Help! After Trip to Stealership.....

[mkarns02]

Hi All:

I had a trip for a $29.95 oil and filter change at my local Jeep Stealership, so I took my '07 Liberty in yesterday.

I furnished my own oil/filter, so they just did the oil change and tire balancing/rotation.

After finishing their "29 Point Inspection" the service writer sit down w/me and said I needed front brakes/rotors; a ****** flush; front differential oil changed; brake fluid changed; power steering fluid changed; and "rear brakes serviced" (not sure what that means) to the tune of $659!!!!

My first statement was, "when I had this vehicle in three months ago for your $29.95 oil/filter change special I was told my transmission fluid looked nice and red with no odor meaning it had been recently changed."

The service writer just looked at the floor and didn't say anything.

My question is: can I use a turkey baster and suck all the fluid out of the power steering pump and master cylinder and replace it with new. Wait a couple of weeks and do the same thing? Will this replace most of the old fluids with new?

Is there any chance of air getting in to the brake lines if I "suck" out all of the old brake fluid out of the master cylinder and replace it with new if I don't touch the brake pedal inbetween?

Am I correct in believing the power steering takes transmission fluid and the master cylinder, DOT 3 fluid?

Thanks so much for your input, I see why people hate stealerships so much!

It's a pity how they try to rip their customers off every chance they get...

:help:

 

[tommudd]

You need to completely bleed the brakes ( bleeding each wheel ) to do it right
On the PS, yes it can be done that way, remove all you can, refill turn wheels back and forth, repeat, again and again

 

[LibertyTC]

Dealerships -They Just Want You To...
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This is why we try to do as much of our own maintenance as possible!
I use a Veterinary syringe with a rubber hose to suction out the PS Reservoir and refill with ATF+4.
Then run it it for a while and replenish again to get it nice & clean again.
It is good to keep the Jeep maintenance up to speed though.
Rear differential I do every 20k and add Mopar friction modifier, as I have a trac-lok.
Always refer to your owners manual for all fluid /lube specifications.
Diff & transfer case, I try to do every 40k to keep them in top shape.
It is a good idea to do the brake work if necessary, & do the Dot3 fluid bleed every few years.
The Hoat coolant should be flushed every 5 years.
I let the dealership do that, as they have the proper coolant & re-circulating machine.

 

[justjeeps]

A fluid pump / transfer pump would be helpful for all the above including doing your diffs.

Power steering pump oil is cheap...

I checked my local Jiffy lube for rad flush and they wanted $200 so I opted to go the long road and flush the rad out three times. twice with rad flush and once with distilled water before I put coolant back in.

 

[JasonJ]

Hi All:

I had a trip for a $29.95 oil and filter change at my local Jeep Stealership, so I took my '07 Liberty in yesterday.

I furnished my own oil/filter, so they just did the oil change and tire balancing/rotation.

After finishing their "29 Point Inspection" the service writer sit down w/me and said I needed front brakes/rotors; a ****** flush; front differential oil changed; brake fluid changed; power steering fluid changed; and "rear brakes serviced" (not sure what that means) to the tune of $659!!!!

My first statement was, "when I had this vehicle in three months ago for your $29.95 oil/filter change special I was told my transmission fluid looked nice and red with no odor meaning it had been recently changed."

The service writer just looked at the floor and didn't say anything.

My question is: can I use a turkey baster and suck all the fluid out of the power steering pump and master cylinder and replace it with new. Wait a couple of weeks and do the same thing? Will this replace most of the old fluids with new?

Is there any chance of air getting in to the brake lines if I "suck" out all of the old brake fluid out of the master cylinder and replace it with new if I don't touch the brake pedal inbetween?

Am I correct in believing the power steering takes transmission fluid and the master cylinder, DOT 3 fluid?

Thanks so much for your input, I see why people hate stealerships so much!

It's a pity how they try to rip their customers off every chance they get...

:help:

LOL.. I'm sorry bud.. first off, they were probably just recommending these services based on mileage and the fact that they had no service history for your vehicle showing that they were ever done. Not all technicians pull fluids to check first (although they should).

