$10k Engine Repair
01-16-12, 09:57 AM
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$10k Engine Repair (+Exhaust Leak)
This all started out with a misfire that I was having for some time. I have changed spark plugs and ignition coils since those were the easiest components to reach and replace. The misfire did not go away at all. It would randomly come back on and usually during a cold start. My car is out of warranty for quite some time, 2006 with 90k miles.
So I did some research and found out that the issue was near the valves. I took it to the dealer stating that I have a check engine light on. They gave me a loaner car for the time being. I received a call from the dealer. They diagnosed the car and gave me recommendations. I reviewed them over night and told them that I would be okay with the listed recommendations from them. I had to cough up some money in order to get them fix this issue without charging me.
I took their recommendations and received the car back. I drove the car for about a week and the check engine light came back on. Brought it back to the dealer and they took a look at the car. They found some left over top end cleaner and cleaned it out. I got the car back once again.
I drive the car about a day and "surprisingly" the check engine light came back on. Brought it back to dealer once again. They called up Lexus and they replaced the pistons, valves, water pump, and some other small items all on courtesy of Lexus. Finally got the call that the car was finished and pick it up.
Driving the car since and no issues. Conclusion to this whole fiasco is that Lexus has great service if you are willing to play nicely with them. They handled the situation professionally. Would I think about purchasing a Lexus again the future? Yes, I would.
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***UPDATE***
So I have received the car back for about 2 weeks or so. It has been running great without any issues. So last night, I was driving back home and I got a flat for some odd reason. Good thing I have warranty for the tires. I placed the spare on and drove to the tire repair center. With the warranty on my tires, I got a brand new tire since there was a puncture/hole on the side wall, which is not repairable. So that was complete and I started to drive the car around. I noticed something strange that the car was doing when accelerating on low speeds. It sounded like a sputtering noise. The tire repair center was nice enough to check it out and see what the issue was. It was verified that it was an exhaust leak right after the first cat and the first O2 sensor on the mid pipe. I drove it to the dealer immediately to get them to inspect what the issue was. I spoke to them saying that there was something strange going on with the car and told them the general location of where I heard the noise coming from. They diagnosed it to be a leaking exhaust where I found earlier. I questioned them if they could speak to corporation to see if they can handle this since my car isn't that old and has these major issues. They denied that since they already did their goodwill for my rebuilt engine. So I got corporation's number and talked to them about the situation. In the end, they are going to assist me on this repair on their goodwill.
I know that the trips back and forth to Lexus is a pain but I have to say that they are exceptionally good with customer service. I hope my situation was able to help others with their problems that they are having.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
************UPDATE************
Problems are occurring once again. This time it is very confusing to me on how the decision was made. So after talking to corporation about the exhaust leak, I felt really satisfied about Lexus and thought about the possibility of purchasing another vehicle from them. I received a phone call from corporate HQ asking me a few questions about the car the service record. The information that I did not know, I just told them I did not know the answer to their question. After the questioning I got a call back from them a few days later. This time it was about the decision that have finalized on for the repair. The fine decision was that they were going to pay a certain percentage of the repair cost and I pay the rest of it. The reason being is that they have paid in full for the engine repair they just did for me and it was a large sum. This still does not make much sense to me since you buy Lexus for their renowned, reliable, and well built engine(s) and/or cars. This was the initial reason why I chose this car anyways. The initial result was that they were going to do this on their good will. A few days later and the final decision was that I need to cough up a good chunk of money for a component(s) that was designed to be in crazy weather conditions. I would think that this is a design flaw. I also did not mention the amount of money that I paid for their recommendations that did nothing to resolve the engine problem for a full refund.
I am an engineer myself. Components are rated to a certain degree/level that the manufacturer can guarantee the customer to last that "x" amount of life time. For components like the mid pipe for a car, they should be able to handle a good amount of beating before something happens. I design components to last and would have a factor of safety of 2 or something (depending on the calculations). The final thought is, "Why should I be paying for repairs like this for a car that is only 5 years old?". I can see the normal wear and tear aka brakes, tires, oil changes, etc. I really shouldn't see high cost maintenance as seen through the ads/commercials.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
************UPDATE************
This is the final update on the situation. I have spoken to several friends and colleagues about this case. Most of them believe that this is the final straw to see if they are going to do this on their good will or not. I got the call back from the dealer telling me that they can only give me a discount of the parts and labor. In the end, it was still a large amount of money. I finally decided to just get the car back and weld the pipe shut if the damage is not too bad. By purchasing the parts and repairing it from a local mechanic (he has done several things for me and the quality of his work is good) will save me some money since the dealer is going to be doing the same thing but at least the labor will be cheaper outside. I hope after this final repair, the car will last at least a few more years without any major issues.
