Sadness!! 99 Camry Multipoint Inspection at Toyota Dealership.

[bootcamper]

So guys,
I took my 99 v6 LE in for a complete inspection and diagnostics at the dealership, and gosh you guys I feel like curd. They did a thorough check. Can you all pls help me in deciding a fair price and choose which is more important. I'm also quoting the dealership rates to get the job done.
Here's my list,
1) Change gasket & Reseal Oil Pan (Engine Oil Leaking) -$326.50 ( I knew of this issue alone.)
2) Replace Cracked Rubber Engine Mounts - $580.18
3) Replace Cracked Rubber Lower Control Arm Bushings (Wishbone bushings) - $998.12
4) Power Steering Flush & Refill - $89.95
5) Brake Flush & Refill - 95.00
6) Transmission Flush - $120.00
7) All four struts 2 rear/2front - $1449.61

I did a full service at 153K, it was a recommended major service which did a complete engine overhaul and full service. They took apart the whole car and stitched it back at the time, replaced a lot, took 3 days and cost a lot. But I did it for the sake of it. It cameback like brand new. Now at 157K, I took it back only for an oil change and to rotate my wheels. But this I did not expect all this with the economy as it is.

I feel Toyota Dealership service is Jack rabbitting me with that kind of charge.
( The original gasket for oil seal alone costs only $16, I don't know where the rest of 326.50 came from to seal a simple leak ??? )

I know, I need to take care of the oil leak as soon as possible. ( I just put 5 quarts of 10w-30 Pennzoil synthetic and the filter, which is now leaking slowly.)

Please you guys, tell me what is fair?, and what all can I do myself? Which is the best struts I could get? and model? What all do I need to pay immediate attention.
Thank you so much.

[n3rdifed]

i think these are the things you can do yourself with some help from a friend that knows how to do these kind of things:
gasket change
power steering and brake flush/refill
and the struts

ive never done a trans flush or engine mount stuff..
you could always go with oem struts again??
try the search button for that

[JCamry94]

First thing's first.

Check out www.google.com for searches on cheaper parts, mostly OEM for the gaskets, seals, control arm bushing, mounts, things of that nature.

See if any local auto shops or parts dealers carry the parts, and...

www.carpartswholesale.com have some decent toyota oem products as well.

Ebay is a nice place, but I'd do some good researching to make sure the parts you're getting there are legit.

The mod's and veteran toy guys can refer you to better places i'm sure

For Struts you have the option of upgrading to stiffer aftermarket or staying with the stock, OEM = Monroe, and aftermarkets are = KYB, and Tokicos. (the more well known)

As far as the prices you listed...
1) Change gasket & Reseal Oil Pan (Engine Oil Leaking) -$326.50 ( I knew of this issue alone.)
2) Replace Cracked Rubber Engine Mounts - $580.18
3) Replace Cracked Rubber Lower Control Arm Bushings (Wishbone bushings) - $998.12
4) Power Steering Flush & Refill - $89.95
5) Brake Flush & Refill - 95.00
6) Transmission Flush - $120.00
7) All four struts 2 rear/2front - $1449.61

None of the stuff you listed is worth getting fixed by them in anyway.

Use the search option and find DIY's on how to mash these things out on your own... There is A LOT of coverage on here for all of these different topics!

Other than that... head out to your local auto part's store, grab some fluids, dump pans, car jackstands, tools and whatever else you feel you would need to get your hands dirty, good luck man

[ShawnM]

First thing you can do is get a second opinion from another shop (dosent have to be a dealership). With the economy being down we have been seeing a lot of shops trying to push stuff thats not really needed. You may actually need all those things but as stated above you can probably do most yourself or at least take it somewhere that you wont get hammered with the dealer labor rates.

[Heat]

...5) Brake Flush & Refill - 95.00
...
7) All four struts 2 rear/2front - $1449.61...

The dealership will be charging high prices, definately check the prices at independent shops. My mechanic charges $45 for a brake flush & fill, and my mom had all four struts replaced on her (now mine) '95 LE for about $900 (included replacing a CV boot).

[TheKevin]

i have a mechanic that can do that for you at a pretty good rate. for example, he swapped in a newer/low mileage motor in my camry for $350. other mechanics and shops were asking $700-2000.

also, if you don't mind using parts from kragen, i get a pretty good discount from there.

where in san diego are you?

[Hajoca]

Labour Rate per hour should be posted at the shop.

[bootcamper]

THank you, all of you.

I think, Ive got to lookup each stuff up and do it myself. It will be a good lesson too. and fun. Got to find some help.

Mr.E , I just PMed you.

[BlueFusion6851]

Sounds reasonable to what it cost to fix things like that on my car when we had it... We paid 2000 for new struts, tires, balance and alignment.

And I would recommend using the O.E.M. TOYOTA parts, even if they are expensive, they always outlasted any cheap-o replacement part I got from a parts store.

[RichieRichJP]

Originally Posted by n3rdifed

ive never done a trans flush or engine mount stuff..

A machine has to do the flush so there's no way getting around that (if you HAVE to do it)

[davemac2]

Those are insane prices. You would be insane to go ahead with it.

Cracked wishbone control arm bushings (the rears) are very common in high mileage camrys. They have very little impact to actual noise or maintaining alignment as far as I can tell. Almost not even worth bother to fix those. From their quote, it sounds like they would just replace both lower control arms. If you really want to fix this, although I suggest you don't bother, you can buy replacement bushings for $20 from RockAuto and replace them yourself. You don't really need a press either; just a sawzall, maybe an air chisel, and a hammer. Ping me for the procedure if you do them.

