mukarram20

Hello

My 2001 LS430 (that I have owned for the past 6 months) has passed 90k mile service. I was looking at scheduled maintenance and it seems quite a lot of work is needed on the car. Is it better to take it to a dealer or have some shop do the work. I read some posts where some recommended changing timing belt and water pump at 100k.

Also, I have a VSC light that came on few days ago (with no other lights or issues with driving). So if I take to the dealer, I am sure that they will charge me so if you do recommend, I will let the know not to work on that VSC light issue.

If I take it to a regular shop such as Pep Boys, what schedule maintenance work I NEED TO HAVE DONE as I would like not to spend too much money as my wife's retail job is up in the air.

Thank you!

Raza

mukarram20

Oh, if I was not clear, my car mileage is about 93,000 and I am looking at 90k mile service scheduled maintenance.

sojah

iTrader: (1)

i have a link on my work computer that actually says all the work lexus will do for your car for the 90k service and the price range they will charge so on monday if you still need it i can give that to you. i think the majority of the important things are: timing belt & water pump, transmission service (change the fluid), air filter, oil change + filter, brake fluid flush + check pads and rotors, spark plugs replacement (much cheaper to buy on your own and take to a shop than to have lexus do it), and possibly the rear differential fluid change.

if you did all of these at a mom & pop shop or a local mechanic that isn't raping you you should be able to get it all done for about 800-900$ but if at lexus it would be like 1800-2000$. just guess-timations on my part but i don't think the real figures would be to far off. a lot of people do the timing belt/water pump separately because this is half the cost of all the things i mentioned above.

I AM PRETTY SURE THE VSC LIGHT IS THE VEHICLE SKID CONTROL OR SOMEThing like that which has nothing to do with anything. if this light is on on your display this means that you hit the button which means that the vsc is disabled and your back tires will spin if they loose traction. the default is for this to be on so you will not be able to spin the back tires and you will not be able to see the vsc light on your display.

mukarram20

Thank you so much for your response. If it is not too much trouble, please do send me the link that you mentioned about on your work computer.

I have a VSC button but I tried to turn it on but as simply as soon as I start the car, I get the error message that it is off and also the message to Check VSC. Does it damage the car if I choose to ignore it? I have no other lights on. Also, I have to take the car for emissions as I got a letter and the letter states that there should not be any warning lights so I have to get this fixed prior to April 25th deadline.

I noticed that you are somewhere between Baltimore and DC. I am slightly north of Baltimore (Owings Mills). Do you know of a reputable mechanic who is honest and won't rip me. I would not mind driving down towards somewhere in between MD and DC if you can give some names.

Thanks again!

AlexusAnja

Just my 2cents worth, but having the water pump replaced at the time of timing belts done is such "old school" practice of years gone now when water pumps were virtually disposable and had to be changed because they only lasted 100K or so. Therefore, having a timing belt done at 60k, it was worth it to do the pump then, rather than pay for the same labor later to get the pump out.

With today's technology and build quality, a water pump should not fail before 100K and I venture to say not within 150k, especially on a Lexus. Therefore, skip the water pump and save yourself about $300. I had my timing belt done on my RX at a dealership back when it only at 58K and the water pump was never replaced and I'm at 120K right now with the RX.

Also, a lot of what Sojah has listed are "good" to replace at 90K for nice peace of mind, but I believe they're all rated for 100K in the manual, like timing belt, spark plugs, etc. If you're up to date with your oil filter, air filters, etc. and you're at 93K, I'd say you're fine to go another 7K and wait until 100K to do everything Sojah noted.

sojah

iTrader: (1)

well i just took my wifes car for an oil change at this brand new mom and pop shop here in annapolis, right off of hghy 50 on west street, and they did the complete oil change service stuff for like 16$. they called me up the next day and kept asking how they did and if there was anything else they could do, they even sent me a thank you card. come to find out the just opened about 3 weeks ago and are very hungry for a customer base. they were all very nice mechanics and i told them about my ls430 and they said they could do most any regular maintenance stuff that lex could do for a fraction of the price. i told them i would consider taking my car there, at least for easy stuff like spark plugs, fluid changes, brake pads & rotors + timing belt. i just hope they are not corrupted in about 2 years when i need all this stuff done on my car... bottom line is that this place just opened up and they are all honest hard working local mechanics that want to make money in this tough economy presently and they seem to me like they haven't been corrupted yet like most other shops have.

name is : All Tune & Lube
40 Hudson St
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 263-3688

this is all i can think of right now, other than the stealerships.. .i know its not close to you at all, but hey its something.

btw: because of snow, i am not going in to work today, so that link will have to wait till tomorrow.

also, not sure if that vsc light would mess with your emissions. i wouldn't worry about that too much, just tell them its your vehicle stability control if they do happen to ask, but i don't think they will even care personally. when i had my car done last the guy didn't spend 30 seconds in it or seem to care, cuz it was a newer vehicle and they pass like 99.9% of the time.

AlexusAnja

Here in NJ, they only look at the "check engine" light... all the other lights can up blinking like a Christmas tree for all they care. I just got my RX done with the blown tailight on (one of the capacitors went bad on my LED) and it passed fine. As long as what they're looking for passes, then it passes.

jonrago

I just had my 90K mile service. It was $1,600. Timing Belt, Water Pump, Fluids, Brake Pads all the way around. I go to a Toyota / Lexus Repair Shop. Same service at a Lexus Dealer would be north of $2k. I would not take my UL to a mom and pop that is not familiar with Lexus. Especially the LS's. They use different parts/fluids than most Lexuses let alone Toyota's or a Chevy for that matter...... They do the water pump when they do the belt becuase they have it torn apart to do the belt. No need to ever do the belt before 90k. If it fails, I would bet $1,000 Lexus would repair at their cost.......

sojah

iTrader: (1)

yeah i forgot to mention that most if not all the fluids are special on our cars so make sure you either look it up or ask lexus before taking it to a non lex mechanic to have them change or replace any fluids. my bads...

mukarram20

Thank you so much Sojah, AlexusAnja and Jonrago for your valuable input and advice. It is truly appreciated.

As mentioned, I will call the All Tune and Lube place in Annapolis and make sure that they can do the the scheduled maintenance and use lexus approved fluids. I might go to Annapolis sometime in end of March so I will take it there.

Thanks for the vsc light and emission. I am less worried now about that too. The economy is so bad that a person like me is freaked out - I do not work for AIG or Citibank!

Raza

sojah

iTrader: (1)

here is that link to the lexus maintenance page; the timing belt/ water pump is not listed on this but it is somewhat recommended to get it taken care of around 90k + - 110 k...

let me know how they do on an ls430 and i'll probably take mines there for my 60k then depending on the price and your satisfaction level.

blacksc400

iTrader: (4)

It won't cost me 400.00 to do the timing belt and water pump, I just have to get all OEM parts needed and buy my friend a lunch for his work.

sojah

iTrader: (1)

well your friend sounds like a very cool fellow, i hope he is in the Annapolis area in about 3 years to do mines.

blacksc400

iTrader: (4)

He is a very good mechanic, he did my GS400, SC300/400, LX470 timing belt changes.
Well, I have to work with him too, 2 of us can do UZ motor timing belt chage within 3 hours.

dmmoroney

I see this a very old thread, but I have a question. I'm picking up my 04 LS 430 Saturday, it has 123K miles. The 120K mile maintenance is about $1,100 apparently at a Lexus dealership. Can I have all the items done by my local guy to save money? Here's the list of maintenance:

http://www.lexusofbridgewater.com/MiscPage_3