Dealership maintained vehicles

[MaximaGuy]

I have sat in many of my friends vehicles and they service their vehicles exclusively at the dealerships.
The observation I made was these vehicles do drive very well inspite their age and miles on the odometter.
Do the techs do/know something that they do with these vehicles that is not on the public domain.? Like s/w updates, h/w tweeks, pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.

 

[raytseng]

Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.


huh? Every dealership will do pro-active maintenance for any customer that will pay for it, not just loyal ones.
Where they may cut a deal for "loyal" is some goodwill work for a warranty item that might just be out the coverage or something like that.
The only "loyalty" is to the $$$s behind the work order.

The correlation is more of someone who goes to the dealership is pretty much already in the mindset to do maintenance.

Those that don't go to the dealership are of the mindset to save money and that mindset may postpone or not do service, so problems that should've been taken care of are either ignored or left to get worse.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

I've ridden in a number of vehicles that have never been maintained by a dealer, and they rode and ran quite well despite their age.

And I own vehicles that have never been maintained by a dealer, and run/ride quite well despite their age.

There's nothing special about dealership maintenance.

 

[MCompact]

It's becoming nearly impossible for an indie shop to be proficient in servicing "all makes and models." As a result, having access to a dealer with a first-rate service department is a major plus. That said, like any other business there are great dealers and there are horrible dealers; my local BMW dealer is excellent, and as a result my fie and I are reluctant to stray from the Bavarian fold- although I would consider a Mazda, as I know of at least one dealer that has a first rate service department.

 

[SirTanon]

The trick is not whether or not the vehicle is maintained by the dealership...

.. it's whether or not the owner is proactive and diligent about keeping his/her vehicle well-maintained. This could also include an owner who does his own maintenance, or one who pays the dealership to do it.

 

[eljefino]

When I worked at a tire shop I noticed (from underneath) that there are either well-maintained vehicles or heaps with sloppy parts everywhere.

It was extremely rare for me to find "one problem" like a bad tie-rod end. But when I mentioned said problem, these people generally fixed the thing on-the-spot.

The clunker drivers took the long checkpoint list and ignored it. I don't kwow where they got inspection stickers-- they knew better to ask me.

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

Originally Posted By: raytseng
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.
Those that don't go to the dealership are of the mindset to save money and that mindset may postpone or not do service, so problems that should've been taken care of are either ignored or left to get worse.


Really disagree with you here. I don't make $125 per hour and I'm not paying Stealership labor rate to do simple maintenance items that a high school kid could do; like oil changes, brake work, tire rotations, fluid flushes, etc.

Do NOT confuse my refusal to pay stealership labor rates with inability to properly care for a vehicle. I maintain an Excel spreadsheet on my 3 vehicles and I can tell you every maintenance item performed since 2005. I'm sure there are many BITOGERS that are more sphincter retentive than I am.

And on the rare situation where I get stuck, I have an honest independent shop that charges about half the hourly stealership labor rate. Please don't stereotype or jump to conclusions. Every one is individual; and I CHOOSE to do my own maintenance...I could fill pages of nightmare stories of mechanical abuse at the hands of paid "grease monkeys."

I would counterclaim that a diligent owner will take the best care of his car. And BTW, I have several years worth of UOA reports on my vehicles. Try getting that from a dealer.

 

[Wolf359]

Yeah, I put over 200k on a car before the torque converter went and it wasn't worth fixing it anymore. Only went to the dealer 3 times in 12 years, once for warranty work, another for a key and the third for a recall. Too bad about the transmission too because I had done the brakes, suspension, front end, tires, etc. I always took it to indy mechanics and research problems online so I knew what to expect and what to do. Most cars comes with maintenance booklets and all you have to do is go by that schedule.

 

[gregk24]

It just has to do with the owners willingness to keep the vehicle maintained. If they DIY and use the correct spec fluids and parts, the vehicles would run just as well (if not better) than if they were cared for by the dealer.

 

[Chris142]

Originally Posted By: SirTanon
The trick is not whether or not the vehicle is maintained by the dealership...

.. it's whether or not the owner is proactive and diligent about keeping his/her vehicle well-maintained. This could also include an owner who does his own maintenance, or one who pays the dealership to do it.
this!

 

[jimbrewer]

Originally Posted By: Ihatetochangeoil
Originally Posted By: raytseng
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.
Those that don't go to the dealership are of the mindset to save money and that mindset may postpone or not do service, so problems that should've been taken care of are either ignored or left to get worse.


