrammed.

Scott
haha that's frickin hilarious. I just did my battery for 55.88 plus tax. I don't want or need an "intelligent battery sensor".....
 
GM simply pours a bottle of GM Fuel System Cleaner in it, which is literally rebranded Techron Concentrate. I can buy 2 bottles of that at the auto store for $12.
Have you watched them do it? A fuel system service by my local mechanic is pretty extensive. They do just as myself. On our Lexus it includes removing boot and cleaning throttle body inside and out with brush and cleaner. Then spraying the ports while engine is running. They get about .75 hour labor plus cleaner. All in all it's about 150 bucks.
 
haha that's frickin hilarious. I just did my battery for 55.88 plus tax. I don't want or need an "intelligent battery sensor".....

Where can i get one of those? Batteries here in my part of the neighborhood are pushing 100.00 plus for a group 78.
 
Once I buy a new car and it leaves the lot the dealer never ever sees the car again. That was how it went with my 86 Mazda 626, my 2004 Focus, and my wife's 2018 Mazda 3. Today with emails I usually get something from the Mazda dealer concerning service once every two weeks since buying the car. My best solution is "delete".
 
Many many years ago I worked in a dealership so I have a very small amount of understanding of that environment. I do feel many dealerships are a bit heavy with upsells and push them too much. I will also say many people are quick to hate a dealership but run to them when insurance/extended warranties are paying. Also I have taken lots of calls from independent shops asking for help fixing a car then taking the credit. I am not saying a good independent is not good, they can be great as can a proper dealership (I do agree proper dealers are hard to find). Part of what drives it is how they are paid, everything is commission. When I was a service advisor many moons ago, I would generally get a very very small base pay then the rest was based off of customer surveys and my service sales. It was hard because I tried to have ethics and not sell something that wasn't needed. At one dealer I remember getting in trouble because of this. Funny it was fuel injection services, they wanted me to push them every 15k miles. I didn't feel it was right and couldn't tell a person their year old car with 15k miles it needed that service. I was let go eventually because of this mentality of mine. A fuel injection service every now and then isn't bad, but I agree with maybe every 60+k miles or more... Engines will keep a small amount of build up on them that just stays. With fuels and efficiency of vehicles now, a fuel injection service is more an upsell than a service.

All that being said, it does seem like a lot to pay for very little. I also think the dealer was a bit greedy on the full diagnosis charge for a battery. It does seem like they put some ethics aside on this bill.
 
However, with out disassembly there is no way to know how they really look, or the performance fall off since it would be gradual. I would think many vehicles-for example are going to have some amount of dirt in the bottom of the gas tank with time and/or millage or both.
My dealer says the same thing about my muffler bearings. There's just no way to know when they're about to fail! Better safe than sorry.
 
Weird. I’ve put in five California zip codes, spread out over the state, not one store says it’s available.

Scott
Walmart's ability to keep online indication of actual inventory seems suspect. I've seen the same thing locally, yet I *know* they have whatever, on the basis of checking once a month or so when in store, and remembering to check again when I get home. Batteries in particular. I'm not sure if they have some devious plan to get you inside and then lure you into buy all sorts of goodies that you didn't need or what, but batteries seem to be something they don't care to keep up to date on their website.
 
So people were wholesome and upstanding all throughout history? and only just recently went scummy?
W
Call me crazy but I'm pretty sure crummy people have existed for a few millennia.
Right on. I worked at an Esso station in the early '70's, back when GM were known for loose alt. belts and undercharged batteries. Watched the ''mechanic'' spray paint the ''reman'' alternator, properly tighten the belt and charge the battery. Regular customer left with a lighter wallet and full of recommendations of the ''best'' shop in town. Saw starters get the same treatment.
 
haha that's frickin hilarious. I just did my battery for 55.88 plus tax. I don't want or need an "intelligent battery sensor".....
The sensor really just tells the car how to charge the battery. Nobody should have to spend $500 on a BMW battery. You can buy one from the dealer for $200, then using a BMW compatible bluetooth scan tool just reset the parameters for the battery, so the car knows the Ah rating of the battery and that a new battery has been installed. Dealers charging for "programming" a new battery is a scam.

The sensor must work pretty well, because my 2009 BMW still has a battery with a 2009 date code on it. I replaced the original battery in a friend's 2006 E90 just 2 years ago.
 
I just changed the Battery in the Malibu. The battery was 189 bucks plus tax and core for a Duralast Gold. I didn't have to do anything. I put it in and everything worked fine. It is a 97R/H5. You could get one for 99 bucks, but surprisingly, I have had good look with the Duralast Gold stuff. My last one lasted 9 years in the Trans Am. Had a 3 year warranty. Malibu's GM Battery made it 6 and half years. I will take it.

Could have been worse and they could have treated her better, but it sucks being stuck and not knowing much. When I was 19 was driving cross country in 1994 in a 1988 Dodge Daytona turbo. I really didn't know much about cars back then. My car overheated in Blue Earth, Minnesota. Small town but they had a Dodge Dealer. They replaced the water pump and timing belt next morning and charged me 126.00 bucks. The hotel employees baked us some cinnamon buns to take with us on the trip to Washington state. I like to think part of the kindness was that we were young and in the Navy, however I think they were just good people and I try to remember that when helping someone out. Left a lasting impression on a young man.
 
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