Scheduled Maintenance Costs

Lars said:
My 2021 has blue coolant, just checked it, and I am not too worried about it. Keep your eye on the coolant level. Should it drop you can get it replaced. Otherwise coolant replacement is on the service schedule at 60,000km. That is the time I would change to green coolant.
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My interest is keeping the battery warranty so I want to follow the owner's manual and use the correct low conductivity blue fluid. Anyone done this yet? What did the dealership sting you?
 
C02less said:
My interest is keeping the battery warranty so I want to follow the owner's manual and use the correct low conductivity blue fluid. Anyone done this yet? What did the dealership sting you?
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Same here; I told my wife (who followed my advice to replace her last ICE with any full EV 2.5 years ago) that I’ll cover whatever the dealership charge is for that coolant replacement job.
 
From this post:
"2nd year (24k kms) $200 (brakes take apart, clean & lubricate (pins etc) and checks
In addition to the brake lubrication and checks, I will be requesting a second gearbox oil replacement @ a cost of @$200 (last one was in Jan 2022 @ 8699 km, so I can expect a $400 bill when I take mine in late October."

Well, I wasn't far off. $337 today's maintenance costs, plus $130 for 2 Qts oil c/w 2 plugs and washers (invoice from August when I ordered it).
Total $467 + tax.

I do have my old plugs, which I will "rebuild" with magnets (like the 2 that are now installed), and more than half a Qt of unused oil, which should reduce the material cost next time (by about $75). Probably wait on this until the car is at about 75,000 km.
I know in the spring, Hyundai always offers 15% discount on regular maintenance items, hopefully I can convince them to apply that to new coolant which is "time due" @ 36 months. Maybe try to swing the same for new brake fluid, wishful thinking.
Oh, and then there is the brake fluid replacement, which surprisingly has a longer time service duration than the coolant, calling for replacement @ 48 months (or 48,000 kms). That I find hard to believe with our cool and wet environment.

The one thing I did notice is the labor rate increased from $135 (Nov 2020) to $160 today (Oct 2022) which accounts for a slightly higher than anticipated cost, about a $40 difference.
I might switch up the coolant flush and replacement (~$900), with the brake fluid flush and replacement (~$200), certainly could not afford both at the same time at those rates.
Added up my repair bills after 2 years ownership which total $804 (including 2 GRU oil changes and materials). That works out to be 5.3 cents /km (because I have low mileage - ~15,000 km) or ~$400 per year...so far.

Man... I thought electric vehicles were cheap to maintain, apparently, I was mistaken :(
 
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electriceddy said:
From this post:
"2nd year (24k kms) $200 (brakes take apart, clean & lubricate (pins etc) and checks
In addition to the brake lubrication and checks, I will be requesting a second gearbox oil replacement @ a cost of @$200 (last one was in Jan 2022 @ 8699 km, so I can expect a $400 bill when I take mine in late October."

Well, I wasn't far off. $337 today's maintenance costs, plus $130 for 2 Qts oil c/w 2 plugs and washers (invoice from August when I ordered it).
Total $467 + tax.

I do have my old plugs, which I will "rebuild" with magnets (like the 2 that are now installed), and more than half a Qt of unused oil, which should reduce the material cost next time (by about $75). Probably wait on this until the car is at about 75,000 km.
I know in the spring, Hyundai always offers 15% discount on regular maintenance items, hopefully I can convince them to apply that to new coolant which is "time due" @ 36 months. Maybe try to swing the same for new brake fluid, wishful thinking.
Oh, and then there is the brake fluid replacement, which surprisingly has a longer time service duration than the coolant, calling for replacement @ 48 months (or 48,000 kms). That I find hard to believe with our cool and wet environment.

The one thing I did notice is the labor rate increased from $135 (Nov 2020) to $160 today (Oct 2022) which accounts for a slightly higher than anticipated cost, about a $40 difference.
I might switch up the coolant flush and replacement (~$900), with the brake fluid flush and replacement (~$200), certainly could not afford both at the same time at those rates.
Added up my repair bills after 2 years ownership which total $804 (including 2 GRU oil changes and materials). That works out to be 5.3 cents /km (because I have low mileage - ~15,000 km) or ~$400 per year...so far.

Man... I thought electric vehicles were cheap to maintain, apparently, I was mistaken :(
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My brothers next car will be an EV, probably another two years before he makes the plunge.

He likes the recent Hyundai EVs; I told him all about the blue coolant and its 36 month in service life and resultant high (IMO) routine maintenance costs of same. At least he will go in with eyes wide open.
 
electriceddy said:
... 2 Qts oil c/w 2 plugs and washers (invoice from August when I ordered it).
Total $467 + tax.
I do have my old plugs, which I will "rebuild" with magnets (like the 2 that are now installed)...
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Did they have anything to say about the condition of the old oil or installing the modified plugs you delivered?
Given the ongoing weekly reports I see of Kona / Niro owners acquiring a tapping noise and heading done the long path of repairing that, it's money well spent IMO, whether or not there is a connection.
 
