I'd dig a bit more into the tranny fluid "flush". Both stealerships in my area do not flush it. Both do a drain and top-off of the fluid pan.

 

Can you break down what is done at this 30K (miles) service in Canada?

The Outlander is not particularly service intensive and mostly there is alot of fluids for the AWD model. I think one of the engines needs valve adjustment at 30K.

When you go to any car dealer and say want 30k / XXk service then you are going to get a bundle with alot of unnecessary things. Maybe like premature windshield wiper blade changes at an inflated price. As mentioned the ATF change can be a $200-$300 job itself. (properly done the fluid cost $100 already). Some of these are can be done yourself too like oil change and tire rotations come to mind. Refer to the the maintenance booklet and change out all the stuff it says at 30K, it would be sufficient to keep the warranty.

In the US, it would cost $160 to bleed the brakes at the Dealer for a Lexus and it would cost about $80 at a certified mechanic. I don't think Canada has any regulations that force you to have the labor done at the dealer.

How do you compare exactly with your 9 year old mazda which I assume many of those years were out of warranty and you are simply REPAIRING as needed? Did you service your Mazda at the dealer for 9 year interval?

If you think this is expensive, check the Acura/Lexus/BMW/Audi service prices.

 

I guess when you pay 80K+ for a car like Audi or Lexus you'd expect the service to be expensive... This is why I own a 30K$ Mitsubishi

I guess that my point is that these fees are definitly non-neglectable but not mentionned anywhere when you first buy the car. From my understanding after reading through this forum threads, the transmission fluid can only be bought at Mitsubishi dealers and putting any other kind of fluid would void the warranty... Not sure this is true but definitely scary. Many certified mechanics offer the service for much less, but it's not clear whether or not the warranty is still valid... I heard terrible stories not sure if they are true. Seems to me that going to the dealer is buying an insurance; if anything goes wrong, you don't have to fight for it! And the dealer is trying to scare me too when I say that "I will go to another mecanics..."

Breaking down the ~750$:

- 379.95$ to change the transmission oil + coolant.
- 84.95$ to change the transfer oil.
- 54.95$ to change the real axle oil.
- 199.95$ do to a full inspection/clean-up + engine oil & filter change

Let's not forget that taxes are 16% where I live, so it's fairly close to 1000$!

I still have not decided what to do... but I don't have that 1K$ right now so I'll have to do things incrementally as opposed to all at once.

 

I have lived in Canada equal time as USA so I have to say even though the exchange rate is 1:1 the amount $$ paid in Canada is more like 1.5:1, although it has come down in recent years due to the exchange rate. I'm sure you know, just about everything you pay more dollar in Canada. What you have got there is probably equal to the $550 service mentioned here.

That said is it a good deal.. it is not. It would be good if they offer like 10% off to soften things up. I'm surprised they didn't even throw in some extras fuel injection cleaner or bleed the brakes. And shouldn't there be an air filter change every 15K or so?
In the US it is illegal to REQUIRE you to have it service to the dealer in order to honor the warranty.

This vehicle is well laid out and not difficult to work on.. Mitsubishi keeps their car design very basic mechanically. Compared to Subaru outback, Lexus RX etc - those things cramped. If you would like to learn you easily complete 50-100% of these services yourself. The diff and transfer case you remove 2 bolts each. You use a $10 fluid pump or even a syringe to fill it back up. In this case they use the same fluid so no need to worry about needing to wash the pump.

You are correct the ATF has to be Mitsbishi DiaQueen. Many here have bought quarts from the parts department and put it in themselves, you don't need special tools or machine to perform this service.

Next time you buy a vehicle go to Edmunds and research true cost to own and their maintenance. Instead of asking the sales guy!

 

This is true but what is scary about it? I would think most people would want to put in the fluid the factory recommends. It would be scary if you put in anything else. The transmission cost $5500 alone without installation.

It may cost roughly $120 for 10 qts of this fluid. So this is a consumable every 30k miles, is that really alot? Compared to $5000 of gasoline you put into the vehicle to make it run for 30k miles. Compared to the cheapest ATF at $5 a quart. So I think the differential is not that high, it's kind of a drop in the bucket.