What and how do you guys feel about the reliability of the car if you had engine rebuilt and repair mid pipes?
So I did some research and found out that the issue was near the valves. I took it to the dealer stating that I have a check engine light on. They gave me a loaner car for the time being. I received a call from the dealer. They diagnosed the car and gave me recommendations. I reviewed them over night and told them that I would be okay with the listed recommendations from them. I had to cough up some money in order to get them fix this issue without charging me.
I took their recommendations and received the car back. I drove the car for about a week and the check engine light came back on. Brought it back to the dealer and they took a look at the car. They found some left over top end cleaner and cleaned it out. I got the car back once again.
I drive the car about a day and "surprisingly" the check engine light came back on. Brought it back to dealer once again. They called up Lexus and they replaced the pistons, valves, water pump, and some other small items all on courtesy of Lexus. Finally got the call that the car was finished and pick it up.
Driving the car since and no issues. Conclusion to this whole fiasco is that Lexus has great service if you are willing to play nicely with them. They handled the situation professionally. Would I think about purchasing a Lexus again the future? Yes, I would.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
***UPDATE***
So I have received the car back for about 2 weeks or so. It has been running great without any issues. So last night, I was driving back home and I got a flat for some odd reason. Good thing I have warranty for the tires. I placed the spare on and drove to the tire repair center. With the warranty on my tires, I got a brand new tire since there was a puncture/hole on the side wall, which is not repairable. So that was complete and I started to drive the car around. I noticed something strange that the car was doing when accelerating on low speeds. It sounded like a sputtering noise. The tire repair center was nice enough to check it out and see what the issue was. It was verified that it was an exhaust leak right after the first cat and the first O2 sensor on the mid pipe. I drove it to the dealer immediately to get them to inspect what the issue was. I spoke to them saying that there was something strange going on with the car and told them the general location of where I heard the noise coming from. They diagnosed it to be a leaking exhaust where I found earlier. I questioned them if they could speak to corporation to see if they can handle this since my car isn't that old and has these major issues. They denied that since they already did their goodwill for my rebuilt engine. So I got corporation's number and talked to them about the situation. In the end, they are going to assist me on this repair on their goodwill.
I know that the trips back and forth to Lexus is a pain but I have to say that they are exceptionally good with customer service. I hope my situation was able to help others with their problems that they are having.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
************UPDATE************
Problems are occurring once again. This time it is very confusing to me on how the decision was made. So after talking to corporation about the exhaust leak, I felt really satisfied about Lexus and thought about the possibility of purchasing another vehicle from them. I received a phone call from corporate HQ asking me a few questions about the car the service record. The information that I did not know, I just told them I did not know the answer to their question. After the questioning I got a call back from them a few days later. This time it was about the decision that have finalized on for the repair. The fine decision was that they were going to pay a certain percentage of the repair cost and I pay the rest of it. The reason being is that they have paid in full for the engine repair they just did for me and it was a large sum. This still does not make much sense to me since you buy Lexus for their renowned, reliable, and well built engine(s) and/or cars. This was the initial reason why I chose this car anyways. The initial result was that they were going to do this on their good will. A few days later and the final decision was that I need to cough up a good chunk of money for a component(s) that was designed to be in crazy weather conditions. I would think that this is a design flaw. I also did not mention the amount of money that I paid for their recommendations that did nothing to resolve the engine problem for a full refund.
