just got my 15K service on my "06" 3500 and they charged me $850.00. could not believe it. anyone know exactly what that is supposed to encompass? all i could get from Dodge corporate is that they are supposed to change fluids and check the spare tire. as far as pricing is concerned, Dodge has nothing to do with what dealers charge i was told. part of this was supposed to be a recommended check/service of the 4wd at 15k. when i got it home i got underneath and it looks like they changed fluids cause the oil pan had oil around the plug and the differentials covers looked painted. however none of the zircs had been touched and when i checked the oil after driving home less than 3 miles it sure looked no different than when i dropped it off. Black. the oil filter was clean so it is either new or they wiped it down real good. i don't think they put a new fuel filter in it. can i be sure they got all the metal particles and burrs out of the differentials and trans? i have been told the trans should be completely emptied and a new filter put in and that most of the time the dealers only open it up change the filter and then just add back the couple of quarts that come out when they change the filter? i've tried the search about maintenane and service and did not find anything about this. and would you believe the spare tire is flat!
From the sounds of your price I would suspect that they changed all the fluids in your tranny, front and rear diff, and the transfer case. I also believe that is what is entailed in the 15,000 mile service. As for the fuel filter I think that it should be changed at 12,000 miles. All of the fluids are a synthetic type of fluid and they cost a pretty penny. Your oil being dirty after going home does sound about right. I have watched the shop change my oil and filter and noticed that the oil looks dirty after just a short while. LT.
Dodge dealers are great aren't they? rotfl When I first got my 05, I would go to the dealer for every service it needed. I finally got sick of paying hundreds of dollars for oil and filter changes. I would definitely recommend just going to a regular lube place like texaco express lube or something. They will charge you a whole lot less for the same work and they actually give you a report on what they topped off. As for what a 15k mile service includes, I think you just need to do the standard oil and filter change plus fuel filter and obviously you should check all of the other fluids (power steering and whatnot) every time you get your oil changed. At 30k miles I think you need to change the transmission fluid and get an alignment.
Oh and by the way, all of the recommended service intervals are in your owner's manual... I would trust that thing before what the mechanic at the dealer tells you.
