While enjoying our new Sienna LE, I wonder when it comes to service and parts (gives me a shiver when it comes to it) is it that one dealer does it better than the other in the same area? Is one nicer, or better in any way?
Whne something is serviced under warranty is it hassle to get it fixed? Do we (owners of the car) have to pay 'something' even if its serviced under warranty?
Does scheduled have to be done at a (certified) Toyota service station or at any mechanic?
The manufacturer warranty service (for example, usually 36 months or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first) can be performed by any Toyota dealer regardless of where you purchased the car (within the country of purchase).
The dealer is reimbursed for the cost of warranty repairs by Toyota, but the reimbursement amount (per hour of labor) is less than the dealer gets for non-warranty work, so they are a little grumpy if you didn't purchase your car from the dealer who is doing the warranty repair (unless it is obvious you have moved and it is too far to go to the original dealer). However, even though they may be grumpy about it, all Toyota dealers are required by Toyota to perform warranty repairs even if the car was purchased somewhere else.
There is no charge for the original manufacturers warranty service. If you purchase an extended warranty, there may be a deductible amount before the warranty kicks in.
All original manufacturer warranty service must be done at a Toyota dealer, unless there is some special arrangement in very remote areas where there are no Toyota dealers (just speculating here).
Not true. Toyota reimburses the dealer for warranty labor at the dealer's retail customer pay labor rate. In most states, this is the law.
The difference between warranty and customer pay labor is not so much in the labor rate but in the amount of time allotted for an operation. For example, Toyota's warranty manual may reimburse a dealer 1 flat rate hour to diagnose, remove, and replace a widget but the dealer might customarily charge 1.5 flat rate hours to replace the widget. The warranty flat rate time is supposed to be the time it takes an average technician to get tools and parts, diagnose the problem, repair the problem, and record his work. In the case of Toyota, this time is pretty close to actual time, with little or no margin of error. Dealers may grumble that the warranty flat rate time is not enough, but even I can meet or beat warranty flat rate time, and I don't work on cars every day. The retail flat rate manuals that dealers usually use allow more time to deal with rusted bolts and to allow more of a margin of error.
However,
Correct.
There is no "special arrangement" for remote areas. In the case of an emergency repair where no Toyota dealer is located within a reasonable distance and you have to pay to have the work done, you can bring your receipt to a Toyota dealer and they can file a warranty claim to reimburse you for the work. The catch is, you have to show them the defective parts, the replacement parts must be genuine Toyota parts, the labor amount must be reasonable for the work done and the location where it was done, and you will not get reimbursed until the dealer gets reimbursed by the factory, usually 15-30 days.
OK, you got me on a technicality, but the result is the same as I said. Dealers make more money on non-warranty repairs than on warranty repairs. But they must perform warranty repairs as a condition of being a Toyota dealer.
To answer the original question, when looking for a dealer to service your car, look for one that has Toyota's Service Excellence Award or President's Award displayed in the service department or in the showroom. The President's Award is a clear crystal globe.
True. Even so, a smart service department will try to perform quality repairs when doing warranty work while trying to make the customer happy so that they can gain the customer's business when it is time for customer pay work or when the customer shops for a another car.
You shouldn't have to pay anything for warranty repairs at a Toyota dealer-- and you can have your scheduled maintenance done anywhere-- even yourself if you like changing oil and oil filters, etc.
One thing to watch out for at dealers though, they recommended and will sell/perform more service than you need. For example, they'll tell you need to change your oil every 3500 miles (you don't), change your transmission fluid way too often, do a special fuel injector cleaning process (not needed unless they're clogged), etc. The minimum service your car needs is printed in the maintenance schedule that came with the car. Follow it and you'll be fine.
Performing extra service won't hurt your car-- just your wallet;-)
Toyota does not publish dealer ratings although dealers usually advertise the awards they have received. The best way to confirm is to see the award hanging somewhere in the service department or in the showroom.
The a assertion that ANY dealer, for ANY manufacture, is reimbursed for warranty work at a lesser rate than is charge for non warranty works is a common belief. What you suggest is not only untrue, it is illegal, under franchise law. Hourly reimbursement rates are based on the hourly rate charged to customers and it is reviewed quarterly. Parts reimbursement is lower than parts sold to customers but it is the same rate that is charged to other repair facilities.
Scheduled preventive maintenance can be completed at any facility of the vehicle owners choosing. If you read your warranty manual you will discover automobiles are warranted to the dealer NOT the customer, so it must to completed at a dealership or authorized facility. As to which dealer does the work, all manufactures warranties require the work be completed at the SELLING dealership if it was purchased within a reasonably mileage from your residence, usually 50 miles, unless the vehicle is disabled or the purchaser has moved since purchasing the vehicle.
While none selling dealers are encouraged to perform warranty work, as a convince to buyer who purchased there vehicle elsewhere, they are not required to do so, as long as the vehicle can legally and safely be driven. They can do so at their convince, after taking care of their own customers.
Warranty service can be done away from a dealership but it must be authorized by the manufacture. I.E. Glass shops, transmission shops, alignment shops, etc. and shops like ours that do pre delivery work, maintenance and repairs for fleet vehicles are authorized to do warranty work for all manufactories and are paid directly buy the manufactures
Our hourly reimbursement rate is higher than most dealerships because our hourly rate is higher than most dealership. We are reimbursed for the parts at a discount but the local dealers, through whom the parts must be ordered, earns a profit paid by the manufacture.
Such awards don't mean a thing. My folks bought a Pontiac from a GM dealer that had received awards for outstanding service. But the quality of the service at this dealer was beyond horrible. I guess the opinions of the consumers don't matter.
I am not aware of the criteria Pontiac uses to give service awards. Toyota requires a high customer satisfaction index, determined by customer responses to surveys mailed to customers after warranty repairs and to new car buyers as one of the criteria for the award. Additionally, for Toyota's Service Excellence Award, the dealer must also have a complete inventory of special service tools, factory service manuals, have a Toyota Master Certified Technician (Passed all 8 ASE Certifications plus pass every technical course offered by Toyota plus 5+ years of experience at a Toyota dealer), complete warranty repairs in a certain amount of time, & have adequate facilities and equipment to service vehicles
Sure. Some do a much better job than others. It's more a function of personality than the actual service, in many cases. For example, you can have a perceived bad experience because of the way you think the service writer is treating you, the guys twisting the wrenches might be doing the exact same service, but since the guy you are working with is a s*****ad, you perceive the service as bad. Of course, some technicians are simply better than others, and the guy twisting the wrenches can be much different.
As a general rule, the warranty repair is free, but there can be other repairs at the same time that are billed. I actually took a car in for a service that was billable, and they did a warranty repair at the same time for free. I lost a couple of days of use for the warranty work because they needed something they didn't have on hand, but I got a repair done free that I didn't even know I needed.
This depends on which state you live in. Some states demand that the automakers not require service at their dealerships. All you need is a receipt that the service interval items were in fact serviced as required by the interval in question.
That is basically the same with ALL manufactures. It is the dealers customer that make the determination of awards to dealerships.
Manufactures want their dealers to win those awards and pays dealers handsomely when they do. It is the dealer that sell the vehicles, not the manufactures.
Exactly right...I'd never buy a Dodge again after running afoul of the service manager at Summerside Chrysler Dodge...arrogant prick that he is. The SOB cost me $3,000 unecessarily and I will walk before buying even a split-pin from them again.
Perhaps but the Kia guy down the road must be pretty good, he has a number of small Toyotas on his used car lot. After all a comparable Kia is 20% less expensive to drive home LOL
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