[tron9901]

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

 

[alanwagen]

I wouldn't do it but that's a good price for the battery and oil change.

 

[RideAlong205]

7,000 miles a year?
Hey not bad. You got pics of your car?

 

[tron9901]

7,000 miles a year?
Hey not bad. You got pics of your car?

Haha no pics sorry. Covid is the primary reason for the low mileage. In March 2020 when the pandemic started I was told I can work from home full time 5 days a week. And I've been doing that for the last 3 years.

 

[Knife collector]

I think Toyota say first engine coolant change is 100,000 miles or 10 years. Transmission fluid is 60,000 or 6 years if towing or a lot of intown slow driving. Brake fluid can be tested, but I think most people change around 5 years as it adsorbs moisture.

 

[98CamryLE]

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

It doesn't matter what the dealer tells you. What matters is what's outlined in the owner's manual/maintenance guide. Many (most?) dealerships constantly upsell you stuff- many urge you to do things that they describe as very urgent... or as your dealer described as turning your car into a "ticking time bomb". Nope, sorry, hard pass. Any dealer that uses that type of language for this type of stuff is just trying to scare you into agreeing to additional services and thus profit for the dealer.

Here's a link to the maintenance guide for a 2018 Camry: https://assets.sia.toyota.com/publications/en/omms-s/T-MMS-18Camry/pdf/T-MMS-18Camry.pdf

Unless they can identify a problem/leak/issue, go by the maintenance guide.

 

[NameofUser]

Toyota doesn’t list a brake fluid change interval.
YET Lexus lists a brake fluid change interval as does Honda, Nissan, VW, Benz, BMW, VW, …

Brake fluid needs to be flushed due to moisture absorption. Every 2 yes, 3 yes, 5yrs, etc. Sure one can use test strips to test at the bleeder valves at the brake rotors/drums. But brake fluid is CEAP. Might as well just change it.

Coolant should be a simple drain & fill, as long as you are sticking to a regular schedule and not neglecting the coolant change interval. Nflusing NOT needed, unless rust/neglect.

 

[kr282828]

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

My 2021 Se has 103K, Nothing changed yet! Ill do tranny at 150K, Antifreeze at water pump change. Brake fluid..... Never! Lol

 

[McCarthy1986]

Do it yourself on a weekend. YouTube has all the videos to learn it. I change the trans fluid, coolant and break fluid every 50k miles and the oil ever 5k miles, so they happen on the same day and I only have to jack the cars once.

Oil is $35
Filter is $8
Coolant is $25
Break fluid $20
Trans fluid is $30

That's $118 compared to the $617 your scammer dealership is trying to charge.

I did it just today and saved several hundred dollars.

 

[Luftmasse]

Interesting, the schedule maintenance states replace coolant at 100k miles and transmission at 60k miles. No flush necessary either. I would point that out to them and see what is their rationale behind it.

 

[McCarthy1986]

Why waste the time arguing with a dealership or shop that has one main goal: making profit. You will not gain anything from it. Time is money, stress kills your health. Do it yourself or find a trustworthy mechanic.

By the way, in many cases the difference between a transmission that lasts 150k miles or 300k miles, is, you guessed it... frequent fluid changes.

Change intervals suggested by manufacturers are (also) based on marketing claims, emissions regulations, and especially planned product obsolescence. No brand wants a vehicle to last "forever" anymore, not even Toyota, they would make less profit and succumb to the competition that sells a new car to the customer every few years.

I used to work for Benz, in R&D. There is a reason why Benz used to be super reliable up into the 90s, and why this changed.

Change your oil every 5k miles, and your trans fluid every 50k miles. You will thank me later, if you keep your car long enough.

 

[Old Mechanic]

I would suggest you change brake fluid on a regular basis, we had them do the wife's 2016 Rogue at 60k miles. Seen a lot of ABS module failures recently including on my 98 Sienna, when I bought it. No pressure to the right front caliper, traced it back to the module, $1800 from the dealer for a new one. Got a used one from Southern California. Had that van 6 years and no other ABS module issues. With the advent of ABS I think brake fluid flushes should be every 5-6 years. Mercedes used to recommend it every two years, in the spring, when humidity was low, but that was long before the advent of ABS systems.

 

[delucat2]

brake fluid every 3-4 years. not mileage based. very worth it.

 

[2VZ-FE]

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

Coolant is "lifetime", something I actually believe.
Brake Fluid Flush, if it was a VW, you would have missed 2 flushes already (3 years initial, then every 2 years after, regardless of mileage).
Transmission fluid flush: Is it really a flush or is it a drain and refill? Toyota doesn't really claim a maintenance interval, but other manufacturers that use a similar Aisin transmission do claim maintenance intervals, since Toyota-WS is not a lifetime fluid.

