dmrinehart

I'm getting ready to have dealer replace timing belt and water pump. How's the best way to confirm they did the work?

jimbosr1

give you the old parts back when they are finished the job.you must tell them you want the old parts when they write the work order up.

mcomer

Consider going to www.dealerrater.com and reading up on sales and service practices. Log on and contribute if you want to help.

warminwisc

My Yota dealer is a gem so they are out there. Fast fair friendly. I bring em donuts, even a bunch of bananas from the grocery store for an oil change, Starbucks gift cards at X Mas and tip em a 20 once in a while. When I go in they are always looking for a coupon, promotion or way to keep it fair with their supervisors. I have a t belt job coming up minus roller and tensioners for 600 bucks but I may have them done also and I know they are fair. On a good day they see 50 tickets.

I picked up a Highlander when I sold my Touareg just to keep the same service department. Bergstrom Automotive in Oshkosh. They keep my snows, let me ship in Tire rack Tires so keep looking and remember alot of the guys in the car industry are making 35k a year so a 20 is a surprise. I drive like 35k a year so see these guys every 6-8 weeks at least. I just pull in to have em check my tires and will toss em a 5 for lunch on occasion. I can bring in my own synthetic oil so I pay like 13 bucks with filter and labor with huge TV, updated mags, beverages and treats they are like family.

Coulter

I'm glad you have a good relationship with your dealer, but you shouldn't need to do all this to get fair service.

Bringing them lunch/breakfast, tipping them with cash on the side, etc. Essentially your bribing them to do the job they're paid to do. With what you spend there, they should be the one wooing you.

I don't think most people expect a dealership to grant special favors, they just want honest service, even if it's expensive. Yet every dealership I've ever been to has tried to con me with service I don't need.

I would honestly feel weird to do all of this with a business where I'm already paying top dollar.

warminwisc

You are certainly speaking yur mind, thats good. They did all this before I started tipping them that is why I stayed with this dealership which bends over backwards for you. This is their policy as I see how they treat other guests and my Touareg TDI with Audi techs.I loved and sold.

Jon Bergstrom's family is the paper industry roots in Wisconsin from lumberjacks days, log jams with dynamite. They have most every dealership, no Rolls have a couple italian lines, all german lines and english lines, all american, all japanese and ah,ya, korean. He dumps tons of money into the community as a philanthopist practically.

I am paying the labor rate and management I have a good relationship also. These guys are under cars in the snow, I bring it in the same day in a blizzard. The service manager put on a pair of wiper blades prolly knew really the paperwork generated did not justify the profit. I will get like corollas for daily loaners.

These are young guys like my kid who sneak by on budgets and still fall behind, so this is really my gesture to everyone I deal with as I as am lucky I can be. But also, if you make a mistake fix it and we move on and they have made mistakes. When they took off the wrong wheel bearing they charged me for one though provided me two, so they are fair.

I am old enough and feel lets just have fun and appreciate, not bribe. Again alot of these folks need to work their way up in the company to make a living wage but they have opportunities.

Try it some time.

Toss the tech 20 bucks for a 4 tire install, I do not call that bribery, it is work I wouldn't want to do. Once on a ticket they took a door apart to check a window and had to tighten a bolt, N/C (010 Highlanders are far from Lexus quality) . They charged me 75 bucks to bull the headliner for a sticky sunroof on the same ticket as well as an 80 dollar alignment I know hold up and maybe 50 bucks to drain some drive train fluids.
I keep on trying to get em to go skiing but they are young have young kids wifey rules the roost.

Really I could go to Rays Tranny, Swindels, a couple other places I usually get good service for my kids cars and special tranny jobs it is a real good community I have sounds like I wish you guys did also. Good luck

warminwisc

And if the tech is 20 bucks an hour for a tire install and align I feel a 20 buck tip tust a decent thing to do. they have Roadforce balancing in all the dealerships. Prolly toss em 20 bucks for the t belt job people want to be liked, right and appreciated..

warminwisc

While I have explained my intentions are not bribery, look around the US is refounded now on bribery with American and foreign policy.

I do not call bananas or donuts breakfast/lunch. Little things starbucks 5 dollar cards for XMas 10 of em to pass out, you would be amazed how much it makes em smile. They keep my snows in the loft and bundled up for for free and they are Tire rack tires they mounted, it is just their policy. JB has warehouses for other folks tires. My coworker got a 335 BMW they will drive 50 miles each way to pick up/return and leave a BMW loaner for service plans and the guy also bought a Range Rover from them.

ancdmd

Why not mention their name? I am in SE FL also and have had bad experiences at many dealers.

honeygee2

I always drive to the back and give the car wash guys donuts.....they call me mr donutman. My keys are hand delivered to me every time and the car comes out perfect...door jambs cleaned, tires sprayed etc. etc etc. I also make a point of going back after I get my car and thank them personally. It's amazing what 6 bucks of donuts do. If I get there in the Afternoon I take them a case of water. They tell me I am the only customer that does anything like that. I have also been known to drop off a bottle of adult libation to the service advisor. Hey last time it was there as stated above I got valve cover gaskets replaced and plugs for 488....unbelievable at a lexus dealer. Take care of the people that take are of you!

campisi

This thread is pathetic. Don't you guys have any common sense? Bribing grease monkeys with fricking donuts?! Too funny. I guess there will always be sheep to be sheared and people to do the shearing.

SW17LS

This is why I always say...don't take an old Lexus to the Lexus dealer.

The vast majority of the cars the dealer sees are newer models under warranty. The dealer is great for high levels of service for oil changes, or warranty repairs when Lexus is footing the bill. Dealers have a "replace, replace, replace" mentality when it comes to solving problems, when Lexus is paying thats fine...when you are paying look out. The subwoofer is a great example, $500 to replace the Lexus sub...I don't think thats unusual for a Lexus dealer to charge. Glue will work, but dealers don't think like that. Blown sub? New sub. When your Lexus is 14 years old...you can't be spending money with that mentality anymore.

Find yourself a good independent and never visit the dealer again. Until you have a new one thats under warranty, and then its up to you.

Lzam

Very good advice if it's not under warranty it's not going to the dealership! Not even for a oil change! Mechanics don't trouble shoot anymore if it's hard to find the problem they just replace stuff.

warminwisc

I know coming from California bro this is hard to understand.

Arcturus

I recently had a defective OEM Lexus battery that was leaking acid badly. It was 3 years into its "84 month warranty". The previous owner purchased it so I didn't have the receipts and the Lexus dealership near my house told me since they couldn't find any service records in the system they couldn't honor the warranty.

When I asked how much a new Lexus battery cost they told me around $500 dollars, but with the warranty they could probably prorate it to $200 something. I laughed and asked them whether anyone actually bought new batteries from them. My joking was not well received.

I promptly went to Costco where I picked up a Kirkland Signature battery for $109 dollars (taxes included). It has more cold cranking amps (700 vs 585) a 3 month complete replacement warranty and 100 month pro-rated warranty.

What's funny is that they are both made by the same company - Johnson Controls. Lexus is just putting their stamp on it and pocketing the difference.

When I had the car inspected before I bought it, the inspector made some offhanded remark about "you won't be taking this to the Lexus dealership for service that's for sure". I can now see why this is.