Maintenance quote from Acura Dealer

[znammzNSX18]

Hello, I just got a package quote from the Acura dealer for a comprehensive service package. My car is a 2018 with 13K miles. The previous owner never changes anything besides the oil change.

Oil change $450
Brake fluid $230
Trans fluid $ 390
Cabin Filter, intake filter, engine coolant, and alignment $515

All together for $1585 + tax. Does that sound about right? She also gave me a discount, but the percentage was unknown.

Is there anything that I should do besides what's mentioned above?

TIA

 

[leov]

All pretty reasonable. However, engine coolant is only required at 10 years/75,000 miles. I would also change the twin electric motor oil if the original owner hasn't done so. Very easy and quick to do.

 

[drmanny3]

I agree that the prices you received are reasonable and not too high. The transmission is complex in that there is the trans fluid, but also gear oil. You have to remove the rear underneath panel which has a lot of attachment points. Very time consuming. Also Honda specific materials.
I agree the twin motor flush is typically not expensive and worth doing. I have 13k miles on my car and recently did everything except for the radiator flush. As noted by Leon the time frame is out there.
Our cars are like expensive mechanical chronograph watches that not only need to run, but also need periodic maintenance.

 

[znammzNSX18]

I confirmed with the service advisor the $1585 package includes:
1. Oil change
2. Trans fluid
3. Clutch fluid
4. Brake fluid
5. Cabin AF
6. Intake AF
7. Coolant fluid
8. Alignment

It does not include the Twin Motor Unit Fluid. How much does this service usually cost?

She said she couldn't find the service and said there was a differential fluid change for the NSX, which cost $390. Is that the Twin Motor Unit in NSX terms?

She also said that she is not the subject matter experts on the NSX and will ask the technician to make sure and get back with me on Monday.

 

[leov]

If they are a certified NSX facility, they absolutely have to know about the Twin Motor Unit. A little worrisome if they don't. It literally takes minutes to do and very little fluid is required. It should almost be a freebie. I really discourage you from doing the coolant flush; absolutely no reason to do so.

 

[drmanny3]

The differential fluid change is part of servicing the transmission in my mind. The trans uses the trans fluid as does the front twin motor unit. The differential uses the special gear oil from Honda. This is what makes the whole trans fluid change complex and time consuming and expensive. Do them both. See my comments above.

As for the dealership not being completely aware, I would not worry too much. If they have a certified NSX Tech then he will know.

Let’s face the facts, the first gen and second gen NSX are no longer being made, therefore less justification for sending techs in for special training. Most experienced Honda or Acura techs are capable of working on our cars. The technical information is available to them. Hell, most of us work on our own cars to a limited degree. We are not talking about breaking apart a transmission or engine. I think the prices you have are good. The rear differential requires a lot of stuff to be removed to facilitate access.

For changing the trans both gear oil and trans fluid, I had received quotes as high as $1500. So $800 is a good price in my opinion.

 

[znammzNSX18]

The good news, the total cost came out to $1298; the dealer did the following:

- Oil change
- Trans fluid
- Clutch fluid
- Brake fluid
- Cabin AF Cleaning
- Intake AF Cleaning

They said they did not replace the Cabin and Intake AFs and coolant since they were not bad, so they cleaned them instead of charging me for new ones. $1298 is unheard of for a major service on a supercar of this caliber. Ferrari or P-cars would probably cost 3 to 5 times more. I still remember paying almost $1500 for an oil change for my 2014 R8V10+. Cheers!!!

 

[Guitaryojedi]

The maintenance costs have skyrocketed over the past year. It’s unbelievable.

The person someone recommended at Tustin Acura, Sarah, seems to have already left the company. I had another representative give me a quote instead.

Here’s what they gave me:

• Engine oil change: $849
• Transmission fluid replacement: $899
• Brake fluid replacement: $599
• Twin motor fluid replacement: $289

That brought the total to a staggering $2,636.00.
But the guy gave me discount, and comes down to: $2245.00.

So I decided to get another quote from Valencia Acura in my area for the same services, and their total came out to $2,058.00. I will go ahead and will have the maintenance done there at that price.

Still, it really feels like the price increases are getting out of hand.

 

[leov]

The good news, the total cost came out to $1298; the dealer did the following:

- Oil change
- Trans fluid
- Clutch fluid
- Brake fluid
- Cabin AF Cleaning
- Intake AF Cleaning

They said they did not replace the Cabin and Intake AFs and coolant since they were not bad, so they cleaned them instead of charging me for new ones. $1298 is unheard of for a major service on a supercar of this caliber. Ferrari or P-cars would probably cost 3 to 5 times more. I still remember paying almost $1500 for an oil change for my 2014 R8V10+. Cheers!!!

That's reasonable. However, the engine and cabin filters are about $30 each so if they won't through the hassle of getting to them, why wouldn't they replace them?

 

[leov]

The maintenance costs have skyrocketed over the past year. It’s unbelievable.

The person someone recommended at Tustin Acura, Sarah, seems to have already left the company. I had another representative give me a quote instead.

Here’s what they gave me:

• Engine oil change: $849
• Transmission fluid replacement: $899
• Brake fluid replacement: $599
• Twin motor fluid replacement: $289

That brought the total to a staggering $2,636.00.
But the guy gave me discount, and comes down to: $2245.00.

So I decided to get another quote from Valencia Acura in my area for the same services, and their total came out to $2,058.00. I will go ahead and will have the maintenance done there at that price.

Still, it really feels like the price increases are getting out of hand.

Engine oil: about 3 hours so about $250/hr (!)
Transmission: less time consuming than engine but there is a process to follow. Shields already removed so 2 hours? (oil is a little pricier - maybe $100 total). So $400/hr?
Brake fluid: $599? Wow...just wow.
Twin motor fluid: 15 minutes max.

 

[Guitaryojedi]

Is it because I’m in SoCal???
Crazy…(smh)

So I will definitely do Engine Air/Cabin Filter change by myself to save some $$$

 

[drmanny3]

Keep in mind that the transmission has not only transmission fluid but gear oil. When you change both the labor goes up, as you have to remove the rear skirt that has lots of attachment points. This is in addition to the panels that come off for the oil change. The car then needs to be run to a certain temperature then a final fill if needed occurs. The Honda gear oil is around $30 per quart. The Honda Transmission fluid is less expensive but takes a lot of quarts. I got quotes from $1200 to $1500 just for the transmission.

Your correct in that the maintenance for our cars is significantly less than what is charged for other comparable cars.