KiwiME said:
Did they have anything to say about the condition of the old oil or installing the modified plugs you delivered?
Given the ongoing weekly reports I see of Kona / Niro owners acquiring a tapping noise and heading done the long path of repairing that, it's money well spent IMO, whether or not there is a connection.
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Didn't get an update on the condition of the old, but if there were any particles, they would have advised me.
Rubbing a Q tip on the old plugs it is a little blackish, no signs of metal but those were non-magnetic type.
No problem installing the modified plugs. The tech was impressed I delivered them in separate containers so they wouldn't stick together.
I feel better having the magnetic plugs installed now, thanks for your help and research regarding this matter :)
 
navguy12 said:
My understanding is that the blue coolant degradation is based on time only; my wife’s Kona will have less than 15k km on it when it is three years old but the coolant itself will have lost its non conductive properties because it gets polluted with the normal wear and tear minutiae that finds its way into any coolant system.
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I have 39,000+ km on mine and will have 36 months next September. So I am not worried about this for now. I am aware that chemical mixes age even if not used but I am not sure about this coolant. Maybe you should drive this car more?
 
Lars said:
I have 39,000+ km on mine and will have 36 months next September. So I am not worried about this for now. I am aware that chemical mixes age even if not used but I am not sure about this coolant. Maybe you should drive this car more?
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It’s my wife’s car; any travelling we do is in my TM3.

Now that we live in the same area as her sons, she only uses the car for groceries or for family visits.

It seems 400 km a month is the new normal for her car.
 
electriceddy said:
coolant flush and replacement (~$900)
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Hi E Eddy. Is there a dealer near you that does the blue coolant change for $900Cdn? I am getting quotes for considerably more. The price I am seeing in Canada for the coolant is about $130/2l jug, and it needs 7 jugs, so if you are seeing $900 for parts and labour they are giving you a a deal.

FYI - I can buy the coolant for $Cdn90 per 2l jug in the US including shipping. That's a savings of $280 on the parts. With 1.5 hours labour the total is in the same $900 ballpark. If I could find a dealer in BC who would do the whole job parts and labour for 900 I would take it.

I never believed that maintenance costs would be lower with an EV, but I thought they would be at least similar to my previous civics. I owned 4 civics that I drove a total of nearly one million km and never had a $900 repair bill on any of them. Still, I am glad I bought the Kona. The savings in gas will justify it, and Knoa is also saving something more important than just gas money.
 
C02less said:
Hi E Eddy. Is there a dealer near you that does the blue coolant change for $900Cdn? I am getting quotes for considerably more. The price I am seeing in Canada for the coolant is about $130/2l jug, and it needs 7 jugs, so if you are seeing $900 for parts and labour they are giving you a a deal.

FYI - I can buy the coolant for $Cdn90 per 2l jug in the US including shipping. That's a savings of $280 on the parts. With 1.5 hours labour the total is in the same $900 ballpark. If I could find a dealer in BC who would do the whole job parts and labour for 900 I would take it.

I never believed that maintenance costs would be lower with an EV, but I thought they would be at least similar to my previous civics. I owned 4 civics that I drove a total of nearly one million km and never had a $900 repair bill on any of them. Still, I am glad I bought the Kona. The savings in gas will justify it, and Knoa is also saving something more important than just gas money.
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$900 coolant change is a huge and bitter pill to swallow. I wonder what other EV makers/dealers charge for the same job and what is the recommended frequency of coolant change.
 
Lars said:
$900 coolant change is a huge and bitter pill to swallow. I wonder what other EV makers/dealers charge for the same job and what is the recommended frequency of coolant change.
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For my TM3, the coolant is for the life of the car, no routine recommended change called for.
 
Regarding costs of the blue coolant change:
I just had mine changed at 60,000km. Quotes (for the correct service) ranged from $Cdn1500 to about half that. I found that many dealerships really had no idea about what a Kona EV coolant change was all about and were quoting a coolant change for a gas Kona. In the end the cost was cheapest in Canada at my local dealer: $Cdn85 per jug of 07100-J2A20 (7 required) plus $Cdn99 for labour plus shop fees and taxes. So there is no savings to be had in buying the scan tool just for this job.

I did run into a few hassles on this service (resolved now and covered in another thread) and the dealership marked down the cost of the coolant to $65. So maybe $65 is the dealer's price for 07100-J2A20.
 
C02less said:
Regarding costs of the blue coolant change:

I just had mine changed at 60,000km. Quotes (for the correct service) ranged from $Cdn1500 to about half that. I found that many dealerships really had no idea about what a Kona EV coolant change was all about and were quoting a coolant change for a gas Kona. In the end the cost was cheapest in Canada at my local dealer: $Cdn85 per jug of 07100-J2A20 (7 required) plus $Cdn99 for labour plus shop fees and taxes. So there is no savings to be had in buying the scan tool just for this job.



I did run into a few hassles on this service (resolved now and covered in another thread) and the dealership marked down the cost of the coolant to $65. So maybe $65 is the dealer's price for 07100-J2A20.
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So the cost to change the coolant in the Kona is over $700?
When does this have to be changed, I'm already at 90k km
 
If your car is older than 2021 (or late 2020?) the interval is longer and the cost is lower because older cars came with a cheaper green coolant. If you have a 2021 (or late 2020?) or had the big battery replaced it is every 60,000km and over $700 (blue coolant). I recommend checking your owner's manual and following its recommendations. Checking under the hood is also a good clue: Green coolant = cheap. Blue coolant = expensive.
 
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