Second, as to price, everyone knows the dealer labor rate is higher than most, but not all private shops. That being said, just the fluid exchanges you mentioned, at the VW/Audi/Subaru/Mazda dealer I worked at, would have cost about $430 before tax.

Add in the cost to replace front pads and rotors, dealer labor time (about 1.6 hours), and $630 makes sense as a total number.

You can do these fluid changes yourself, obviously, and save a lot of cash. But a shockingly high number of people have no clue what state of matter transmission fluid is, let alone how to drain and fill it. Therefore, they will pay the people that do know.

It's not ripping you off if the price is reasonable for the parts and labor involved and it was actually necessary. That last part may be up to you now to determine.

Brake fluid, I'd extract what you can from the master cylinder without draining it dry, refill with new fluid, then follow brake bleeding procedures until all four corners run clean, topping off reservoir as you go.

PS fluid, yep, like you said. Suck, fill, turn wheels back and forth, suck, fill, etc.

Front and rear diffs are easy peasy; unbolt diff covers, draining fluid into a pan; scrape all gasket sealer off (if any), clean everything super good, replace diff cover and refill.

Transmission, you can do a pan drop, filter change, refill, that'll get some of the fluid, but not all, easily.

I believe you are correct on the fluid types, just be mindful of the TYPE of transmission fluid. It's not Dexron/Mercon, or Type F. You want ATF+3/ATF+4.

Good luck.

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

LOL.. I'm sorry bud.. first off, they were probably just recommending these services based on mileage and the fact that they had no service history for your vehicle showing that they were ever done. Not all technicians pull fluids to check first (although they should).

Second, as to price, everyone knows the dealer labor rate is higher than most, but not all private shops. That being said, just the fluid exchanges you mentioned, at the VW/Audi/Subaru/Mazda dealer I worked at, would have cost about $430 before tax.

Add in the cost to replace front pads and rotors, dealer labor time (about 1.6 hours), and $630 makes sense as a total number.

You can do these fluid changes yourself, obviously, and save a lot of cash. But a shockingly high number of people have no clue what state of matter transmission fluid is, let alone how to drain and fill it. Therefore, they will pay the people that do know.

It's not ripping you off if the price is reasonable for the parts and labor involved and it was actually necessary. That last part may be up to you now to determine.

Brake fluid, I'd extract what you can from the master cylinder without draining it dry, refill with new fluid, then follow brake bleeding procedures until all four corners run clean, topping off reservoir as you go.

PS fluid, yep, like you said. Suck, fill, turn wheels back and forth, suck, fill, etc.

Front and rear diffs are easy peasy; unbolt diff covers, draining fluid into a pan; scrape all gasket sealer off (if any), clean everything super good, replace diff cover and refill.

Transmission, you can do a pan drop, filter change, refill, that'll get some of the fluid, but not all, easily.

I believe you are correct on the fluid types, just be mindful of the TYPE of transmission fluid. It's not Dexron/Mercon, or Type F. You want ATF+3/ATF+4.

Good luck.

Great advice - just a couple of points of clarification....

The front diff is a bit different - the cover isn't removed to change the gear oil. There's a drain plug on the bottom (either an 8mm or 10mm Allen wrench) and a fill plug on the side (remove with the end of a a 3/8" ratchet extension.) The cover is blocked and can't be removed with the diff in the vehicle.

And for the ******, ONLY use ATF+4 - any other ATF is bad news for these trannies.

Bob

 

[Dave]

^^a lot of good info given here.


For your additional reference, your owners manual that came with your jeep has all the correct fluids listed and the change intervals for all maintenance along with a lot of other information. This is an additional help.


Dave

 

[JasonJ]

Great advice - just a couple of points of clarification....

The front diff is a bit different - the cover isn't removed to change the gear oil. There's a drain plug on the bottom (either an 8mm or 10mm Allen wrench) and a fill plug on the side (remove with the end of a a 3/8" ratchet extension.) The cover is blocked and can't be removed with the diff in the vehicle.

And for the ******, ONLY use ATF+4 - any other ATF is bad news for these trannies.

Bob

Thanks Bob... I didn't realize about the front diff as I didn't do mine myself- it was done by the dealer I worked for before I bought the Jeep, when it was still on a the used "car" lot.