Hello, I just took delivery of a new 2023 Highlande Hybrid Platinum. I declined the dealer offered add-ons with the option of adding them by the end of this month. They were Vehicle Service Contract $1330., Axiom paint and fabric protection $399., Tire and wheel protection, Auto care maintenance $980. Should I opt for any of these are they worthwhile?
I would like to have cross bars for my roof. OEM bars are rated for 160 lbs. some aluminum non-oem bars on Amazon are rated for 260 lbs. and at $129. are much less in price.
What about plastic film covers for fog lights, headlights, and rear and front bumpers. Does the film help and does it interfere with sensors on the bumpers?
What about oil undercoating for the vehicle? A transmission place near Cleveland Ohio does it yearly. I am in Columbus Ohio. Any place in particular that you would recommend I take my vehicle to?
I would like to add a trailer hitch. Is OEM a must, or can you recommendan aftermarket one? Can I install itmyself, or should I get a professional to do it? I am in Columbus Ohio. Any place in particular that you would recommend I take my vehicle to?
They were Vehicle Service Contract $1330., Axiom paint and fabric protection $399., Tire and wheel protection, Auto care maintenance $980. Should I opt for any of these are they worthwhile?
That’s $2,709 they are getting upfront for those specific items. Save your money (maybe invest it!). Definitely pass on those specific items.
I would like to have cross bars for my roof. OEM bars are rated for 160 lbs. some aluminum non-oem bars on Amazon are rated for 260 lbs. and at $129. are much less in price.
A lot of cheap roof bars end up being very loud, I think the best option is going for a premium non-OEM roof bar like that of Thule.
What about plastic film covers for fog lights, headlights, and rear and front bumpers. Does the film help and does it interfere with sensors on the bumpers?
A good paint protection film is pretty cool to have, but it much be done professionally and use quality material - I doubt that the dealer can do any of those.
I would like to add a trailer hitch. Is OEM a must, or can you recommendan aftermarket one?
It's just a piece of metal, I wouldn't bother - the Toyota dealer probably also uses a non-Toyota hitch.
The issue is when your car requires wiring for the trailer lights, and then again, I don't think that the dealer would do it better than aftermarket.
I suspect most of the answers you get here will be "nope" and "stick with OEM".
The vehicle service contract and the auto care maintenance. What do those entail? What is covered?
99% of the time it is a waste of money. Don’t get me wrong, you need to keep up with the service and maintenance IN THE MANUAL. But the dealer often adds unnecessary services or charges like crazy for those services.
For the roof rack, see what is the max weight for the actually roof (not the racks) . Usually it is written in the drivers side door jamb.
And buy the rack accordingly.
BTW, you should put the questions into separate threads (even though at first it may seem inefficient) in order to get more visibility and comments.