Scheduled Maintenance Costs

Wildeyed

Wildeyed

Well-Known Member
So, first maintenance is underway (24k km). I know from the book that everything is to be inspected and the cabin filter replaced if necessary. They want $60 for the filter (outrageous, of course) and they want to do a brake service for $200. I'm peeved about this as one of the advantages of an EV is how little brakes are used and how slowly pads wear out. They gave me a lecture about how with evs and hybrids the brakes get used so little they get rusty and can seize up. Is this baloney? I feel like they're going to do this on every service interval ad infinitum negating one of the advantages of ownership. Am I supposed to do this or not? Is $200 CAN too much. I'm asking the group. Any help is appreciated. And no, I'm not going to do the work myself. Thanks.
 
Sounds pretty weak to say brakes rust and can seize up. Even with regen braking, you still use them. The only filter is the cabin air filter which can be bought on Amazon and doesn't need much skill to pop out and in. I bought several for just under $8 each (free shipping). That said, if you are not comfortable with inspecting your own brakes or changing your filter, it might be worth your piece of mind. It is high but it is your choice.
 
GeorgeS said:
Sounds pretty weak to say brakes rust and can seize up. Even with regen braking, you still use them. The only filter is the cabin air filter which can be bought on Amazon and doesn't need much skill to pop out and in. I bought several for just under $8 each (free shipping). That said, if you are not comfortable with inspecting your own brakes or changing your filter, it might be worth your piece of mind. It is high but it is your choice.
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Thanks. I can certainly change the filter myself. I have before. I just can't see brakes needing "service" for not being used enough. But, again, I'm asking.
 
There is truth to what they say, caliper pins can develop corrosion and cause pad binding. It probably would take several years of neglect for this to happen. I typically grease my pins once every 1-2 years when I do my winter tire swap, its good preventive maintenance. Its honestly not much effort after you have the car in the air and wheels off, maybe 10-15 minutes extra per wheel. If your not interested in doing the work yourself get a quote from an independent shop, I suspect it will much less than $200. If you go this route just make sure you keep your receipt as proof of service.
 
I guess I'm a bit flustered by "if you don't use them enough we need to service them" and then "if you use them too much we need to service them." They literally want it both ways, coming and going. I was hoping for an escape from this with the EV. Certainly I was hoping to evade it longer than 24 thousand kilometres.
 
I think they are just trying to up sell the job. If your worried about rusty rotors find an empty road and do a few hard stops with the brake pedal and it will polish off the rust on the rotors it will also make sure the calipers are free on their pins. It will also knock off any debris on the pads. If you live in a snowy climate I would agree with Apu to grease the pins when you change to or from winter tires. I certainly wouldn't worry about them needing service.
 
I've heard brake scrubbing since virtually day-one with this car anyway. Rusty rotors just go with the territory, to my mind. Yes, I do hard braking every so often to give them a polish. The problem with dealerships (or one of them, anyway) is that they always have maintenance "packages" that they price out and then insist that you be shoehorned into them. They pay zero attention to the specific owner's manual's maintenance schedules. Is a brakes lube job a thing I should be able to ask for a la carte?
 
I have done my own brake inspections when I rotate my tires (myself), and even changed pads in some past vehicles. At my last Kona tire rotation, brakes and underside of car looked remarkably clean, pretty well like new still.

My previous car, a Prius also looked very good at 95,000 kms, lots of pad material left, and rotors not worn, or scarred at all. And that was a hybrid not a full EV. However, it did have good regen and I seldom did hard braking with it, almost like an EV.

So I expect my Kona brakes to last a long, long time before needing to spend money.
 
A normal service here in NZ is $240 and that's cabin filter + inspections. Every second service has a brake fluid change and that's another $100. The owners manual has a maintenance list and I asked them to do the "minimum work required to sign off the warranty book". Oddly, despite the cabin filter being a replacement item, they volunteered to delete it and knock nearly $100 off.
On the local FB group, postings from whom I think are Hyundai salespeople, I've been lectured once about the importance of that filter in an EV and by another on how I should support the dealers trying making a living. They just don't want to let go...
 