Really disagree with you here. I don't make $125 per hour and I'm not paying Stealership labor rate to do simple maintenance items that a high school kid could do; like oil changes, brake work, tire rotations, fluid flushes, etc.

Do NOT confuse my refusal to pay stealership labor rates with inability to properly care for a vehicle. I maintain an Excel spreadsheet on my 3 vehicles and I can tell you every maintenance item performed since 2005. I'm sure there are many BITOGERS that are more sphincter retentive than I am.

And on the rare situation where I get stuck, I have an honest independent shop that charges about half the hourly stealership labor rate. Please don't stereotype or jump to conclusions. Every one is individual; and I CHOOSE to do my own maintenance...I could fill pages of nightmare stories of mechanical abuse at the hands of paid "grease monkeys."

I would counterclaim that a diligent owner will take the best care of his car. And BTW, I have several years worth of UOA reports on my vehicles. Try getting that from a dealer.


Seems like an unremarkable observation to me.... People who take their car to the dealer are more likely to have checked the maintenance schedule in the manual for one thing. That puts them in the top 50% right there. They are unlikely to be of the mindset that maintenance begins and ends with an oil change. Move them up to the top 25%. They are likely to have a budget that includes the infrequent items.

Ford charges all of $39 to do the basic annual maintenance (for a low mileage driver) including tire rotation. Can't complain about the cost.

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: jimbrewer
Originally Posted By: Ihatetochangeoil
Originally Posted By: raytseng
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
pro-active maintainence done for loyal customers etc etc.
Those that don't go to the dealership are of the mindset to save money and that mindset may postpone or not do service, so problems that should've been taken care of are either ignored or left to get worse.


Really disagree with you here. I don't make $125 per hour and I'm not paying Stealership labor rate to do simple maintenance items that a high school kid could do; like oil changes, brake work, tire rotations, fluid flushes, etc.

Do NOT confuse my refusal to pay stealership labor rates with inability to properly care for a vehicle. I maintain an Excel spreadsheet on my 3 vehicles and I can tell you every maintenance item performed since 2005. I'm sure there are many BITOGERS that are more sphincter retentive than I am.

And on the rare situation where I get stuck, I have an honest independent shop that charges about half the hourly stealership labor rate. Please don't stereotype or jump to conclusions. Every one is individual; and I CHOOSE to do my own maintenance...I could fill pages of nightmare stories of mechanical abuse at the hands of paid "grease monkeys."

I would counterclaim that a diligent owner will take the best care of his car. And BTW, I have several years worth of UOA reports on my vehicles. Try getting that from a dealer.


Seems like an unremarkable observation to me.... People who take their car to the dealer are more likely to have checked the maintenance schedule in the manual for one thing. That puts them in the top 50% right there. They are unlikely to be of the mindset that maintenance begins and ends with an oil change. Move them up to the top 25%. They are likely to have a budget that includes the infrequent items.

Ford charges all of $39 to do the basic annual maintenance (for a low mileage driver) including tire rotation. Can't complain about the cost.



Yes- it ranges from what you stated to a high of $60.00ish dollars for most cars. This excludes Mercedes, Volvo, and the like. And your right-it's not a bad cost if one follows the OLM.

 

[Alex_V]

Originally Posted By: SirTanon
The trick is not whether or not the vehicle is maintained by the dealership...

.. it's whether or not the owner is proactive and diligent about keeping his/her vehicle well-maintained. This could also include an owner who does his own maintenance, or one who pays the dealership to do it.

X3!

 

[Ethan1]

Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
s/w updates, h/w tweeks, pro-active maintainence


You're probably on to something there. Re-programming has been used by OEMs to fix DI carbon build-up, erroneous HO2S codes, oil consumption, brake wear, transmission issues, battery drain, ABS performance, and any number of other issues. Independent shops are not likely to identify and implement these fixes. Dealerships are.

Of course, this will be an unpopular post on BITOG because the dealers are all evil and incompetent...

 

[gregk24]

Originally Posted By: Ethan1
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
s/w updates, h/w tweeks, pro-active maintainence


You're probably on to something there. Re-programming has been used by OEMs to fix DI carbon build-up, erroneous HO2S codes, oil consumption, brake wear, transmission issues, battery drain, ABS performance, and any number of other issues. Independent shops are not likely to identify and implement these fixes. Dealerships are.

Of course, this will be an unpopular post on BITOG because the dealers are all evil and incompetent...


This is true, the Jetta had a transmission software update at the first service (10K miles) that kept the T/C engaged when at a stop. Before the update it would lurch away from a stop making city driving less enjoyable.

