Maintenance records

Suppose those who have the dealer stamp thier book won't apply... but who does & who doesn't write date and mileage down for every motor & gear oil change, tire rotation/change, spark plug, air/oil/cabin/fuel filter changes, and modification done?

 

Even though I know a guy who "didn't believe in oil changes" and yet Toyota replaced his Sienna engine when it scrapped due to sludge.

As for tires, the stock tires are crap, as they are on all cars, and don't last long anyhow and you aren't going to see much of a warranty claim after a year or two.

 

I planned on doing that since we have the nice book and all, but I think I did it once and forgot about it.

I usually keep track of it in my gas mileage spread sheet though. It's just easier to have it in one place.

 

I keep receipts for anythign other than oil/lube.

I don't write anything down... future buyers trust me when they see how clean my vehicles are. Most people won't even have a mechanic check out the vehicle even tough i lways recommend it to them.

 

My last truck had 188,000 miles on it when I sold it. I bought it at 25,000. I had a spreadsheet that had everything that was ever done to the truck with dates and mileage. The spreadsheet was almost two pages long. Also, I had every receipt for everything that was ever done on the truck. With a spreadsheet keeping track of things is easy.

 

I don't write things down, but I do save receipts.

 

I save the dealership receipts, plus add on's.
I keep everything in a plastic file folder in the garage, along with all the booklets and receipts of power tools etc.
Funny thing is when I had my last truck, (Tundra) I was told to keep everything the dealership gave me.
When I traded it in on the Tacoma, I gave them the paperwork, he in-turn threw it in the trash, and stated "doesn't mean anything".
Who knows?

 

I keep what receipts I remember to keep but I track my maintenance on a couple of sites:

http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/

http://mpgtune.com/index.php

 

Uh, I can actually say that this is untrue. Speaking with my dad's friend from Goodyear, nothing but the finest tires are marketed towards new vehicles (in terms of quality control standpoint). The next grade down starts entering into the tire shops. The tire company needs to maintain a good reputation with the car dealership, and also display to the customer that they 'need' to continue buying the same tire. Whether or not the dealership goes with the tire is another story.


No joke, I saw a guy bring his mercedes into the local tire store and demand the factory tires because they were rated for 180MPH - when's the last time he needed that in OREGON?? He turned down all the Z-rated tires in the shop because they were only approved for 150. Anywho, the customer was convinced his factory tires were superior to all others.

 

I don't really care what you say the dealers get. Read up about the stock tires on here, Toyotanation, and any other Tacoma forum you can find. You'll see the same thing: the stock tires suck. They may work for paved roads and even a little dirt, but as soon as they hit light snow they become worthless. Tread packs full, doesn't clear out, and turns the truck into a 2-ton ice skate. I had my tires for 8,000 miles and swapped them out. My Kumho Road Venture AT's had more tread at 20k than my stock tires did new.

 

Write down date,miles for any maint.or mods.Keep papers in a folder.

 

My Rugged Fails are almost shot with 30K miles. My Mom got almost 70K out of her Michelin LTX M/S on Her Sequioa.

The Rugged Fails and Donflops that comes on these trucks suck.

 

I keep all records, including Gas receipts. While I have peace of mind, It's hard to tell who cares about them going forward. I see that it depends on both the type of car, and the future buyer.

I recently sold my Porsche, and that type of buyer will go through the records at a detail level. The more records the better (hence the keeping of gas receipts ;~) .

I also just sold my 2004 Tacoma, and they buyer couldn't care less, though did like that I had them, Someone here said because he kept his truck clean that made all the difference, I would agree with that. My 2004 was a little beat up from previous owner, but mechanically had been taken care of. When I sold it, what really sold it was that under the hood was spotless. I made a point of showing the detail when prospective buyers came to look.

One lister describes that the dealer threw the records in the trash, that doesn't suprise me. Unless its a German dealership I would say the same. The Toyota dealers don't even check to see that you had it serviced.

Cars are commodities to them, that would be the same for purchasing options, Unless you got to have them for some reason, don't bother optioning the car or truck out, you won't get it out of it when you trade or sell it.

JMO,
Mike M

08 Access Cab SR5
Silver Streak.

 

I can definitely say this is untrue. The Dunslops are the worst tires I've ever owned which is why they're sitting in my garage and not on my truck after only 7000 miles. There's a reason why they sell for $75 and are rated by consumers like me 65th out of 66 H/T tires: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surve...dth=245/&ratio=75&diameter=16&tireSearch=true

 

As far as factory tires, many manufactures setup their suspension tuning for a particular tire /model in mind, especially if it is their performance vehicle.
Most others, its the best price they get in bulk quantities. That is why on most Porsche, MB and BMW they only come with 1 or 2 brands (Michelin, Contienetal, and sometimes Bridgestones ) for the years they are produced. Corvettes are pretty much the same, when was the last time there was a different tire on them than the Goodyear F1 Run Flats?

As far a best tires for the manufacturers ? Yeah after price consideration ;~)

And the guy in Oregon, I'm saying he's an Idiot wearing a gold chain or got a grill in his head. you can't but a MB in this country that is faster than 155. (Exception being certain Optioned AMG's but even then, I think its 167MPH.) A Z or W rated tires is plenty for him. Though I'll have to say the first person in Oregon that drives over 55 MPH that I've heard of that isn't hugging a tree ;o)

Mike M

 

To all who misinterpreted me:

Looking now, I misread the first post I responded to, so shame on me for confusing things. This is what I meant:

I didn't say that it was their best model, only that the A grade of that model are sent out. Again, it's up to Toyota to choose a better model, but they still get the best quality even for the crappiest model. It's like having Emerson try to make you a radio with their highest quality control - still a crap radio, but it's the best piece of crap they can make.

OEM tires are put on for the purpose of handling on-road, all-weather conditions. There is more emphasis on quietness and smoothness too, even if it's an 'off road truck'.
Stupid as it sounds, light snow is considered an extreme condition for many tire manufacturers.

Agreed though on Dunlop, never liked them.
I was hoping that I'd be as lucky as Dad and get Michelen LTX like he did with his Dodge. The BF's seem to be OK for the on-road I'm doing (4.5k right now), but I do favor Michelen or Yokohama. It's most likely that the BF's are soft tires and Toyota went with them to reduce road noise instead of provide tread life.

He was one of those older guys in a 'I wish this was Armani' suits with the white streak in his hair Did I mention this was Klamath Falls, a.k.a. middle of nowhere, a.k.a. Pabst rules the town, a.k.a. the road to welfare? The service rep would have been more ready to getting him a lift and 33" swampers.

All the hippies keep to Eugene and Portland, and unfortunately have big mouths. They can't drive fast anymore, the Smart ForTwo can't go that fast! There's far more of us in flannel and shotguns, but those are more the quiet type.
Plenty of rice rockets and Uncle Ben's (domestic rice, like neons).
Not enough straight stretches for higher speed limits. I could see 75, but plenty enough idiots who are experts in being retarded at the lower miles.

 

That's the REALLY f'n stupid part! I bought a 4X4 TRUCK in NY in February!! I had to drive through snow to get off the damn lot! Who the hell thinks it's a good idea to put piss-poor tires on a 4wd vehicle being sold in the middle of winter in the snow belt?!!

 

How else would you know that you bought from a dealership?

More effort from the dealership? Inconcievable!

 

Yeah, the dealer told me that, too. All that paperwork means diddly because they're looking at more important things like how clean the vehicle is, whether it's ever been in a wreck, etc.

I save all the receipts for my own benefit, in case I have something go wrong that's under warranty or something.