You should consider contacting your local news and see if any of them would run such a story. here in south Florida there are two news stations that run such stories. Once is Help me Howard and the other is Al Sunshine’s Shame on You. In many of those stories they've stepped in and gotten the issue straightened out so the business does not endure any more negative publicity.

 

Noticed a 3.5 motor on ebay with 54k for $2700. Says it fits the GS350 and IS350...

 

Contact Autoblog, Jalopnik, and your local news. You also need to get a lawyer right away pretty much. I would not even look into getting a used engine cause that is just letting them win.

 

Dude, hit up Jalopnik. They're pretty good about posting terrible situations such as yours and blasting the car companies.

 

Blah, blah, blah. Sorry, but you can't sue for ones own negligence. Doing what you suggest, would just make the OP look stupid. Bottom line, hard lesson learned, and should have not tried to save a few $$ by taking the car elsewhere for service... Time to close this thread and move on!

I back Lexus decision. If they had to fix every idiots issue (I'm generalizing, not specifically the OP) from headlight condensation for bad HID upgrade, to blown amps for stereo mods, then vehicles would be 2x the cost.

 

taking the car elsewhere wasn't the cause of his problems. His car got hot from his coolant system not working properly(waterpump stopped working?). A water pump can fail on any car, even if you do regular service. thats not the issue. its like having a bad battery, but saying you get your service done regularly.

He drove his car Hot, to the point where it got so hot that it caused other parts to fail.

He's saying he had no warning that his car was running hot.

 

Going to the dealer for service would help my case because I could say a Lexus tech was negligent however it shouldn't matter where I go for service. Extra Care said the pump leaked coolant for a "couple of weeks". Our cars have 6 mo/5k maintenance intervals. The leak could've started the day after an oil change and would've see any service dept for 3-5 months.

I didn't mod my engine nor do anything that would void my warranty. I'm not looking for a settlement and I don't want to become an internet celebrity. I just want my warranty honored.

 

so how do you prove that you didnt know the car was running hot or leaking coolant? thats going to be hard.

 

You should be careful about giving (bad) advice. Note, that companies do have the right to sue consumers for public slander or defamation. Google it, it's becoming more and more common.

 

Lot's of emotion here which is not suprising, but it seems to me we don't know all the information that Lexus used to come to their decision. They saw something in the failure that led them to come to the conclusion that the driver was ultimately responsible for the catastrophic failure. OP can contact a lawyer but going up against Lexus Corporate would not be an easy case to win. Lexus has something in their conclusion that hangs the ultimate failure on the owner. Just my opinion.

 

I agree. Lexus probably has a good reason, or at least a reason. lol

 

All the information or no, this whole affair stinks. A water pump shouldn't fail that early and few drivers would notice a small leak that could eventually cause overheating. I can't believe the crap Lexus are responding to this poor guy with. What happened to the early days of Lexus customer service being the best in the industry? I guess Toyota is finally acknowledging that the Lexus division is just another badge engineering exercise (think Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick, cadillac).

I would negotiate some "assistance" with Lexus, eg they pay for parts and you pay for labor (or vice versa). Contact the local TV stations Consumer Advocate and get it on TV - that'll get their butts in gear! If the car is basically totalled, you could drive it up to the Lexus dealership and set fire to it (just kidding, but others have done this)!

 

This is absolute rubbish. Since when is one penalized for not servicing at the dealership? In your defense, you can claim you were not getting it serviced anywhere. all you need is oil change. One is not required to inspect the underneath of the car daily in and catch these problems.

 

So to you a failed water pump is the same as aftermarket hid and custom sound mods? That makes a lot of sense. It is possible as stated earlier in this thread for the coolant to have leaked to the point where the temperature gauge would not function properly. We dont know all the details so taking anyones side and calling the other stupid is uncalled for

 

This is just my two cents.

It feels like when someone has a bad experience with Lexus (even if it only happens with say...1% of all Lexus customers), people have a tendency to defend Lexus like they are a family member.

I'm not saying Lexus is always "in the wrong" (or "in the right"), and neither are the people that post their negative experiences, but I don't always feel like everyone is being objective either (accusing the OP of lying or holding back information doesn't *always* seem appropriate yet I seem to read it in almost every thread involving Lexus Corporate).

In this case, I believe Lexus Corporate may have made a mistake (granted I'm only hearing 1/2 the story, but the OP has been fairly open about posting what information he's received from Lexus, etc.), but let's be honest every person (and every company) has made mistakes...

I believe Lobuxracer hit it on the head with this comment: "They (Lexus) don't have a leg to stand on in regards to "you should have noticed something" because they have no idea how long it took the pump to fail. If the seal failed suddenly and the coolant level dropped fast (same idea as a heater hose failing), your temperature would look normal and you would keep driving until the engine seized. It's very unlikely you'd notice anything if you were at highway speed unless you happened to notice a white cloud behind the car in the mirror. Most people do not, and I've seen this on the road many times - white or blue smoke from the car in front of me, and the owner is completely unaware there is an issue with the vehicle. Didn't you say you were on a long trip?"

If I was the OP, I would definitely contact the media. You can not be sued for slander by telling your story. You can be sued for slander by lying. There is a huge difference. I would also contact an attorney immediately. No one likes contacting an attorney, but it's worth the money (and in many cases you can get a free consultation). I've had to help a few friends with attorney's before and none of them have come back and said "I wish I wouldn't have contacted an attorney", but I know several that have regretted not contacting an attorney (and trying to take matters into their own hands).

I'm a little rusty, but I believe the burden of proof would shift to Lexus for not upholding their warranty at some point. Regardless, if what you are saying is honest and true, then simply contacting the media and an attorney (for consultation or for advice on filing a small court claim) may easily stop this issue from escalating into a full blown court-case. It's amazing how when these issues "see the light of day" how both sides seem to find a resolution.

Best of luck to you.

Disclaimer: This message is only my opinion and should not be considered as legal advice .... especially since I'm on painkillers ;-)