I am an engineer myself. Components are rated to a certain degree/level that the manufacturer can guarantee the customer to last that "x" amount of life time. For components like the mid pipe for a car, they should be able to handle a good amount of beating before something happens. I design components to last and would have a factor of safety of 2 or something (depending on the calculations). The final thought is, "Why should I be paying for repairs like this for a car that is only 5 years old?". I can see the normal wear and tear aka brakes, tires, oil changes, etc. I really shouldn't see high cost maintenance as seen through the ads/commercials.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
************UPDATE************
This is the final update on the situation. I have spoken to several friends and colleagues about this case. Most of them believe that this is the final straw to see if they are going to do this on their good will or not. I got the call back from the dealer telling me that they can only give me a discount of the parts and labor. In the end, it was still a large amount of money. I finally decided to just get the car back and weld the pipe shut if the damage is not too bad. By purchasing the parts and repairing it from a local mechanic (he has done several things for me and the quality of his work is good) will save me some money since the dealer is going to be doing the same thing but at least the labor will be cheaper outside. I hope after this final repair, the car will last at least a few more years without any major issues.
What and how do you guys feel about the reliability of the car if you had engine rebuilt and repair mid pipes?
Last edited by sop; 02-01-12 at 12:32 PM.
01-16-12, 10:06 AM
#4
Wow, now that's customer service! I have nothing but good things to say about Lexus (the company) in general. I know some have issues that are mostly related with the dealerships they deal with...but overall, whenever Lexus Corp gets involved stuff gets done!
Glad to hear you are back on the road!
Glad to hear you are back on the road!
01-16-12, 10:13 AM
#7
Ok a little more insight on this situation...
Did you ever get the codes scanned? If so, what were they?
When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
I dont mean to bombard you with questions, however this is an interesting topic, and one that other members might be able to use in their future...
Thanks !
Did you ever get the codes scanned? If so, what were they?
When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
I dont mean to bombard you with questions, however this is an interesting topic, and one that other members might be able to use in their future...
Thanks !
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01-16-12, 01:07 PM
#13
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Join Date: Nov 2010
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While I was in the warranty period, I went in for service at the dealer. I am first owner and went back to the original dealer for service. After the warranty period ended, I went to do my own maintenance. This kept a good record in their system. According to their system, i was about 60k miles overdue for an oil change. Though I had an oil change about 1k miles prior to the issues.
Q. Did you ever get the codes scanned? If so, what were they?
A. I got the car scanned since I have the scanner handy most of the time. I got P0300, P0303, and P0420.
Q. When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
A. It is quite a large sum of money about $750 but when you compare it to $10, it isn't too bad.
Q. And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
A. I played it as if I knew nothing about the car. I had TSIB information/documentation and helpful knowledge from a mechanic from Lexus. Just play it cool and with the recommendations they give, you can pick and choose what you want to get done. If you know where and what the issue is, then only do recommendations that pertain to it so they don't question you. Be nice about it and just keep in mind what the issue is so they don't charge you for a fix that won't be affecting the affected area of the car. I was able to negotiate the price for labor also. If they are going to work on the same area where another component has to be removed, you can drop the price of the labor.
I hope this information will help other Lexus members.
Ok a little more insight on this situation...
Did you ever get the codes scanned? If so, what were they?
When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
I dont mean to bombard you with questions, however this is an interesting topic, and one that other members might be able to use in their future...
Thanks !
Did you ever get the codes scanned? If so, what were they?
When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
I dont mean to bombard you with questions, however this is an interesting topic, and one that other members might be able to use in their future...
Thanks !
A. I got the car scanned since I have the scanner handy most of the time. I got P0300, P0303, and P0420.
Q. When you say you had to cough up a little bit of money to have them do the work and not charge you for everything else, what exactly do you mean?
A. It is quite a large sum of money about $750 but when you compare it to $10, it isn't too bad.
Q. And ofcourse how did you play out the situation as far as when you showed up to the dealership....
A. I played it as if I knew nothing about the car. I had TSIB information/documentation and helpful knowledge from a mechanic from Lexus. Just play it cool and with the recommendations they give, you can pick and choose what you want to get done. If you know where and what the issue is, then only do recommendations that pertain to it so they don't question you. Be nice about it and just keep in mind what the issue is so they don't charge you for a fix that won't be affecting the affected area of the car. I was able to negotiate the price for labor also. If they are going to work on the same area where another component has to be removed, you can drop the price of the labor.
I hope this information will help other Lexus members.
