Dealer Maintenance Plan?

I just bought a 2020 SR and they offered a 6 year/85k mile maintenance plan to me for $900. Of course, we get the first 2 year/24k mile free, so this is really just 4 years of maintenance covered by the dealer. I've looked at the regularly scheduled maintenance and I'm trying to figure out if this will actually save me money. I do oil changes and simple stuff at home on my other cars, so it's really just bigger ticket items like transfer case, diff, transmission (maybe?) fluid changes.

Any opinions out there?

 

I just had my transfer case and front and rear diff fluid replacement. With an oil change it cost me $325 at the local oil changing place. Oil change for me is usually $85. So maybe this helps you do the math?

 

There’s also something called Toyota care plus that you can get with new vehicles. All maintenance covered first 4 years or 45000 miles. May be worth a price comparison

 

Transfer case and diff are not big ticket items. They are done less frequently and fluid costs less then oil change. They are also easier to do then oil.

 

What's the value of having "maintenance" done wrong by the dealership?

The stories of maintenance malfeasance are LEGEND.

I realize that is a broad brush. But the stories...............the stories..........oh my......the stories.

O.K. Me? I do all my own maintenance. Have since 1985. That's 35 years of peace of mind. There's just not that much of it to do on a Toyota. If you're not wrench minded.....then this board can coach you through it. There's just not that much to it. And the peace of mind. Oh my.....the peace of mind.

And now the lawyer part >>>> YMMV.

Thank you for letting me give you a piece of my mind.

 

If you trust the dealer (you can take the extended toyota care plus to any toyota dealer) then its a decent deal. I have had luck with local dealers so I typically do my maintenance there. The cost of the plan covers (with ToyoCare) oil changes, and all factory recommended maintenance for the prescribed time frame. Toyota care plus (regardless of duration) also covers some other things like a free (sure...) set of wipers, air filter, possibly battery (could be wrong there) and one free light bulb per location (can't replace the same bulb more than once, but each bulb gets up to one replacement) all during the prescribed time. I like it. But I also have had good experiences with my dealer service departments. If your plan is through the dealer themselves and not toyota, then I'm not helpful.

 

Thanks everybody for your input/experience. I think I'm pretty handy, but there's a lot of "routine" maintenance that I haven't done before.

In the end, I bought a Toyota (again) because of reliability. A lot of you have confirmed this based on your experience. If most maintenance is simple fluid and filter changes, I think I'll just do it myself.

 

This is not a warranty of any kind is it?

If not then where is the value in paying for Maintenance up front?

Seems like pure Gravy for the dealer to me.

 

No, the warranty is a separate issue (they offered 7 years/100K for $1,000). I was just trying to figure out if I would spend $900 in scheduled maintenance over the course of 4 years. I wouldn't pay the dealer to do oil changes, but I'm not sure what I'll pay for the other stuff between years 2 and 6 of ownership...

 

For the toyota care plus extensions, from what I have seen, if you actually do all the recommended factory maintenance for the time period, it ends up being cheaper to do than paying for it at the dealer each time you go for that same time period. It is a 'use it or lose it' thing though. It will expire at the end of the mileage or time even if you haven't used it all yet.

 

Is this transferable if the vehicle is sold? What happens of the vehicle is totaled in an accident or stolen and not recovered?

Personally, I would not go for a deal like this.

 

I think you can cancel and be pro rated... Don't quote me on that though.

 

Ya, it's pro-rated. The dealer said I would get my money back if I sold the vehicle before the 6 years/85k was up.

 

As I think abut this more, I realize that I typically do not use the dealer for maintenance. I either DIM (Do It Myself) or have a local mechanic I trust do it. He doesn't mind if I buy my own fluids/filters/etc.

Now, if it is a repair issue it usually goes back to the dealer as I rarely own or lease vehicles outside of warranty.

Extended warranties can be worth it, pre-paid maintenance, not so much IMO.

 

Check the owners manual. If they specify that the transfer case, diff, transmission fluid changes need to be done until 100,000, then they may not do it. Otherwise people can come in every 25,000 and ask for all those fluids to be changed. My guess is they will NOT do it before the owners manual specifies.