Maintenance Calendar

[kowell]

My 2009 vibe is out of warranty and closing on 60,000km so I'm looking at maintenance work that will need to be done in the coming year. I have a maintenance calendar in my owner's manual but all it talks about are engine oil change, air filter and tire rotation. There is nothing in it about brake oil change, transmission oil change and other stuff. Am I missing a document or are these maintenance not listed in the owner's manual ?

I'm still pretty new in these things so I woud really like a more detailed maintenance calendar for my Vibe since I plan to keep it as long as possible (or at least for another 54 months so I can finish paying off the Sienna)

[star_deceiver]

Flush the brake fluid when you change the pads.
Manual transmission every 60-80 thousand kms.
Auto trans every 60-80 thousand kms except drain and fill it 3 times over 2000kms.
Tire rotation every 10-15 thousand kms.
Cabin air filter once a year or so.
Engine air filter every 20000kms city, 40000kms highway.

[j42.snyder]

Some maintenance requirements will vary depending on driving habits and usage too.

For the auto transmission - these transmissions use Toyota WS fluid only. I wouldn't be too worried about the "3 times" system unless it looked unusually dark or smelled strange. I drained mine and refilled earlier this year, and what drained out looked nearly exactly like what I replaced it with. Mine gets some use for towing as well - so it's not an entirely easy life. IIRC Toyota only recommends "inspections" of the fluid about every 30k with no drain interval specified. GM recommends changing every 96k if used for towing or other heavy usage.

I'd agree on the brake fluid - unless the fluid begins to appear darker in the reservoir - then I'd change it sooner.

I changed my original air filter at about 70k. It still looked pretty decent, but I figured while under warranty I should change it anyway. I looked earlier this year (somewhere around 105k) and it still looked almost new. The intake design with the 2.4 seems to keep a lot of dirt from being drawn directly in - and the thick material the filter is made from seems to stay looking decent for a long time. Only if you're driving in a dusty area would I say to check it more frequently than the recommended 48k in the manual.

I'd also recommend servicing the brakes every 2 years or so. By that I mean remove and clean the pads, lubricate the shims as per the shop manual, and lubricate the slider pins in the calipers. I found my rears were fine when I checked them, but the front sliders were not moving as freely as I'd like. I cleaned them out and used some synthetic brake grease, and that did a great job. As of this spring when I changed my tires over, I'd estimate my brakes at still having about 75% pad left with no abnormal wear patterns. They still work nice and smoothly too. Best brakes on a car I've owned to date. I've never seen anything last like these - and the wheels stay nice and clean too! My Sunfire used to turn the front wheels brown in a few weeks if you didn't keep it washed.

The cabin filter's not a bad idea. The only thing it will affect if you don't replace it will be airflow into the cabin - it's not likely to hurt anything else. I have not replaced mine yet - I just vacuum and blow it out thoroughly about once a year. To me there's no reason they should cost so much - so I'm cheap about it. Everything else I've ever owned survived without any filter at all - so I'm not too worried about this one. It's nice that it keeps the big stuff out of the evaporator coil and heater core though - so I won't eliminate it entirely.

Depending on where you live, I'd also consider some type of body maintenance - that's rust prevention. My favorite around here is Krown rust spray - but I'm sure there are different choices depending on where you are. I prefer to stick with the lighter weight oil sprays rather than the thick dripless type or tar based ones. The oil can creep into the little areas where moisture likes to hide and provide a protective barrier. The thick stuff just makes the underside of the car look pretty for a few years. Where I am, it's pretty much a "must" if you plan on keeping the car past the 5-7 year mark.

Stick to a decent maintenance plan, and you'll most likely be tired of it long before it "needs" replacement - hopefully well beyond your Sienna being paid off! I've just made it to the "no car payment" position financially - (paid the Vibe off earlier this year and the wife's Mazda 5 last week) and I plan to keep it this way as long as absolutely possible. Next time I hope to pay cash for whatever I get - but I'm not planning on that for over a decade as long as nothing beyond my control happens to the Vibe.

John

[kowell]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I'm probably overdue for the brake oil. I did a complete brake overall last year, changed the pads and rotors and greased up everything that needed to be but I didn't flush the oil. It's probably due.

Auto transmission oil can probably wait another year.

Filters are probably due too. I know the cabin filter was changed after 2 years but haven't been touched since.

Rustproofing started early, cars in Quebec also have a tendency to rust after only 4 years if left unchecked. I wanted Krown but the only authorized dealer in my area was 45 minutes away so I found an alternative.

I've been busy with the Sienna since buying it 6 months ago (tires, rims, backup camera, carpets, block heater) so the Vibe is overdue for some love too.