MMakoto

so this morning i took my '10 rx350 into service just for an oil change, an hour + later the service guy escorted me to my car and told me that i needed a new oil pan. they showed me the threads from the oil pan is worn and the screw would not hold the oil w/o leak. so my question is, is the dealership responsible for this or it's part of wear and tear that i need to pay outta pocket? i have done all of my oil changes at this dealership and nowhere else, and my car is outta warranty now with 60k miles. i have never had this problem nor heard of it from any friends, and it's a $350 fix, so i'm feeling a bit upset because i feel that it's their fault. any comments or suggestions are welcomed. thanks in advance.

benzo555

iTrader: (11)

Id be pissed too if that was the only place that did the oil change. Someone over torqued that puppy and ate the threads. There is no reason for the oil pan bolt to be stripped EVER!

MMakoto

so do you recommend that i just pay for it now and then complain to the dealership or lexus usa later? or i should call one of them now? i didn't wanna argue with the service guy before, and i don't know how to either, so i just took the loaner car and left. the car should be ready for pick up tomorrow, so time is very tight now.

Stanford9

I would push the issue with the dealership by saying that one of the main reasons that you always had them change the oil was so that something like this would NOT happen. Is this what corporate Lexus would call ' 'The pursuit of perfection" ?? If so the marketing department is way overstating the culture of the actual dealership experience. I would lobby for them to pay not you. If they stick you with the bill what incentive would you ever have to go back to them for service? Why, so they can break something else and make you pay for their mistakes? You may not be the first person this has happened to. Could this type of sloppy workmanship be a way to pad their bottom line?

kitlz

Wow, sorry to hear. What was the dealer's explanation about how it happened? By bringing your RX to them it should have ensured the work was done properly but it doesn't appear that way. If you can't get a reasonable answer, inform them you will take it to a higher level (i.e. Lexus corporate) if necessary. Things like that just don't happen on their own. Please keep us posted.

MMakoto

i have just called the service manager and told him that i don't feel that it's my responsibility and ask to see what they can do. he sounded courteous and said he'll call me back in an hour or so. the service adviser's explanation was that it's wear and tear, so therefore i am responsible. i was a little bit shocked when he said that, twice too, but didn't feel like arguing with him over there. let's just hope the service manager call me back with some good news. fingers crossed.

azinn

Total BS on the dealerships part................................. since all oil changes were done by them its there total responsibility for the damage.

Sevn86

I blame the dealership, I understand the bolt wears with each oil change but there is no way it could have happened all ready. Someone striped it and now they want to make you pay for it so they can make money off you, especially since your now out of warranty.

rxsuperman

I also own a 1995 Honda Accord since new and I changed the oil myself every 5k miles . To this date, the car still has the orginal oil pan and drain plug (i change the washer on every oil change) no leaks at all. The bottom line is that someone at the dealer stripped the thread either by overtightening or cross threading and this is the dealer's fault.

MMakoto

so the service manager called me back and said they'll take care of this oil pan replacement as a one time good-will thing, i can't say i'm a 100% happy, but i'm glad they are taking care of it. now i probably need to pay full price on the oil change ($130+) and two rear brake pads ($250+), because they previously gave me a discount with the oil pan replacement.

vlad_a

Good thing they're taking care of it. Totally their fault. That's one of the reasons I change my own oil. You'd think such a simple task would not get screwed-up.
On an upside, the tech could have not said anything and you'd run out of oil. It happened to one of my coworkers who had an oil changed on an old Camry at Walmart. Walmart ended up paying for it. The car had 200K+ miles. Not a wear and tear item!

kitlz

Good deal. Make sure you thank the service manager tomorrow when you pick up your RX but let him know you're going elsewhere from now on. No explanation needed there

dctex99

Yesl, that is total BS; thousand of old cars on the road that had oil changed every 3k miles in their 300,000 mile life and never a problem. Part of the problem IS that the pans are now soft aluminum, but all the more reason that they should be more careful when changing oil!!!!

corradoMR2

"Wear and tear" ? And you are supposed to be responsible? Really? I'd say who was the user of the bolt/oil pan? Not you but the service technicians are responsible so they should pay for it. If the bolt/pan was something YOU used and operated then yes you would be responsible, but you never have touched it. You should remind them that the reason why you go to Lexus and pay the extra $ for servicing is that the work is WARRANTED. Glad the service manager stepped up but I wouldn't go there again since anything else that they wear out themselves or break, they'd put it on you.

Yurka

its sorta a biggie, i would just push on the dealership, because it is in their best interest and responsibility to take good care of the car, and if they messed up and didnt tell you and now it is coming out, push on them, make them fix it. I had issue with breaks when i got my 2010, i was about to drop the car n be like **** it, either you fix it or give me my $, you shouldve inspected it before giving me the keys. i got everything replaced in front of me so there is no bs and a few weeks later i they mailed me a new bill, due to inconvenience they dropped the prive for about 500$ over all, not much, but still good. Then i came to pick up some additional things i ordered from them, all of them were running around kissing my ***..