Hi Scotty and friends, got a Toyota Camry LE 2020, ~31K miles, but this question is actually related to service I had done around 30K miles. I took the car to the dealer to get my oil changed (it's free) and they did their inspections and what not; they came back with the following recommendations for service (see pic below).
I don't recall exactly what they had said but it was something to the effect that there was carbon buildup (on the fuel injectors maybe?) and that they would clean it out, that's the second charge, the "Perform Fuel System Service w/ Throttle Body Sevrice (Due for tune-up)".
Is this legitimately something I need to do now or something I can put off to later? If it's something I should do now, is it something I could do myself or I should take to a mechanic and get done? I saw a few videos on Scotty's channel regarding this but wasn't sure which one was applicable.
Please let me know what you all think. Thanks.
which engine? 4cyl? 6cyl?
Hi MountainManJoe; sorry, 4 cylinder.
Totally unncessary. I bet you if it was under warranty, they would not offer you.
Look at the maintenance schedule if it calls for such maintenance. TMK, it does not at this time. There may be a special case depending where you live.
If you are using top tier gas, I think fuel system service is highly unnecessary.
If you are using non top tier gas, the fuel system may*** need servicing. I would start with the DIY route, with a bottle of something like Techron.
As far as the throttle body, that should be DIY friendly for the most part. Again, imho, I don’t think it is necessary at this point in time. I only cleaned mine when I got a code. I don’t think it would hurt anything to clean it out either.
Overkill and not necessary.
I would pass personally.
The A25A-FKS and 2GR-FKS engines have port injection. So if you have those, I wouldn't worry about it.
Echoing some of the comments above, I agree that it's strictly not necessary. The main advantage of periodically cleaning out the throttle body is smoothness of idle.
However, if you want to clean the throttle body butterfly and the MAF sensor, Scotty shows you how to do it (below). CRC sells a pack of two small cans (throttle body and MAF sensor cleaner) for around $10.
As for the injectors, with good clean brand name gas with good detergents (preferably Top Tier labeled), it shouldn't be necessary to fool with the injectors. As Scotty has noted, multiple times, gasoline is an excellent cleaner.
"Due for tune-up" - Look at the sticker under the hood on most Toyotas it says "No Adjustments Needed".
(and that's referring to the manufacturer suggested lifetime, usually about 150k miles on Toyotas - although I'd clean it my self at over 100k. But at 30k? unless Toyota explicitly says so, it's with 99% probability not "due for tune-up" 🤣 especially not a $200 one, as no fuel system cleaning should cost that much.)
In a recent video Scotty showed that sticker and explained how on cars with carburetors, they used to tune them up. But on modern cars cleaning the throttle should only be done once in a long while. (I linked to it with a time stamp)
Personally I doubt that at 30k it would need any cleaning - Maybe in another 8 years or 70k miles, and not for that kind of money (as others have suggested, all that's probably required to this is $10 spray and a single microfiber cloth)
I would not do any service other than what's stated under "required maintenance" in your owner's manual. If it's not written there - it's simple:
- If they say the fuel system has an issue that they'll resolve - great, warranty covers fuel system issues.
- If there isn't an issue and it's just "required" maintenance - great, as I understood you have in on a service plan it shouldn't cost anything.
- If there isn't an issue and this is not required maintenance - I'd tell them to go away.
Also the alignment? try to see the "abnormal" tire wear for yourself - unless you can feel pull, I'd suspect it's also not a service you need (linked to another scotty video on when to do an alignment)
My Toyota was aligned after an accident - 10 years and over 100k miles later, when I was re-checking it, the machine said it was still in the green. In those 10 years, I've hit curbs, hit junk on the road, used it a lot on non paved surfaces - So either their quality went REALLY downhill or probably the shop is maybe trying to advise you to do services you do not need.
Sounds to me like typical dealer shenanigans and upselling.
https://youtu.be/1ZT7iy-I6RM?t=298
Typical dealer rip off.