As others have said, all these other things can be done at a non-dealer shop much cheaper. You have a high mileage vehicle. Don't waste any more money at a dealership. Any Joe blow mechanic can re-seal an oil pan. Labor should not be more than 2hrs for that I would think. Just buy the gasket sealant yourself and give it to them for the job, eg. Toyota FIPG or permatex 'right stuff'.

As for engine mounts, the dogbone and trans mounts are easy to do yourself. They are likely the ones cracked anyways since they are the smallest ones. If you don't notice any bad engine vibration or clunks when shifting gears, forget about them for now.

Shocks: Have they ever been done? If not, then at this mileage, it is a good idea to do them for sure. However, unless you notice suspension noises or soft ride, bottoming out on bumps, or excessive boucing, don't do them. New non-oem shocks will change the whole feel anyways. And definitely don't do these at the dealership because of labor rates.

Fluid flushes: don't think they are worth it really if the trans has had regular trans fluid drain and fills.

dave mc

[toyomoho]

Can you do any of the work yourself, are you pressed for money, can you learn how do auto repair work?

Test the struts by getting the suspension oscillating, the let go. The oscillation should stop in less then 2 cycles.

Change your own trans fluid. TN has numerous post on how to do this including pulling the return line of the trans cooler method.

Same with PS fluid just remove old fluid using a turkey baster and add new. Do this a number of times over a few drives and the fluid will again be clean.

Brake flush is easy. Just bleed the brakes while adding new fluid until clear fluid comes out. Do this with each line.

Engine mount issues are common and name brand after market parts are available.

You can buy the complete lower arm or just the bushings. This is not too bad of job provided the bolts holding the arm to the chassis are not frozen from rust.

Changing the oil pan gasket requires removing the exhaust pipe from the manifold. From there on it is an easy job.

Suggest buying a Haynes service manual for under $20 and reading up. Then buying whatever tools you will need.

There are many website such as rockauto that sell name brand after market parts at reasonable prices.

By doing the work yourself, you could save AT LEAST $2K.

[chullen]

Originally Posted by bootcamper

So guys,
I took my 99 v6 LE in for a complete inspection and diagnostics at the dealership, and gosh you guys I feel like curd. They did a thorough check. Can you all pls help me in deciding a fair price and choose which is more important. I'm also quoting the dealership rates to get the job done.
Here's my list,
1) Change gasket & Reseal Oil Pan (Engine Oil Leaking) -$326.50 ( I knew of this issue alone.)
2) Replace Cracked Rubber Engine Mounts - $580.18
3) Replace Cracked Rubber Lower Control Arm Bushings (Wishbone bushings) - $998.12
4) Power Steering Flush & Refill - $89.95
5) Brake Flush & Refill - 95.00
6) Transmission Flush - $120.00
7) All four struts 2 rear/2front - $1449.61



I did a full service at 153K, it was a recommended major service which did a complete engine overhaul and full service. They took apart the whole car and stitched it back at the time, replaced a lot, took 3 days and cost a lot. But I did it for the sake of it. It cameback like brand new. Now at 157K, I took it back only for an oil change and to rotate my wheels. But this I did not expect all this with the economy as it is.

I feel Toyota Dealership service is Jack rabbitting me with that kind of charge.
( The original gasket for oil seal alone costs only $16, I don't know where the rest of 326.50 came from to seal a simple leak ??? )

I know, I need to take care of the oil leak as soon as possible. ( I just put 5 quarts of 10w-30 Pennzoil synthetic and the filter, which is now leaking slowly.)

Please you guys, tell me what is fair?, and what all can I do myself? Which is the best struts I could get? and model? What all do I need to pay immediate attention.
Thank you so much.

As a tech, it seems like they are railroading you. If you did indeed do a full engine overhaul then the engine should not be leaking oil. I would be like what is up with it oil after just having a overhaul done. As for the motor mounts, I would only replace them if they have excess movement causing the engine to move around a lot. As for the wishbone bushings I would just replace the whole part not just the bushings. It may cost less in labor and save you a bit of money with newer parts on your car. The flushes are just preventative maitenence. Those you can live with or without. As for the struts, it seems a little high like 200 dollara high. It should be 4 hours labor and parts. The struts can be done yourself and I would get KYB GR2 as they work great. As for the lower control bushings you can do them but will still need a alignment after just like you will with the struts. If you still have oil leaking from your car they did a horrible job on the overhaul. The engine should have comeback not leaking any oil. I would try and get them to fix it for free since if I did it this would not happen

[MyFreeCamry]

Originally Posted by RichieRichJP

A machine has to do the flush so there's no way getting around that (if you HAVE to do it)

A machine does not have to do it. Sometimes those machines make it worse. The stealership is probably just saying basic maintenance on that tranny fluid change. Its as simply as dropping the tranny pan, replacign the filter, cleaning the pan out, replacing the gasket and putting the pan back on. Then refill with new trans fluid ofcourse. But a machine deffinently doesn't have to do it.

[CharmCityES]

Originally Posted by BlueFusion6851

Sounds reasonable to what it cost to fix things like that on my car when we had it... We paid 2000 for new struts, tires, balance and alignment.

And I would recommend using the O.E.M. TOYOTA parts, even if they are expensive, they always outlasted any cheap-o replacement part I got from a parts store.

agreed....i only use oem toyota parts on my car, right down to oil filters, ATF and coolant