[scrisp2]

Just got back from the dealership to get the oil changed. My car has 35,000 miles and I'm being told that I'm now past the due date/mileage for spark plugs/wires, transmission fluid change, brakes (supposedly only 5% of the pad left), air filter change, and a tire rotation.

I can see the tire rotation and air filter needing changed, but c'mon, spark plugs and wires at 35,000 miles?!!! And the transmission needing serviced this soon?

I have a 98 Chevy Lumina that has 115,000 miles and had the spark plugs and wires done at the recommended 100,000 mile mark. The trans fluid was changed (but not flushed) at 75,000 and still looked/smelled new.

This PT is really starting to get on my nerves, being such a high maintenance car. Are all DC cars like this, or did I get "stuck" with another DC car that requires being babied? I had a 90 Jeep Wrangler that I already went down this road with, and really don't want to do it again.

It's not like I'm not a stickler for doing the maintenance on the cars either, I change the oil in my Lumina every 3,000 miles or so and keep and eye on all of the fluids at least once a week. I guess having to take it to the dealership to get the oil changed every 3,000 miles (even though the owners manual recommends 6,000 I think) is getting expensive. We have the extended warranty and after reading all of the problems that people have with getting things fixed under the warranty, I want them to do the maintenance until it's after the warranty is over, so that there is no way that they can say the maintenance wasn't done. We bought the car as a cheap alternative to my wife's Mustang GT, but not so sure it was a wise move. <<Shrugs>>

The service manager told my wife that it would be around $250 to get the front brakes fixed. I just about fell over!!! He told her that the rotors would be $148 to be turned and pads with a lifetime warranty would be $60.00 and some other stuff would bring it up to the $250 mark. I asked the manager why, if the new pads have a lifetime warranty, the originals don't, since they would be the exact same pads. He didn't really like me asking stuff like that, but to me, I don't like being "shaken down" by dealerships either.

I just priced the best ceramic pads from Autozone and they only came out to be $46 and since I just had the rotors turned on my Lumina, I know that they are $7.50 each and it only takes about an hour or so on a Saturday. They guy said that if we waited until the pads were worn out, we could add another $200 to the $250. I just priced brand new rotors, and they came out to $48.99 each!!!

Grrrrr, I just needed to vent to some that can relate to my plight. :-) Sorry for the long post. Later,
Scott