Teletubbie

I just purchased a new 2009 RX350 and the dealer offered me a maintenance package for $1200 that covers all scheduled maintenance for 4 years/50K. This package is dealer exclusive and not the one offered by Lexus which costs around $1900 for the similar coverage. This dealer package is valid for service only at our two local Lexus dealers (both have the same ownership.)

I have until Monday to purchase it. I plan to keep this car for a long time and would like to know if this maintenace package is worth it?

Thanks.

iKon_RX

10(every5k) oil change @ $45 =50k =$450, 10 oil but washer @ $3= $30, plus cabin filter$30, tire rotation $15 each time etc,etc, ehh you get the idea. just add it all up.

you should already know any package a dealer sells is marked the hell up.
it probably only cost them about $700 for the part/labor up to 50k, and making $500 easy gross on just a maintenance package.

alot of what your paying for is just "inspecting". it all adds up each time you come in for oil change every 5k.

go here for very detailed info.
http://www.edmunds.com/maintenance/d...=&serviceType=

LophatRX

I purchased the same deal, from the dealer I bought my 04 RX from. In the long run it saves on the average service, but the bigger services at the 15, 30,45 and above the cost savings is only about 50 bucks for each. So expect to pay 300 plus for those big three services. Your dealer may be different if you want a loaner car on your basic services. The one I had didn't, they had a mall 5 minutes away which I was shuttled to for the 1 to 2 hours it took for the basic services. I did get a loaner car for the big services cause those are 4 hour plus services. So it is up to you to think about the long run. Cause you are still going to be out about 900 dollars for the big three services, and maybe more cause the 30,000 mile service may cost more than 300 I can't remember.

Ryeno

iTrader: (3)

As said before ANY service you buy is going to make a profit for the dealership.

Honestly under 50k their are NO MAJOR services. The only real major service a car has is the timing belt/water pump and thats done at 90k. along with spark plugs

50k and under is just going to be basic oil changes for the most part. With coolant and transmission fluid change at 30k. Brake and power steering fluid was well.

Are brake pads or air filters even covered under your package?

Under my math your only paying for about 500-700 dollars worth of parts/supplies, the rest is labor.

Really if you actually care about the life of your car and cost savings your best bet is just changing out the fluids yourself. If your not willing to do the work yourself then your never going to know if the dealership is bsing you about the maintenance and your going to overpay for the work being done.

ecount00

the dealer is going to make money on any deal. how terrible of them. they don't force anybody to buy anything. This is a simple one. If you think you will have routine and major service done at the dealer, you will definitley spend more than the price of the package over 4 years so it's a deal. If you are a do it your selfer or will be taking your car to Jiffy Lube (some do, many cringe at the thought) then you can probably pull it off for less than the price of the package.

exmeaguy

Just the fact that you are asking this question should already give you your answer.

RhoXS

I do not really agree with this. The dealer is certainly entitled to make a profit but the consumer is also entitled to find equal or better quality services at more competitive prices. When comparing a dealer to a reputable independent shop, the dealer is almost always a poor choice for the consumer.

With respect to Jiffy Lube, like you, I also cringe. But Jiffy Lube does not define the local independent shop that can be trusted, can do quality complex work, and even allows one to have an intelligent conversation about the work that needs to be done. Granted, dealers are easy to find and good independent shops are not. However, no matter where I lived over the years, I was always, albeit with some effort, have been able to find this kind of business.

I have dealt with dealers since 1969 when I purchased my first new car. Although a dealer is instinctively the preferred choice for service, I learned from painful experience that a dealer is to be avoided except for warranty work. I cringe when I think of some of the incompetent work done, the lies, the outright disrespect, the absurd costs, and the inability to be able to have any real conversation with them about what needs to be done.

Certainly there are dealers out there that provide high quality automotive and customer service. However, it is my experience that they are the very rare exception. BMW, surprisingly, seems to be the worst with the the most dismal customer service. Lexus, on the other hand, tries very hard at giving the appearance of providing a good customer experience but the predatory practices are still clearly there, just presented with much more polish than BMW.