 

[hotajax]

Toyota doesn’t list a brake fluid change interval.
YET Lexus lists a brake fluid change interval as does Honda, Nissan, VW, Benz, BMW, VW, …

Brake fluid needs to be flushed due to moisture absorption. Every 2 yes, 3 yes, 5yrs, etc. Sure one can use test strips to test at the bleeder valves at the brake rotors/drums. But brake fluid is CEAP. Might as well just change it.

Coolant should be a simple drain & fill, as long as you are sticking to a regular schedule and not neglecting the coolant change interval. Nflusing NOT needed, unless rust/neglect.

th
That's correct. I have a Tacoma with 321,000 miles. I change coolant every 50 K (Only the first goes for 100 K). I dump the old, and in with new pre-mix. Simple.

 

[Skinny guy]

 

[McCarthy1986]

Coolant is "lifetime", something I actually believe.
Brake Fluid Flush, if it was a VW, you would have missed 2 flushes already (3 years initial, then every 2 years after, regardless of mileage).
Transmission fluid flush: Is it really a flush or is it a drain and refill? Toyota doesn't really claim a maintenance interval, but other manufacturers that use a similar Aisin transmission do claim maintenance intervals, since Toyota-WS is not a lifetime fluid.

Coolant doesn't last for the life of an engine or vehicle.

Much like engine oil, coolant contains additives, such as corrosion inhibitors, lubricants, anti-foaming agents, etc. Those additives deteriorate due to the constant heat cycles and mechanical wear in the water pump.

When I worked for Benz in R&D, we tested all our engines on test stands for long periods of time, computer controlled, simulating the wear of an entire lifespan. All the fluids are sent to our internal lab for analysis. The results are used to specify API (for oil) and ASTM (for coolant) requirements and standards in order to meet our defined goals, as well as maintenance guidelines for shop repair manuals, and owner manuals.

There is no such thing as lifetime coolant outside marking claims. If you are planning to keep your drivetrain going for as long as possible, 3 factors have a huge impact:

1. Life time engine RPM (driving in lower vs higher gears, hard accelerations vs slow accelerations, idling)
2. Total engine load (hard accelerations vs slow accelerations, trailering or heavy payload, city vs highway driving, extreme weather conditions)
3. Replacing motor oil, trans fluid and coolant on a regular basis because all of them get contaminated and the additives break down due to time, heat cycles and mechanical wear.


PS: This was my place of work:

 

[lmacmil]

It doesn't matter what the dealer tells you. What matters is what's outlined in the owner's manual/maintenance guide.

In my experience, the dealer that sold you the car is less likely to pull that "you need this, you need that" crap than a dealer you've never been to. I was on vacation in Florida a few years ago and went to the local Toyota dealer for an oil change. At the time, my 2005 had about 70,000 miles on it. After sitting in the waiting room for 45 minutes (more than enough time to do the oil change), I tech came out with a list of $700 worth of work that had to be done. I told him just do the oil change and that's it. I drove the car another 20,000+ plus miles and never had an issue. I think they looked at my gray hair and figured I'd follow their recommendations. But as a retired automotive engineer, I knew better.

 

[Waltern]

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

2018 SE 4cyl 2.5L, purchased August 2017. 43K miles.

Yesterday I was at a Toyota dealership for a OW-16 oil change ($54.95) and a TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed).

The "service consultant" tells me that since I've never flushed any of the original fluids, that my car is a ticking time-bomb and I needed the following maintenance services done immediately:
Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95
Coolant Flush: $165.95
Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95

Even though my car is going on 6 years old, with low mileage at 43K I think it's way too early for any of these fluid flushes. Can someone confirm at what mileage is it time to flush these fluids? Thanks.

*0W-16 oil change ($54.95) - That is a very good Price. I change mine every 5k.
*TrueStart battery ($154.99 installed). - If it is testing bad or weak replace it, that is a very good price.
*Brake Fluid Flush: $169.95 - No IMHO.
*Coolant Flush: $165.95 - No IMHO.
*Transmission Fluid Flush: $225.95 - No IMHO, unless you're towing.
The "service consultant" tells you your car is a ticking time-bomb...? Maybe he used to work at Ford? He needs to be reported or at the very least, completely ignored and it's time to find another dealership.

 

[mr2tim]

McCarthey gets gets the "atta boy" award for having the wuthoosva to take on the easy tasks and save money for more needed items in life.

If an advisor tried scare tactics on me I would use my personal scare tactics on him/her right there in the service bay. Some people learn by public embarrassment, others are way too ignorant.