armenh

Hello all,

We have a 2010 RX 350 and at just around 13.5k miles we got a warning for an oil change, I am assuming we got this because we had the oil changed at 8.5k miles. My question is regarding the 15k mile maintenance. Is it necessary to take the car to the dealer and have them do the maintenance if the car is a lease? I saw the line item things they do and I can have this done myself or by a mechanic seems ridiculous to spend 350 bucks for this service in So Cal.

Would I get penalized for not servicing the car with Lexus when returning the lease and not getting another Lexus? How mandatory are having the services done at a Lexus dealer when you have leased the car through them?

markrivers

NO you don't have to do it with them ( dealer)
you can do it yourself or bring the car to another mechanic.

Read the lease agreement and there's nothing there that states that all maintenance should be done with the Dealer ONLY.

data2009

Lexus dealer does not own your leased RX. Your bank does. If you leased with MF, then Lexus Financial Bank does. If you shopped for lowest rate, then a third-party bank does. It's a pure profit for dealer, if you both service your leased car with them and then return it in pristine condition. Dealer simply buys it back from Lexus at their cost, and then sells it as 'certified, pre-owned' (Lexus will even pay them to pre-certify the car, covering on average about $1,500 in repairs). If you do not service your vehicle at all, neglect to change the oil, etc., all which can cause non-warranted damage, you MAY have to pony up for repairs.

You can change the oil, do maintenance at any shop (you may start with Toyota, same parts, lesser charge for labor, same coffee and cookies, maybe less-sized plasma TV), unless your lease agreement states otherwise.

In the end, when your lease is up, you typically need to worry about tires having at least 1/4 thread left, and matching size, any exterior damage not larger the size of quarter, broken glass, mileage, etc. Basically, anything that will prevent the bank from immediately selling it, typically at auction rates unless your dealer buys it (see first paragraph).

Hope this answers your questions.

markrivers

^ that's why you need to buy an insurance for wear and tear on your FIRST day of LEASE.
so that you won't have to replace the tires, worry about those dings and minor scratches caused by grocery carts, those bug stains on the wind shield, those paint chips etc.

it's less than 800 and divided equally on your lease term 36 months/ 48 months.

data2009

This may not be a bad idea, depending on what exactly gets covered, or, for it to pay off, depending on what exactly gets damaged.

Most items may not cost you more to fix at the end of lease, and if you have a more serious damage then your insurance, less deductible, should even things out.

You also pay interest + tax on 800, unless CA lease laws are different. I got dent protection for about 500, and already used 3 times to fix small dents. With tires, mine never lasted more than 30k miles (I consider more than 50% wear unsafe), so having insurance on bold tires does not do me any good, I'd still replace the tires before the end of lease.

markrivers

^ it's actually an Excess Wear and Tear Protection Waiver from Autoguard.

the way it was explained to us, we can bring the RX back with bald tires, damaged but usable chrome wheels, dings, paint chips, extremely dirty interior ( NOT that we'll ever make it so), etc.

buying a new set of tires can be as expensive as $700 to 1000 depending on the type of tires that you'll be purchasing.

You're right about sales tax on the price of the insurance/waiver.