Threxx

Say we're comparing a Camry V6 serviced at a Toyota dealer from brand new to 100k miles... how would the total service expenses tally up compared to an ES350 serviced for the first 100k miles of its life at a Lexus dealer?

What about repairs like starter, alternator, transmission, head gaskets, etc?

Looking back... EVERYTHING cost an arm and a leg for the dealer to take care of on my GS400... seems like every 30k miles they wanted around a grand to do various little things. The starter cost 1200 dollars to replace... timing belt and water pump close enough to another grand.

I just can't imagine Toyota (or Chevy or whoever) charging that kind of money to service and repair their cars.

Now this thread isn't meant to question the value of Lexus service so much as it is just to hopefully COMPARE total service costs between the two brands.

When I look at the price of a new IS250 it seems like something I could deal with... but when I think about how much more the dealer would want to keep that car running by factory recommended maintenance standards, vs something cheaper like a Chevy or Honda or Toyota, it becomes less appealing to me.

But the fact is I don't really have a strong basis for comparison.

Yes we have a 4runner but that never goes to the dealer... so far I've done everything on it myself which really has been nothing but oil and air filter. Plus and belts will be no problem on that car, either.

whoster

The GS400's starter is buried way into the engine and I could totally see the dealership charging $1200 for the job, but for the other things, I kind of see it as that you're paying for the premium of better customer service.

Does that make the pricing less painful? Not really. Is the pricing high? Yes. If the dealership costs at maintenance and repairs are too high, are there any shops in the area that specialize in Lexus/Toyota maintenance/repair?

RON430

While the car is under warranty, I am a sucker for doing whatever the dealer wants to do under the assumption that if something goes wrong, I don't have any concerns. A holdover from being a GM owner decades ago I guess where they would look for any reason they could to get out of warranty repair.

If you look at the long term car reviews in the mags, their maintenance costs are just a fraction of what you will spend going this way. I think it is because the magazines are pretty strict on only doing what the mfr recommends, not what the dealer wants to do. I think the dealers have gotten into the mode of making their service departments a profit center. When I look at some of those bills and I see "inspect" I get a bit queazy on the whole thing. Now that my GS is out of warranty, I look at what they want to do and tell them what I will pay for. I don't need to pay someone $80 an hour to check my windshield washer fluid level.

I think we can thank the Europeans for making this SOP on the expensive hardware and Lexus went right along with it. We all know us Lexus owners can pay for it after all. It wouldn't surprise me that, in the original premise, that maintenance costs on a V6 Camry would be significantly less than an ES, for example. Now, what you do about all this, I haven't a clue.

pagemaster

The Toyota Camry should be less expensive to maintain if you go to a Toyota dealer compared to the ES350 if you get it serviced at a Lexus dealer.

nabbun

2 words: labor charges

pagemaster

I noticed in the Lexus PDFs that all Lexus models need brake fluid replacement at every 30k and smart key battery replacement at every 20k. Toyota.com does not recommend these services.... I compared both the ES/Camry and the LC/LX for verification.

Threxx

Interesting... how often did Toyota recommend fluid changes? I'm guessing smart key changes they recommended just however often if went dead?

I really don't remember if the maintenance schedule I followed was the dealer's schedule or Lexus' schedule... I just remember every 5k miles was like 90 bucks (assuming I didn't just change the damn oil myself and forget about rotating tires which is totally unnecessary every 5k miles, especially on a RWD car), every 15k was something like 200-300, and every 30k was close to a grand.

I understand the thought is Lexus people have money to blow to take good care of their car but the fact is if you're just throwing money down the drain on excessive maintenance, well... people that really have money are usually the types to be conscious of that sort of thing (wasting money) and put a stop to it.

DASHOCKER

iTrader: (2)

Not true. There is a supplement manual that came with my 02 Rav4 that specifies the various services including brake fluid replacement.. Said manual will be located in the glove box with the car rather than the Toyota website.

vcheng

I think it is a different philosophy. Do you want to have low costs, and fix something if only something breaks down or wears out, potentially inconveniencing your customer (Toyota), or do you want to be proactive and replace items on a schedule so as to minimize the chance of a breakdown and thus prevent your customer being annoyed or inconvenienced (Lexus)? What would a majoirty of your customers prefer and what can they afford, while you maximize your return?

redeldo

I was looking at an 04 ES330 at the local Toyota dealer. They indicated that the local dealer could do all the servicing on the Lexus. Anything under warranty or required "major" parts would have to be done at the Lexus dealer.
Hope that is more correct than incorrect as the nearest Lexus dealer is about 50 miles away. Just the time to drive both ways plus waiting on the service would be a big inconvenience.

LexFather

Thats correct and even more so since the ES is based off the Camry so for example, the engine is the same.