All that having been said, a new Lexus dealer, Treasure Coast Lexus, just opened somewhat near us in Ft. Pierce, Florida. They gave me one of the two best car buying experiences I ever had when we purchased our 2009 RX350 last month. We had only one minor experience with their service department but at this time it appears they may just be one of the exceptions. The jury is still out but we will keep an open mind with them.

JorgeGVB

I bought the maintenance package. I don't have the time to do maintenance anymore and my local dealer always gives me loaner and washes my car too. Another benefit for me personally is it forces me to take the car in for service. I might save a few bucks going elsewhere, but I might skip an oil change or two along the way and I would not get a loaner car anywhere else.

The G Man

$1200????????? For another few hundred dollar, you can buy the extended warranty, I think I would rather have that.

ecount00

Well, when I said that dealers don't force anybody to buy anything, I was recognizing that a buyer can go elsewhere. To the point of the question, based on my service experience with a dealer, if you have all scheduled maintenance performed at the dealer for 4 years, you are going to pay more than $1200. If you can find a local independent shop you trust that will do it for less, then of course that is a better option.

Have to agree with G, in that an EW might be a better use of the cash. Tho of course you are going to pay for the maintenance too, wherever you do it, so that plan spends well more than $1200 in simple terms of cash outlay.

Teletubbie

OP here.

I called the service department and got the exact amounts for each scheduled service. All services at 5K intervals upto 50K are the same except at 30K. The 5K services are nothing but oil-lube-filter and tire rotation. The 15K is the same but they clean air filter, but the charge is same as 5K.

The first dealer quote me $172 for the 5K service and the second Lexus dealer quoted $187 for the same service (both local.) I think both of them are high for a simple oil-filter job and tire rotation. I asked the break down for 5K: $115 (labor for 1 hour) + $66 parts + $6 tax.

I am not sure now if prepaying is really a great deal even if I get the services at the dealer. So I called the Finance Manager to decline this deal. He said right now is the deadline to sign-up so that he can get it in Janurary month's accounting. He talked me in to purchasing it and I can cancel it anytime in the first 60 days for a full refund. So I just took it. To top that, the FM challenged that the numbers that I got from the service department are inaccurate. According to him, the 30K service will cost $750 and 15K will cost $350. He said he can provide me the service receipts from other customers. He asked me to call the service department and check with a different service advisor. The total according to him will be greater than $2500 if I pay as we go. He also told me that the package is good for 45K and not 50K as I originally thought (perhaps I mistook the first time he told me.)

So here is the costs if I pay as we go:
5k-Free
10k-$172
15k-$172
20k-$172
25k-$172
30k-$425
35k-$172
40k-$172
45k-$172
TOTAL: $1629

I called again and spoke to a different service advisor and the numbers were the same as before. The savings is there when prepaid but not significant enough to put down the money upfront. I am seriously thinking of cancelling the prepaid package. What do you think?

ggebhardt

I would cancel. These are a winner for the dealer, but a looser for the user. Your number prove it. Just pay as you go and save the money.

The G Man

Looking at the numbers again, there is less profit for the dealer as I original thought. The package comes out to 7 oil change and 7 tire rotation, 4 air and HVAC filter changes and one differantial fluid change at 30000 miles I believe. oil change is about $50 each time, time rotation is $30, air filter $30, HAVC filter $30 and Diff fluid is about $200. Total is $1000.

Teletubbie

It is not 4 AC and engine air filter changes. It is done only once at 30K. Plus the brake fluid is changed at 30K. There is no differential fluid change since I have FWD.

The G Man

So if you subtract the 3 filters changes, the dealer makes $400 off you compare to doing just the oil change, air and HVAC filter change, brake fluid change and tire rotation. They make the extra money off all the inspections, I usually just skip the inspection since it is not require by Lexus. If you bring your car in for service, they usually do an inspection anyways looking for other things to fix to pad the bill.