15,000 mi service - fuel system cleaning?

We got a letter from our dealer asking us to make an appointment for the 15,000 mi / 15 month service for our 2005 Legacy 2.5i.

 

I called and asked what their sevice entailed and what the cost was. I was quoted $205 and he started talking about a fuel system cleaning. I mentioned that the Subaru owners manual does not mention anything like this at 15,000 mi, and that I was only interested in doing what was recommended by the manufacturer as far as service goes. He told me that in our region (central Illinois) we have harsh weather conditions, and that the fuel system cleaning is almost always recommended. He said that the 10% enthanol in the fuel is one of the reasons.

 

In any case, he told me that they could do the service recommended by Subaru at 15,000 mi for $48 (basically oil change, tire rotation, and inspection of brakes), but that if they found the fuel system cleaning to be neccessary they would let me know.

 

Any thoughts? I am interested in properly mantaining the car, and not voiding the warranty, but don't want to be taken advantage of by the dealer.

 

Thanks for any comments.

Although it wouldn't hurt(other than your wallet), I don't think you need it. All fuels have cleaning agents in them, and fuel system deposits are few & far between nowadays.

 

If you would like to have some additional insurance, you can easily buy ots cleaners, 2 of the best are Chevron Techron & Regane by Gumout. Add these just prior to an oil change, maybe 1x a year for peace of mind.

I spoke recently witha Subaru regional rep about crap like this. I recieved two $600 quotes for my 30,000 mile service from dealers who packed additional B.S. non-required items into their service quotes.

 

I've owned serval fuel injected cars, having put over 200,000 on at least three of them. NONE EVER REQUIRED A FUEL SYSTEM CLEANING. I 'll admit to an occasional bottle of Techron - I know BOSCH approved it for their fuel injection systems and I've put one bottle through my LGT at 30,000 miles.

 

Additionally, I've never had my transmission, differentials, engine or power steering system "power flushed."

 

Doug Smith Subaru inAmerican Fork, Utah did a FACTORY SPECIFIED 30K service for under $300.

 

The Factory engineers came up with the maintenence schedule for your car. They probably know more about it that a dealer who wants to make extra cash on unrequired services.

 

Did you buy the paint sealent fot $995?

edmundu, I fully agree. I had dealiers try and sell me this and i just told them no. I finally asked the master tech at my dealier and he said that Techron is just as good and a fraction of the cost. Just put it in once a oil change at most. The older the car gets the more frequent it could use it. I haven't done it to either the LGT or the FXT yet, but the FXT might get a bottle soon since it has 36500 on the clock. But for now, neither will get more than one a year. Our 98 forester got it each oil change and it helped a lot. Except the tank we put it in the milage would drop by about 5 - 8mpg for that tank only. The master tech said that the boxer engines tend to have larger amounts of carbin deposits than other brands.

 

as the consparicy theriost in me: the differance of $48 to $205 in cost for the fuel cleaning. I would bet almost anything that the fuel cleaning that they stated was just to put in a feul additive like techron. It just doesn't add up when you can go to costco and pick up a 4 pack of techron for about the same cost of the 15k service (i think).

subaru fuel injection cleaning=bottle of subie brand techron in gas tank.

 

dont pay someone 50+ dollars to put a bottle of 8 dollar stuff in your tank.

 

furthermore ALL DEALER FLUSHES ARE RIPOFFS! this is how a dealer gets free money from you. you only need a particular fluid flush if the fluid looks really really dirty. dont take the dealer's word for it if they say its dirty. have them show you or check yourself beforehand. Never let the dealer talk you in to buying somthing you dont need.

My fuel system was cleaned until 78,000. The dealer reccomended every 30,000. Thank you previous owners. Anyway they said that my system was clogged that my gas mileage must of sucked. Went from 28 - 32 HWY. SWEET! City has yet to be determined because I mostly drive highway.

Thanks very much for the helpful comments.....

 

Thanks to your help, we survived the 15,000 mi checkup without the dealer pushing any further for the fuel system cleaning.

Check this out for preventitive build up treatment.

 

http://www.fuelmagic.net/

 

A guy at work who is pretty experienced with drag racing and engines swears by this stuff. He uses it in his cars, truck and boat. I've only been using it on 3 tanks so far, so can't tell any effects yet. I figure what the hell.

When I worked in the shop, the guys all laughed at the "fuel system cleaning". It was dump a bottle of stuff in the tank and collect the $. You may see some benefits with an actual vacuuming of the back of the injector screens, but most shops can't do this and it's probably not necssary anyway.