2004 Sonata; 60,000 mile maintenance

Timing belt seems not so bad with what has been posted here in the past, but the other prices seem high. Especially $130 for coolant. If all they are doing is drain and flush, it should be FAR less as the coolant is about $6 a gallon. Are they putting on new hoses?.

Never having changed the plugs on that car I can't say how difficult it may be, but a plug is $4, a wire is $8, or $72 to $85 in parts. Is it required at 60k? Many are now changed at 100k for normal maintenance. Check the manual.

If your local guy does the work, it has no affect on warranty coverage. Check his prices and you may save a bundle. How important is saving $300 or so?

My mechanic told me he could do the plugs and wires for $275. But, while I'm having the dealer do all this other work, I figure just let them do it all at once. It saves me a day of the car in another shop.

And yes, the plugs need changing after 60,000 miles. They don't call for the wires to be done, but while they have it all apart, I figure just change them now to save hassles down the road.

I know the prices are high compared to what I can do them for myself, if I was able. And I also know that dealers are more expensive than my local mechanic. But I really don't want to mess with the 100k warranty. If the dealer does the work, it's documented and they have fewer questions about repairs. If my local mechanic did repairs, they would want the receipts and would probably question if he used the right fluids and did the repairs correctly.

Either way, I figure this is basically it for this car. At 90K, it will need tranny and coolant flush but after that I will probably have a new car. So not a lot of future maintenance coming up.

I almost bought a new car now. This Sonata is paid off and I was really debating either buying a new car or putting money into this one. But this car has been SO reliable compared to ALL the other new cars I've bought, I figure I'll get another 30k out of it with little expense.

The only other thing I'll need now is a new battery. But my son can put that in for me, it's pretty simple. Believe it or not, it still has the original factory battery. I got 5 years and 3 months out of it and I figure that's pushing it. The cost of a new battery is cheap compared to being stuck with a dead battery. Something to consider is this is basically my wife's car. She drives it 80% of the time, so I want to keep it running as good as possible so she has no problems, thus causing ME problems. : )

Read your owners manual Brian - you in no way jeopardize your warranty by having your local mechanic do the work. You could do the work yourself and not place your warranty in any peril. Hyundai does not require the dealer do the work, only that it be done and that it be done with genuine Hyundai parts.

You are correct that they would want receipts and they do want genuine Hyundai parts, but that's no big deal. Do not count on a dealer's records to document that you had the work done. You'd still want to keep that receipt. Do not count on dealers all using the proper fluids either. Of course if they don't you can go back on them, but you're still dealing with the problem. Using your local mechanic is quite simple - tell him what parts/fluids he has to use and that's it.

Isn't is almost crazy how reliable these cars are?

For the price, yes it is. The problem for me is I live in the metro Detroit area and have many friends/neighbors who have lost their jobs in the auto industry. Back in 2004 when I bought my Hyundai, things weren't quite as bad. But I guess I have to do what's right for my family and for the quality and price, this Sonata can't be beat by the American car companies, even though they are getting better, quality wise.

Brian

I don't believe they can require you to use genuine Hyundai parts. Any part that meets the Hyundai specifications is allowed. I'm trying to remember the Act that addressed this, but the name escapes me at the moment.

Matt

With help from Google:

Check to see that the battery is simple. Some cars need a lot of re-programming of stuff once poer is lost, radio anti-theft codes, etc. On my Buick (battery is under the back seat) they put a 12V plug in the lighter to keep power to everything while the battery was swapped out.

Advance Auto does the battery thing for free so check them and some other shops out for that service.

That I understand. Very well.

Hello all;

Just keeping up with the group, been offline awhile and this thread got my attention. The plugs/wires are easy enough to do yourself, the timing belt is cheap in comparison to other vehicles. Just did it on my 1996 Infiniti- $900, but that included the belt, tstat, w/p, bypass hoses and t/b hydraulic tensioner. I'll do the idlers and camshaft seals next 60k service. It wasn't due til 105k, (has 62k) but it's an interference engine that was used in the 300ZX. A little insurance although the car's been in AZ for only 3 years.

The manual says 60k miles on the tranny fluid and the coolant. The coolant price seems high to me (Infiniti charged me $27), but the tranny flush is inline with what my dealer charges, which is due on my

08 Sonata (35k) only due to the heat of AZ and much like others in the group, I wanna keep my cars running forever, except for cash for clunkers may hamper that because no parts will be available.I'll do the coolant myself at 60k.

We're done with car payments, 4 more years to go on the Hyundai and the Infiniti will be done in December. Just my dos centavos....

Hope all is well with you all....

Steve in AZ

I recall that as well Matt, but I don't know if there is some loop hole that allows a manufacturer to specify their parts.

I've been told it you do not use a Hyundai (oem) timing belt and it breaks, then Hyundai will not fix the damage caused by the pistons and the valves smashing each other

I believe they would be on very shaky legal ground as long as the belt was from a reputable manufacturer such as Gates, etc.

Matt

I don't see where Hyundai would have any liability. If a third party belt causes damage it should be the responsibility of the belt maker to cover subsequent damage.

If you use a Gates (or other third party) timing belt and an oxygen sensor goes bad, they are not related so the warranty will still apply. If you buy a tool from Sears and it breaks, do you expect JC Penny to make good on it?

This is the real issue, Ed. Hyundai warrants *their* timing belt 10 years/100,000 miles, as long as it's replaced as specified in the owner's manual. If it's someone else's belt, they're no longer responsible for the quality (or lack thereof) of the belt. Same thing if you change your oil with someone else's product. If their oil filter o-ring takes a dump-- I've seen this, too-- Hyundai is not responsible. What's worse, I know of no aftermarket company willing to even consider covering consequential damage warranties.

I agree if it was truly the belt that was at fault. However, if a pulley went bad and caused the belt to fail, then Hyundai should cover the full cost of repairs, including that of the belt.

However, the fact that the belt broke doesn't mean that the belt was the root cause of the problem.

Matt

All you have to do is prove it. For the difference in price, I'd pay for the Hyundai belt while in warranty. I'm not a fan of OEM prices, but in this case, it makes sense.