trystanu

So I've now spent of the order of 4-and-a-half grand trying to fix two problems at the local Lexus dealership. I would've thought for $110 an hour labor the Lexus mechanics would've been able to sort out these problems. Am I expecting too much from a certified mechanic?

I've had two problems:
1) Car stalls on some warm starts
2) Car whines at 20,40mph

to fix 1) they performed an hour-or-so of diagnosis, and then decided it was my idle air control motor, replaced it with a new part (~$900), and off I went. This didn't work. Later my CEL turned on, and they replaced an O2 sensor (~$350) thinking this would fix it. Nope, not that either. Then I tried a suggestion from clublexus.com forums and replaced the Fuel Pump ECU, now the problem is gone (Lexus mechanics 0, ClubLexus 1). Shouldn't I expect these guys have some idea of this kind of problem?

to fix 2) they performed several hours of diagnosis (~380) and figured it was my differential. I bought a differential from a CL user (400 shipped) and when they installed it they said it was leaky and needed a new cover, new seals, resealing, and refilling, (570 for installation). This seemed to work for a couple of weeks (although differential is much more boomy than the last one on slow-down). Now, three weeks later, car has started whining again.

I'm about to ring up these guys and give them an earful as I'm fed up with paying absolute top dollar for what seems to be horrible service. Is everyone else's experiences with the stealerships as bad as this? Or am I getting heftily rorted?

t.

mikeloc24

You're being raped for sure. The dealerships suck in terms of competitive pricing and their mechanics are supposed to know these cars better than anyone else, but I beg to differ. The only thing a dealership can do for me is sell me parts, as for actually touching my car it'll never happen. If I were you I'd see about demanding a refund or some other type of compensation because they incorrectly diagnosed your original problem and charged you and arm and a leg for repairs you probably didn't need. Screw the stealership

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

You are being brutally bent over.

2JZ_SC300

Well, you would expect the certified mechanics to know what they are doing, but not everyone pays attention in class.
as for the labor, i used to work at a dealership and if the Factory service manual says it takes 3 hours to replace, then they take that 3 hours, even if they can do it faster they want money....dealerships dont really give a shlt about their customers, even though they say they do. all they want is your money. they dont care if they diagnose your car wrong, that just means more money for them. bltches...i hate dealerships.

if you have any mechanic friends that you trust i'd take it to them and have them look at it.
the whinning noise Might be your tranny, but dont go pulling it out and buying a new one just yet, have it look at first.

Dramon

350 for an o2 sensor!!!!

You could have done that yourself for under 30 bucks. It'd take you just as long as a damn oil change.

trystanu

Yeah, I figured as much.

I definitely need a new south SF bay mechanic. I ended up taking it to Lexus because the first guy I took it to fitted the throttle sensor incorrectly and used the wrong tranny fluid (sigh). I still need to get this darn whine fixed and my (clunk) bushings done.

What a punch the whine is though -- it's almost impossible to diagnose. It only happens when the car is cold (i.e. left overnight) the first and second times I accelerate past 40mph. Then it just disappears.

(bah)

t.

SC400Dude

Here's my advice...and I work at a dealer...

Ask for the Service Manager and arrange a meeting with him to evaluate the situation.
If you both come to some terms of an agreement, then request for the shop foreman to handle your car specifically. Pick the guy who has the most experience.
At my Oxnard dealer, our shop foreman has been with us ever since Lexus was born. So he has years of experience under his belt. Everybody who comes in here with a specific problem requests for him. 9 out of 10 times, the customer leaves happy.

And note, complain and complain. You will get your way bro. I've seen it numerous times. If you're unhappy about the service, please let them know...
They don't want the bad rep, believe me. I wouldn't want anyone to be pissed at me. You'll just lose customers that way.

I just finished off with this one lady who kept coming back because new problems would arise.
Her sputtering RX300 had the Check Engine light on, so she brought it in and we replaced an ignition wire, #1. When she drove it the next day, the light came on again. This time, coil wire #6. Boy was she raging....but hey, she paid over $600 bucks for both fixes - so when these cars get old, they'll need work...and sometimes, you're at the mercy of things snowballing one right after another.

But the customer is always right. The Techs should be able to diagnose the problem the first time and not replace items that shouldn't be replaced. If so, then the customer should be reimbursed or use the the credit towards the right fix. I've been a writer for a year or so and I've never seen a case of faulty diagnostic checks. The Techs should have scan tools and such.
The customer shouldn't be charges for bogus parts and labor if they were told it would be fixed the first time.

There are things I would recommend repairing at the dealer and there are things I can do myself or get done elsewhere for less. Thank goodness I have ClubLexus.

Dramon

whine could be from your rearend. I had a problem like that in my MKIII.

SCV8

I wouldn't trust our local Lexus Dealer to work on my lawnmower.
I really wouldn't.

Lexologist

Nice post SC400Dude

Personally, I dont let anyone touch my car unless I dont have the tools or the man-power.

No one will ever care as much about your car as you do.

If your on a car forum, then you are the type pf person that will WANT to take care of their car.

2 Different types of people.

It amazes me how people treat their cars..

.. terrible to be conservative.