39,111 mile service

i'm back in vegas and it's time for yet another oil change. chrysler has gone through a significant trimming of their dealerships as part of their bankruptcy proceedings and there's only one, yes one, official five-start dealer left in las vegas proper.

and that would be whom?

that's right, chapman. the only dealer in vegas that i'm suspicious about. so i grab my coupon and head on in, not having any idea what's going to happen when i hit my three red lights of their original inspection.

but hey, i'll get a cheapie, mopar-approved, oil change and the good news is i had them hold the parts so i'll get the trim and my interior light fixed (even though now i'm over 36k miles).

unfortunately i let my fricken driver's license expire so i'm not able to get my freebie rental car ... but they do have a shuttle, so it's not all bad ... i'm able to retreat back to the robot's house where i'm staying.

it takes chapman an extra day to fix my car than they originally predicted (making them 1 for 4 in being on-time), but when i get it back everything's done complete and correct. i give a little tug on the roll bar trim and it stays put, so maybe it has a chance.

and how did they handle the inspection? there's a huge red box that says "previously declined recommendations" that includes:

* tire rotation and balance
(i declined the balance before, i told them to rotate -- the work order says they did, the print-out says they didn't).

* brake system flush
(highly suspicious -- they say "brake fluid can become contaminated in as little as 2 years." one would assume this is a worst case scenario. my car is 4 months, or 17%, shy of this figure.)

* power steering flush
("should be replaced with new fluid as part of a preventative maintenance program." the normal maintenance for this isn't even in the owner's manual.)

* automatic transmission service
(needs to follow a "regular maintenance schedule." well, the owner's manual says that shouldn't be happening until 60k miles, and then only if it's a delivery vehicle. please.)

* fuel injector service
(they don't even have a nagging sheet about this one ... i use injector cleaner every oil change and i drive the vast majority of my miles at highway speed for hours on end -- a nice hot engine is the least likely way to have this build-up happen ... unfortunately it's also the only thing that is not covered by the mechanical part of my extended service warranty. hmm)

$21