KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

Yeh i'd be firm about keeping everything the same finance wise. The car should simply be a replacement of what you have right now and no cost to you. As far as having the car delivered goes though, dealer will probably not bare that cost because you moved out of state, its not their problem really.

So if i were you, the only thing i'd be willing to pay is the delivery charge to ship the car to you. I'd push for them to pay the delivery fee, but don't be too upset if they make you pay for it.

is250cpo

iTrader: (1)

Thanks! how much is a typical delivery fee? Its about 250 miles.. MD to NY

Carver

Get the VIN on the new one and run it through your Driver account at Lexus. They don't like it much but I ran half a dozen through before I bought my last one.

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

Is the car identical to the car you bought in every respect other than that it has 3k more miles on it?

If so, then they'd list the replacement car for less than the car you bought, so of course you shouldn't have to pay anything to "trade up", since you're actually trading down slightly.

If, however, it has a higher mix of options or something like that, then I could see why the dealer would say you'd need to trade up.

HOWEVER, that doesn't mean it's right. You need to stand firm and tell him you're going to simply do a swap - your car for their replacement car - and pay nothing more. That's the way the transaction is going to go. Otherwise, you'll continue the escalation process with Lexus corporate and you'll get your lawyer involved.

I assume the replacement car is also CPO? And that you've checked CarFax, AutoCheck, Lexus' owners online records, etc and verified no accidents?

I know you're in a different state, now, but I really think that to do this right you should actually go to the dealer to consummate this transaction. I wouldn't trust something of this importance to be handled well just over phone and email. The main reason is that I believe you need to drive their replacement car (don't take their word on anything). For example, my 2007 IS350 was CPO but the minute I drove it during the test drive, I noticed the dash rattling like crazy. That's something that wouldn't have been covered by the CPO warranty. So if I'd just bought the car over the phone (taken their word for it) and had it shipped to me, then there'd have been nothing I could've done about the dash rattle. However, because I drove the car and noticed the problem, I made sure my salesman signed a "We Owe" slip that stated regardless of warranty coverage, they'd fix the dash rattle goodwill.

Keep us updated on what happens. DO NOT pay anything for this. If the dealer tries to stick you with paying something, then tell him no thanks and you'll continue the escalation process with corporate and get your lawyer (whom you've apprised of the situation) involved.

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

Yeah absolutely do this. In fact, when I bought my car at Rockville they actually just provided without my asking the Lexus service history that appears when you run it through the Lexus owners online account. So definitely ask for the car's VIN and check its history - anyone who knows of this ability uses it before purchase.

meangene

iTrader: (10)

I'd either ask them to do a straight trade if they aren't willing to do that I would continue with what you are doing with Lexus Corporate.

is250cpo

iTrader: (1)

Thanks everyone, I will get the vin and run it through the Lexus site and ask for a carfax/ autocheck first.

Looks like i may have to bite the bullet and drive down if the car seems legit.

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

Definitely ask them a bunch of questions about the car and make sure you note their answers. For example, clearly ask them whether or not there are any squeaks, rattles, or noises in the car, especially from the dash because it's a known issue. If the dealer says yes, you know about it and can ask them to address it before you drive down. If the dealer says no, then you drive down there and the car does have a problem, then you have some ammo to tell the salesman "You told me there wasn't an issue with this, so now fix it for me".

LexiBear

You've gotten some really good advice so far. I concur with calvin's suggestion of driving out there to inspect the car before accepting the trade.

Since I just got a 2008 CPO myself, here are some things fresh on my mind that you may want to check or ask about:
1. Check weatherstripping on windshield. The CPO warranty does not cover it but the original bumper-to-bumper one does so you'll want this taken care of now. There were a bunch of people here on CL that had this issue, there's a thread about it.
2. Ask about the remaining life on the brake pads and tires...is the wear comparable to your current car?
3. How about air filters and wiper blades?
4. Check batteries on both keys.

I don't know of some of these things are automatically replaced new for CPO but I know tires are not. The cost to replace all these wear items will add up later.

CleverName

Car fax is basically worthless, unless you purchase the car and then register the car with them for the guarantee.

First hand experience has shown me that a major accident out as far as 4 months before your purchase date may not show up on a carfax. I learned this after owning a car for two years and having its trade in values shot (by thousands) because of a major front end accident 4 months before my purchase.
As I had kept the original "clean" carfax, I was able to "prove" i knew nothing about the accident, but it did not help me regain lost trade-in value.

OP, I would work on a significant refund of cash, or and exchange for a car not involved in a collision, as it will bite you in the end...

2 cents
V

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

Very good thoughts. Indeed, my 2007 IS350 CPO from Rockville (OP's dealer) had the windshield molding/weatherstripping cracking, and I luckily was able to take it back to Rockville and they fixed it goodwill. The trunk lip spoiler was also coming off (adhesive was wearing down), and Rockville replaced the whole spoiler goodwill. Both those items weren't covered by CPO warranty. So my experience with Rockville's service department at least was fairly good. If you do have to interact with the service department, ask to work with Joel M., as he was great and handled getting all this stuff goodwilled for me.

All in all, I've just learned not to take the dealer's word for ANYTHING, no matter how much you trust them nor what inspection it's undergone. That's why you need to be there in person to do the transaction. You need to look over every inch of the car, so that if there's anything even slightly off, you can get it addressed.

LexFather

Thanks for the updates.

is250cpo

iTrader: (1)

thanks for the tips. I have a good friend of mine that still lives in the area so I think i can get him to take a look at the car first for the obvious things like rattles, dents, trims and see if nething needs to be addresses before i come down.
I just bough a set of brand new tires so i would just have them swap it out for me.
I do have to agree that service wise they have been good and have handled misc. items not covered by CPO, but like clever said, it will come back to haunt me if i trade in the car later on.

Does anyone know if the dealer comments on the service history can be modified by the dealer? The dealer that serviced the car wrote down. 'Notified owner car has been in an accident.' as part of a line item entry.
But i guess that will force the orig dealerto not be able to sell this as a CPO again?

calvin2376

iTrader: (2)

You mean the 2nd dealer, the one you took your car to for service that refused, made a note in the service history of "Notified owner car has been in an accident"? Are you saying you'd want to have it modified or are you just asking out of curiosity?

I do not believe that a dealer or anyone else can modify what another dealer has put in service history, as that could open the door to a lot of fraudulent changes/cover-ups. But more importantly, I think this should definitely be left on the service history to keep Rockville accountable. Rockville shouldn't be able to remove that line that your other dealer made just so they can look better when trying to resell the car after you trade it in.

is250cpo

iTrader: (1)

yeah that was what i was getting at. I was wondering if another dealer can remove, so for my case if rockville would be able to delete that comment or modify it and resell my car as another CPO.

I want the history to stay on the service record so any one that purchased the car in the future would be well aware.