Free Maintenance

[Driver]

Why doesn't Hyundai have free scheduled maintenance like other manufactures?

 

[scottdk]

Why doesn't Hyundai have free scheduled maintenance like other manufactures?

With what little maintainence the Hyundai/Kia vehicles require, I don't think many consumers would be pushed over the fence to by a Hyundai just for that. It's a good thought, but I had my Elantra from 33,000 miles to around 115,000 and only had a tranny flush, coolant flush, and timing and serp belt aside from oil changes etc for this duration of miles and all of this combined was under $1,000 total. Super low maintainence vehicles. The Genesis doesn't call for anything too crazy. Maybe a differential fluid check at 60,000 miles, and coolant flushes etc and doesn't need possible valve adjustments, at least not the V8 anyway.

 

[Mark_888]

Why doesn't Hyundai have free scheduled maintenance like other manufactures?

Marketing campaigns are designed to offset some perceived (whether real or not) weakness in a product or brand. The perception (and reality) is that maintenance (even an oil change) on a BMW is very expensive, and that is why they have chosen to offer free routine maintenance for 4 years or 50,000 miles, whichever comes first.

Hyundai dealer oil changes are quite inexpensive, but the Hyundai brand has had the perception of poor quality going back to their initial entry into the US market years ago (when they did in fact have quality problems). This perception still lingers among many Americans who are old enough to remember these quality problems (and the constant late night talk show host jokes about the subject in the 1980’s). So Hyundai came up with 10 year / 100K mile powertrain warranty to address that perception, and it has made a big difference in overcoming customer objections to buying a Hyundai due to quality issues (even if the quality of a Hyundai has improved to the point where it is just as good as other manufacturers).

This is how marketing works. It is based on market research and analyzing customer objections that might prevent someone from buying their product.

 

[NOLa]

The Equus does, but ya gotta know...nothing is "free", right? You pay for it with a higher price when you purchase the car, or you pay as you go. One way or the other, you pay.

I have a friend that has a BMW, and her and her husband were passengers in my (then) Genesis. Her husband was really going on about how nice the Genesis was, and the wife chimed in, yea, but do you get free maintenance...I told her we can compare invoices and see how "free" her maintenance was.

Many other premium brands charge so much for a simple maintenance, too. Hyundai is very reasonable.

NOLa

By the way, with the Equus, they will come get your car and leave you with a loaner, and then deliver your car back to you.

 

[dg_moore]

The Equus does, but ya gotta know...nothing is "free", right? You pay for it with a higher price when you purchase the car, or you pay as you go. One way or the other, you pay.

I have a friend that has a BMW, and her and her husband were passengers in my (then) Genesis. Her husband was really going on about how nice the Genesis was, and the wife chimed in, yea, but do you get free maintenance...I told her we can compare invoices and see how "free" her maintenance was.

Many other premium brands charge so much for a simple maintenance, too. Hyundai is very reasonable.

NOLa

You got that right. My wife's 05 Infiniti G35 coupe has never come away from a scheduled maintenance appointment for less than $500-$600 or more. My highest ticket so far was $263 for 15K maintenance. So in 6 years she has spent more than $3500 in maintenance - I doubt if I'll spend that much in 10 years.

 

[Mark_888]

You got that right. My wife's 05 Infiniti G35 coupe has never come away from a scheduled maintenance appointment for less than $500-$600 or more. My highest ticket so far was $263 for 15K maintenance. So in 6 years she has spent more than $3500 in maintenance - I doubt if I'll spend that much in 10 years.

15K, 30K, 60K, etc maintenance packages are dealer rip-offs that have nothing to do with manufacturer maintenance requirements. It is always cheaper to look at the required maintenance items in the owner’s manual and have them done individually. These days, the only things needed on most modern cars up to about 100K miles are oil/oil filter changes, and air filter changes. Cars without synthetic oil in transmission also need transmission fluid changes every 30K or so (Genesis has synthetic transmission fluid).

 

[Driver]

You guys are probably right but it would be nice if they would include the free maintenance with the new car purchase. Even Toyota has it now on all it's cars. I would think Hyundai could include it for less cost then you would pay on your own.

 

[Mark_888]

You guys are probably right but it would be nice if they would include the free maintenance with the new car purchase. Even Toyota has it now on all it's cars. I would think Hyundai could include it for less cost then you would pay on your own.

Toyota has been battling some very serious questions that have been raised about their quality and safety over the last few years. According to Toyota:

Peace of mind with every new Toyota. We at Toyota are devoted to safety and dependability, and proper vehicle maintenance is important to both. That's why we're including a complimentary worry-free maintenance plan with the purchase or lease of every new Toyota. For 2 years or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first, you and your new vehicle will be covered. It's complimentary peace of mind, and we're the only full-line brand to offer anything like it.

Toyota Care Scheduled Factory Maintenance Covers:

• Oil and filter
• Tire rotation
• Multi-point inspection

That's about 3 oil changes and 3 tire rotations. The inspection is BS. Offer is available "at participating delears."

Edit: I just noticed that most new Toyotas now come with (and Toyota recommends) 0W-20 synthetic oil, and the oil change interval for those cars is 10,000 miles with the synthetic (according to Toyota), so that is 2 oil changes.

 

[Driver]

Toyota has been battling some very serious questions that have been raised about their quality and safety over the last few years. According to Toyota:

Peace of mind with every new Toyota. We at Toyota are devoted to safety and dependability, and proper vehicle maintenance is important to both. That's why we're including a complimentary worry-free maintenance plan with the purchase or lease of every new Toyota. For 2 years or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first, you and your new vehicle will be covered. It's complimentary peace of mind, and we're the only full-line brand to offer anything like it.

Toyota Care Scheduled Factory Maintenance Covers:

• Oil and filter
• Tire rotation
• Multi-point inspection

That's about 3 oil changes and 3 tire rotations. The inspection is BS. Offer is available "at participating delears."

Edit: I just noticed that most new Toyotas now come with (and Toyota recommends) 0W-20 synthetic oil, and the oil change interval for those cars is 10,000 miles with the synthetic (according to Toyota), so that is 2 oil changes.

You are right. That is pretty lame. I wasn't aware of details of what Toyota offered.

 

[Mark_888]

You are right. That is pretty lame. I wasn't aware of details of what Toyota offered.

Again, understand why Toyota is doing this. They are not trying to address a perceived high cost of maintenance (such as most luxury car dealers charge); instead they are trying to counter the bad publicity about the recalls and other quality issues.

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[Car Fan]

if the Mercedes scheduled maintenance were double, heck even triple that of
hyundai's I'd consider going back. In 1999 I was paying nearly a thousand a year for regular maintenance. I went tothe local Hyundai Dealer and bought 6 pre-paid oil changes for 69 bucks when I first bought the car. True the maintenance isn't free but its damn near close.