What on Earth would justify brake fluid replacement every few thousand km? That's straight up hogwash. Is that literally in the NZ maintenance manual? And the magical cabin filter business is bogus as well. Cabin air quality is all that filter is about. There's no such thing as EV air. :(
 
Wildeyed said:
What on Earth would justify brake fluid replacement every few thousand km? That's straight up hogwash. Is that literally in the NZ maintenance manual? And the magical cabin filter business is bogus as well. Cabin air quality is all that filter is about. There's no such thing as EV air. :(
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Yeah its an actual Hyundai maintenance thing. Its the same thing in the UK, I thinks its some kind of coastal island thing. Maybe the the brake fluid is prone to absorbing more ambient moisture in these areas, I dunno I am speculating.
 
Well, the cabin filter seems a bit silly to me as well but many car owners here drive a lot on unsealed roads (gravel or dirt) and replacement could be justified. However a simple flow test with fan on max would determine the status, but I guess that's too complicated.
I'm actually onboard with a 2-year brake fluid change having seen what happens when it's ignored. Trouble is the dealer may just change the fluid in the reservoir to save time, which is not really doing the job right. The Kona's system has two master cylinders, the second driven by a motor that simulates the feel under regen conditions. I suspect that the fluid may be less exposed to moist air than it would be in an ICE, but given the expected astronomical cost of the system I'd be reluctant to not play it safe.
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KiwiME said:
A normal service here in NZ is $240 and that's cabin filter + inspections. Every second service has a brake fluid change and that's another $100. The owners manual has a maintenance list and I asked them to do the "minimum work required to sign off the warranty book". Oddly, despite the cabin filter being a replacement item, they volunteered to delete it and knock nearly $100 off.
On the local FB group, postings from whom I think are Hyundai salespeople, I've been lectured once about the importance of that filter in an EV and by another on how I should support the dealers trying making a living. They just don't want to let go...
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Must have been an interesting lecture!
Well, I guess its the "dealer" debate that continues to plague the auto industry. No business in spares/service means higher margins on new-car sales so they can keep afloat as the fossil numbers drop. If we want a dealership network, then we can't have it both ways. Something has to give and I suspect it will be the dealership business model.
 
KiwiME said:
Well, the cabin filter seems a bit silly to me as well but many car owners here drive a lot on unsealed roads (gravel or dirt) and replacement could be justified. However a simple flow test with fan on max would determine the status, but I guess that's too complicated.
I'm actually onboard with a 2-year brake fluid change having seen what happens when it's ignored. Trouble is the dealer may just change the fluid in the reservoir to save time, which is not really doing the job right. The Kona's system has two master cylinders, the second driven by a motor that simulates the feel under regen conditions. I suspect that the fluid may be less exposed to moist air than it would be in an ICE, but given the expected astronomical cost of the system I'd be reluctant to not play it safe.
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With all the computer assisted hydraulics replacement of the brake fluid every 2 years is a good strategy.;)
 
R P said:
No, just a racket... And dealers don't like EVs because of their low maintenance.
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There's a lot of truth to that. Your local trusted mechanic is just as qualified to do a brake inspection, lube and tire rotation, just be sure they know where the lift points are. The only thing they can't do is inspect/top off the battery coolant; then again I wouldn't trust my dealer to be able to do that either. It's what I like about the 3 year lease, at the end of it, not my problem.

One of the advantages to owning a Tesla is that's all they sell, presumably allowing for more competent servicing. Although expensive no doubt.
 
I am not a mechanic, nor am I a car enthusiast. I have zero interest in servicing my own car. But, I swap my tires out twice a year. Am I misguided in believing that during those swaps a brake inspection and lubrication can be done easily? I pay $60 for the swap. Why would I need to pay an additional $200 for the inspection and lube? Just because it's now categorized as "a brake job"?
 
Wildeyed said:
I am not a mechanic, nor am I a car enthusiast. I have zero interest in servicing my own car. But, I swap my tires out twice a year. Am I misguided in believing that during those swaps a brake inspection and lubrication can be done easily? I pay $60 for the swap. Why would I need to pay an additional $200 for the inspection and lube? Just because it's now categorized as "a brake job"?
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Yup, you're getting suckered, no question. Don't feel bad, as they (all dealers) do it to almost everyone now, whoever they think they can get away with it. Of course some are better than others, in that they will actually try to make you feel good about separating you and your money with nice lounges, new car loaners, etc.
 
R P said:
Yup, you're getting suckered, no question. Don't feel bad, as they (all dealers) do it to almost everyone now, whoever they think they can get away with it. Of course some are better than others, in that they will actually try to make you feel good about separating you and your money with nice lounges, new car loaners, etc.
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With Covid all of that is gone. And my dealer has never even washed my car or even cleaned up the cabin after service. They don't even try to kiss up after shafting me.
 
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