 

[MaximaGuy]

A 2005 Odessey(170K) and a 95 4Runner (390K) are a few examples, both exclusively maintained by dealerships and they ride perfectly fine - in-fact very very good.

Maybe the dealerships do have something up their sleeves to prolong these vehicles beyond the 200K mark when many vehicles are sent off for a graceful death.

I am just lost, these dealerships are there to make money but then there are some extremely good dealerships, both these vehicle owners are extremely local to their dealerships.

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
A 2005 Odessey(170K) and a 95 4Runner (390K) are a few examples, both exclusively maintained by dealerships and they ride perfectly fine - in-fact very very good.

Maybe the dealerships do have something up their sleeves to prolong these vehicles beyond the 200K mark when many vehicles are sent off for a graceful death.

I am just lost, these dealerships are there to make money but then there are some extremely good dealerships, both these vehicle owners are extremely local to their dealerships.


I agree with you. However, this goes against the grain here on BITOG. And mean C'mon we have guys on here with a 12 year supply of oil simply because "it was cheap" (true fact). They are not going to pay dealers to maintain their vehicles.

 

[DrRoughneck]

I had the opposite experience with a dealership-maintained 2002 VW Golf. Over the 6 years I owned the car, it had a recurrence of identical problems, some of which were caused by poor craftmanship, others by negligence at the dealership. These include:
- headlight bulbs frying twice a year. I now suspect the dealership installed them with greasy fingers.
- stripped oil pan drain thread. Dealership pestered me because the drain plug had been over-tightened... well all oil changes were performed at the dealership since new. Didn't stop them from billing me $1,200 for a new oil pan, no discount.
- door weatherstripping sticking to doors in freezing temperature and tearing, every year. That's expensive
- 6 inch puddle of water below the back seat because sunroof leaks. Billed for repair twice. Still 6 inch puddle.
- various electrical problems.
- electric windows falling in the door once in a while. Never really fixed.

I now own a Toyota and take care of routine maintenance myself thanks to youtube tutorials. Zero trouble so far.
VW NEVER AGAIN!

To answer OP's question, dealership maintenance is no guarantee of good care.

Anyone with tools, youtube, the inclination to learn and use good judgement plus the incentive to do it right (as opposed to fast, pushed by boss) can do a better job than a dealership for most of the maintenance of an average car. I'm not talking about the fancy Porsches that need a dealership computer to read and reset codes on oil changes, I'm talking average Joe's automobile.

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: DrRoughneck
I had the opposite experience with a dealership-maintained 2002 VW Golf. Over the 6 years I owned the car, it had a recurrence of identical problems, some of which were caused by poor craftmanship, others by negligence at the dealership. These include:
- headlight bulbs frying twice a year. I now suspect the dealership installed them with greasy fingers.
- stripped oil pan drain thread. Dealership pestered me because the drain plug had been over-tightened... well all oil changes were performed at the dealership since new. Didn't stop them from billing me $1,200 for a new oil pan, no discount.
- door weatherstripping sticking to doors in freezing temperature and tearing, every year. That's expensive
- 6 inch puddle of water below the back seat because sunroof leaks. Billed for repair twice. Still 6 inch puddle.
- various electrical problems.
- electric windows falling in the door once in a while. Never really fixed.

I now own a Toyota and take care of routine maintenance myself thanks to youtube tutorials. Zero trouble so far.
VW NEVER AGAIN!

To answer OP's question, dealership maintenance is no guarantee of good care.

Anyone with tools, youtube, the inclination to learn and use good judgement plus the incentive to do it right (as opposed to fast, pushed by boss) can do a better job than a dealership for most of the maintenance of an average car. I'm not talking about the fancy Porsches that need a dealership computer to read and reset codes on oil changes, I'm talking average Joe's automobile.



With all due respect some of the problems you listed are inherent in owning a Volkswagen. For example-electrical problems on Volkswagens are unfortunately widespread and common. Weather stripping coming off are build issues (regardless of ambient temperature) and nothing more.

 

[02SE]

I worked in Dealerships and Independent shops, back in the day. There were Tech's at both who were conscientious and skilled, and those that may have had some ability, but didn't seem to care. I've seen unskilled or just uncaring Tech's cause more problems than they fix. It's truly a bit of a [censored] to find someone that is skilled and cares.

Taking a vehicle to a Dealer to be serviced, they will generally push every service they conceivably can. (and frequently some that are unnecessary..) But, at least the basics will be covered, which should leave the car well maintained, even if some superfluous 'services' might have been performed.