Is this the old “upsell”?

[Dale124]

Hi all. I went for an oil change at my dealership last Friday. I feel they do a good job with it, but was told my clutch fluid is getting dark, and they recommend having it changed. I told them that I had it changed at their dealership 2 years ago, at their recommendation. They then told me that they recommend changing it yearly. This sounds like bulls##t to me. What are your thoughts? Is this the old “upsell”?
Dale

 

[Rruuff Day]

Hi all. I went for an oil change at my dealership last Friday. I feel they do a good job with it, but was told my clutch fluid is getting dark, and they recommend having it changed. I told them that I had it changed at their dealership 2 years ago, at their recommendation. They then told me that they recommend changing it yearly. This sounds like bulls##t to me. What are your thoughts? Is this the old “upsell”?
Dale

Hey Dale. Clutch fluid gets dark fast. I first got into the practice of changing my own when I had my C6. It's pretty easy to do.
Pop the reservoir top, use your wife's turkey baster, suck the reservoir down and refill with fresh DOT-4 brake fluid; Jump in and pump the clutch 30 or so times; Jump out and suck it out again and refill with clean; jump in and pump the clutch 30 more times. The fluid will get lighter and lighter each time you do this and it takes more than a couple times. Once it stays clean, top it up to the fill line, snap the cover back on and away you go. And in a few hundred km it will be the same dark colour again which raises the question of how often do you really have to change it....lol.

Four important things to be careful of: 1) Don't use old brake fluid that has been opened as it absorbs water moisture very easily. 2) Don't pump the clutch when the reservoir is empty. This will suck air into the line and it will get airlocked. 3) Don't spill brake fluid on the paint or any rubber. And finally..... 4) Don't tell your wife what happened to her turkey baster.

 

[cdnrx1]

Hi all. I went for an oil change at my dealership last Friday. I feel they do a good job with it, but was told my clutch fluid is getting dark, and they recommend having it changed. I told them that I had it changed at their dealership 2 years ago, at their recommendation. They then told me that they recommend changing it yearly. This sounds like bulls##t to me. What are your thoughts? Is this the old “upsell”?
Dale

The direct answer to your question is - yes, the dealer is trying to upsell a maintenance service that is not yet required. The factory schedule calls for a clutch fluid change every 3 years. The only reason to do it sooner would be if you were tracking the car regularly.

Rruuff's recommendation is spot on. Called the Ranger Method, if performed on a yearly basis, it will keep the clutch fluid fresh and fairly clear. Still a good idea to do a complete flush but using the stated procedure you could safely get away with doing it every 5 years or so.

Word of caution, any time a dealer says "you need to do XYZ", check your maintenance schedule. It'll probably save you some time and money.