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I would ask them who covers the engine when the coolant runs low and blows a headgasket etc. Large or small, its not good for the engine to be leaking coolant
I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for now, but your thinking is very similar to mine.
So an update. After waiting for a few hours without a call and my calls going to voicemail I went back to the dealership (I had a loaner that was supposed to be back same day). The service consultant that I was speaking to originally was out to lunch so I spoke to another service consultant about what was going on and getting some items out of the car. He noted that he saw where I asked for the the leak to be submitted under warranty, but nothing else was written, so I wasn't sure it had even been submitted.
Around this time the service consultant that I had originally spoke with came back and I asked him. He noted that the warranty would not cover it. When I questioned why he finally admitted that they had not submitted it, rather the shop foreman did not believe that the warranty department would cover it.
So I pressed a little, noting that a few hours ago they submitted a quote of roughly $2,400.00 to have the leak fixed, but then it turned into a small leak after I asked them to submitted it under warranty. I also noted that a small leak could turn into a overheat situation and then a head gasket failure and that I was concerned that this leak would develop into one.
The service consultant then noted that Toyota coolant was "special" and that it would crystalize and stop the leak, to which I responded that even if that was true that the leak would continue to get worse, and would also mean the cooling system would likely not be getting to the proper pressure. At this point he noted that the gasket wouldn't allow it to leak severely, to which I noted that there was not actually a gasket rather it was FIPG.
At this point the service consultant relented and said he would go ahead and submitted it, but didn't think there was a huge chance of success. So I asked him what the number was so I could speak to them directly. He noted that he would submitted it and I should expect a call sometime tomorrow afternoon.
I realize they will get paid significantly less through warranty work so most dealers don't want to touch it, but I'm admittedly getting a bit frustrated with their attempt to pass this off at this point.
Good for you on pressuring them, definitely sounds like they are trying to avoid warranty reimbursement.
I had forgotten about that one.
Just can't see their trajectory of their arguement...you can pay 2400 to get it fixed...oh wait you have an extended warranty, then it's fine. Wait till it's worse.
Just now realizing that I should have taken a picture of the wiring harness cover on top of the engine, might be worth stopping by tomorrow to do so.
Well now I don't know what to think. They're claiming that there was no leak that they could see. Instead there was a miscommunication between the shop foreman and the tech and that they put out the estimate on the sheet to let me know what it might cost in the future.
Now admittedly the leak appears to be small as I haven't needed to add coolant that regularly, but they cannot give me an answer on where the coolant is going, and they claim that cannot see a leak with their borescope. They note that they can remove the upper intake manifold but I would have to pay for labor that before discovery.
Not surprisingly I'm a bit skeptical of their claims. It is an interesting system that you are relying on the very entity that could get shorted by lexus for the work, so they have little to no incentive to actually want the work. I have some remaining doubts that anything was submitted to lexus warranty, and this likely has stopped with the shop foreman.
EDIT: so what I got out of the service consultant is that the shop foreman did not see a leak with the borescope, but speculated that I was likely losing coolant at the valley plate, in order to confirm that they've have to start removing things. From outward appearances there is not a ton of coolant coming off and staining the transmission etc. Plan on calling Lexus now, but I'm going to be that they're going to say if the dealership hasn't found anything they can't authorize anything.
EDIT 2: the service consultant noted that he called lexus warranty service to leave a note that I was very concerned so that in the future if the valley plate did occur outside of warranty my chances of goodwill might be better. After contacting lexus warranty through the financial services and brand engagement, they both have no record of any dealer contact. At this point I'll contact the actual service manager and see what my options.
EDIT 3: so the stance from the service manager is that there was a miscommunication between the tech working on the vehicle and the foreman. The Tech noted that if the customer is losing coolant but we can't see it, it's likely the valley plate. The foreman can see no actual leak, and therefore has nothing to submit. The service manager notes that my concern and record would work with me towards goodwill if it happens outside of warranty, but that's obvious a roll of the dice.
They have offered that I can bring the vehicle in every few months to have it washed (nope) and have the vehicle inspected for signs of the leak at no cost.
I actually did give that a shot a while back, and didn't see anything glaring. Had hoped their borescope skills would be better than mine. I guess who's to say there is anything there.
So the stance from the service manager is that there was a miscommunication between the tech working on the vehicle and the foreman. The Tech noted that if the customer is losing coolant but we can't see it, it's likely the valley plate. The foreman can see no actual leak, and therefore has nothing to submit. The service manager notes that my concern and record would work with me towards goodwill if it happens outside of warranty, but that's obvious a roll of the dice.
They have offered that I can bring the vehicle in every few months to have it washed (nope) and have the vehicle inspected for signs of the leak at no cost.
Based on their check list it appears so. In all honesty, I've been losing some coolant, but it's not much, perhaps a gallon over the past 1-2 years. So it's not a major loss of coolant over a short period of time.
Just picked up the ISF. Their invoice makes it sound like they found a leak and I deferred the repair. Will have to get them to correct that.
Based on their check list it appears so. In all honesty, I've been losing some coolant, but it's not much, perhaps a gallon over the past 1-2 years. So it's not a major loss of coolant over a short period of time.
Just picked up the ISF. Their invoice makes it sound like they found a leak and I deferred the repair. Will have to get them to correct that.
Only symptom I had was coolant disappearing way too quickly. Had to top off the reservoir from low to full twice within the past month. Took it to the dealership to diagnose the leak and told them specifically to make sure to check the valley plate as I had heard of this being a common issue. They told me they couldn't find any leak and that my coolant level was probably just "fluctuating with temp" (lol). So I bought a cheap borescope and was able to find the leak within 2 minutes by poking it around the back of the engine. If you plan on getting this repair done at the dealership, I would suggest calling around a couple of them first to see if any techs are familiar with the leak.
07-05-23, 01:45 PM
