Your attitude is completely understandable because that's what dealers have been trying to convince people of for years. But please note that mere contemporaneous notes - which means that you wrote down what you did on the day that you did the work (and have the receipts for the fluids, etc) - are prima facie evidence that the work was done on that date. (Watch some more crime crap on TV or get a ticket and go to court. See the cop consulting his contemporaneous notes while on the stand. Those are the only notes that can be consulted in most jurisdictions.) It is up to Mitsu to prove that you are lying or your contemporaneous notes are sufficient to show that you met your side of the deal WRT the warranty.

Yes, I know that hearing this from some schmuck on the interwebs who doesn't have a JD (but does read a lot) will probably not tip the scales. But I had to say it anyway, because you're the only windmill that is currently available.

 

Hey Lando, if you are looking for a non-dealership that is good around.
Car Guy in Chandler. Guy that owns the place is named Gene. He works in the shop and he employs his mom and dad to run the front counter. He's always honest about everything and fully certified ASE.

Also, he rents a lift for $25/hr if you ever need one. He's on Chandler Blvd and Hamilton (near Arizona)

 

Paying $365.00 for fluid changes IS getting raped. I can change my motor oil, trans fluid and rear diff fluid for about $150 - That consists of using AMS Oil & Redline 'cocktail' mix. There are PLENTY of DIY's over this forum when it comes to changing your fluids. So, as i previously stated: Paying $365.00 is getting raped.

 

Since you know all about the business side of cars, perhaps you can remind us all which division of a dealership, sales vs service vs what-ever, has a widest profit margin.

 

How about we just agree that by doing it your self you can cut the cost by half...no need to argue. Doing a scheduled maintenance yourself at its scheduled service interval does not void the warranty but I can understand and sppreciate the fact that the OP feels more comfortable paying the fee, however I would assume that many members of the fourm wouldn't pay that price and would prefer doing it themselves for less than $200. So in comparison that individual would feel as if he had paid too much, which I would agree. $150 < $360....

And I would agree with Iowa...the service department does indeed have the highest profit margin. If your uncertain try calling the dealership about a simple spark plug change....

 

DIY Motor Oil Change:
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...nge-evo-x.html

DIY Transmission Fluid Change:
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...ed-manual.html

If you lack basic mechanical skills & basic research skills. Then by all means, take you care to the dealership.

Dandbest: I'm not even gonna comment back to your rant, because you don't even have the slighest clue of what you're talking about.

 

MadboostEvo,

I have to agree 100% with Dandbest. My question was basically is that price fair coming from a MECHANIC standpoint. Of course doing your own maintenance is cheaper than paying someone to do it. Building your own house, cooking your own dinner and making your own clothes are cheaper as well. The Blade said that I could rent a lift for about $25/hour. When you look at it from a price standpoint, for an OIL CHANGE, I could buy all the items needed and get the lift and all that stuff + gas to drive out the the place would run me about $83-$85 (5 qts oil, oil filter, plug, gas $, and lift rental) where the dealership charges about $92. Other places probably charge less than the stealership so I would be (in reality) paying the same price to do it myself as I would to have a shop do it. No matter, I'm calling my regular mechanic today to get a quote on how much they will charge for it. I'll let you guys know what the diff is.

 

My point is: Why not save $100 or so, by doing it yourself. A lift is not needed to change your fluids.

You want to take a look at cost pricing for motor oil change:

Mobil1 Synthetic 5W-30 5.1 quarts = $36.99
Mitsubishi OEM Oil Filter = $4.85
Shop Towell Roll = $2.49
Latex disposable gloves (Bag of ten) = $1.49
Oil Funnel = $0.99
Oil Filter Wrench = $4.99
Oil Drain Pan = $4.59
Gas = $10 (This consists of about 40/50 miles of driving)
Total with 6% tax (Since I live in Michigan) = $69.77


From your $100 estimate, you are saving $30.23 on an oil change which includes buying all the items to do it and paying for your gas. The next time you'll do it, you'll save even more money because we can theoratically take the shop towels, golves, oil funnel, oil filter wrench and oil drain pan out of the equation.

If you'd like I can break down the cost pricing for the transmission and the rear diff.

Again my point is, by doing basic maintenance on your car, on your own...the potential savings could be worth it vs having a dealership work on it.

 

Wow how sad is it when you can buy synthetic products that are 200% better quality than OEM for more than less than half the cost the Stealerships charges

 

Well, than the stealership is the place for you. End of story.

 

am i the only one who would STILL do the maintenance myself even if the price was the same or less for a shop to do it? DO IT YOURSELF AND KNOW ITS DONE RIGHT!