joenew61

For those of you that may have shopped price and bought at a dealer that is not in convenient service distance, I was just wondering what your experience has been trying to get service from a different dealer from where you bought the car. Have there been any differences in the level of service...availability of loaner cars, etc.

Thanks!

Cruiter

Where you buy has no conditions whatsoever on service. We have five dealers in our metro area and I could go to anyone I want to for regular service or warranty work.

BertL

I had no issues whatsoever buying in California, having the dealer ship the car to my home in Atlanta, and having service done there, including initial challenging warranty issues, such as replacement of all interior carpet (due in my opinion to sloppy prep by the CA dealer) requiring removal of front/back seats, console,, etc, and repainting the hood of the car due to paint flaws under the clear coat requiring the area service manager to be invoked which the Atlanta dealer went to all the trouble of coordinating. It was truly two great examples of Lexus customer service at it's best and a good part of the reason while I am still a loyal customer. I always had an appropriate loaner and there was never a feeling I was not a Lexus customer. My Atlanta SA is probably the best I've had over many years as I've moved across the US and multiple dealerships.

Similarly, my SA in Phoenix did an outstanding job bringing in my SC300 (into the NA warranty system) at that time still under warranty that I had purchased in Hawaii and shipped with me to Scottsdale, AZ... The NA system had no visibility to my VIN. It took him I know at lot of effort dealing with Hawaii, Japan, and Lexus NA in Torrance to resolve over several days.. Strangely, Hawaii is a US State, but in Lexus terms, at least back in the late '90s, purchased directly from Japan, so their systems were oddly not part of North America... For me, it's yet another (strange) example of Lexus dealerships going the extra mile to treat their customers right, no matter where the vehicle was purchased.

joenew61

Thanks for the perspective. I would prefer to buy local and start the relationship with a purchase, but not by paying a $1,000+ premium over best available price. If the local dealer can come close to the high volume dealer in the next state, I wouldn't mind paying a few hundred dollar premium. Is invoice and 1.9% financing a reasonable target on a 450h, or is that a theshhold that is only available at fiscal year end (March?), or during other promotional discounts?

LexRexBlue

My first RX was almost $1000 more at the local dealer, but they were honest. Through the years they would throw in items that didn't initially come with the car for free. Service was always great and they would do many minor things for free. The goodwill still exists and I never hesitate to go back. My transmission was also replaced on that car just before the 6 year warranty expired.
They were able to match others' prices on more recent cars.

BertL

Agree you' ll have to come to grips with what the value proposition for yourself is if you choose to purchase from one place and service in another. For the most part as I tried to convey above, I've had only good experiences, but today, for example, was a situation where I had my Rx400h in for service for the first time at a new dealership, the SA that I checked the car in with yesterday was out, and I had a little problem when i went to check out, so I referenced the salesperson that I am working with and the discussion I had had with him and the Sales GM. The GM was also out, but my sales guy was involved by the service department, they worked it all out amongst themselves, with continual apologies to me for the delay, and I left a very satisfied customer -- frankly reinforcing the reason I like Lexus and the Escondido dealership so much.

In my case, I have one dealership that is a 10 min drive from my home where I purchased my rx400h from and have done service with for the past 6+ years, but I'm now purchasing my new rx450h from the Escondido dealership (interestingly owned by the same person) a good 30-40 mins away and plan to service it there because of their superior personal touch. ...so, the moral of the story is, and I'm sorry to confuse the issue, but the Sales relationship can perhaps help in the future with service when they are part of the same dealership. I can't put a hard dollar on it, but for me, there is some amount of value given a choice (I didn't have the choice when I moved due to business across state lines). After buying and having my Lexi serviced in 4 different states and now 5 different dealerships, IMO I'd tell you the greatest variance is with Sales in each dealership. Service on the other hand remains the most consistent, especially with doing what's right for the customer when the chips are down. While others on this forum will likely disagree, the brand seems to have warranty, service, and post-sales down pretty well across dealerships from my experience. It's not cheap, but I'm satisfied and keep going back. E.g. When I was driving home tonight, what did I notice, but full take of gas, and I had less than half a tank yesterday. I've never had that happen to me at the other dealership I've been going to. Yes, one pays for it one way or the other, but THAT sure left a positive impression on me once again.

joenew61

Thanks for the additional data points - especially about the consistent culture of customer service in the service end. It makes sense that if they are providing a premium service at a premium price, it is in their best interest to keep you happy. A non-purchaser's service business should have as much value to them as a purchaser's. The sales guy that I will have rejected might not be as friendly, but there should be no impact on service.

UCSB

Give your local dealer a chance to match the price at the other dealership ... it will usually workout. The local dealership just wants your service business ... they will not care where you purchased the car. Your first two service appointments are free (they are supplied by Lexus) ... so just take your car to them for these. By the time you get to your third appointment and first paid appointment, you will have been a customer at their dealership for a year and a half and will be an old-timer.

DunWkg

BertL, filled your tank!! What octane?


That is special. If they had to test drive a lot, I could see that happening. Otherwise, pretty nice.

kitlz

I avoid the local dealer like the plague and drive 45 minutes to my selling dealer. The two times I used them due to emergencies I've gotten funny looks. I know they wanted to ask why I didn't purchase from them. And I would have been more than happy to oblige.

While the local dealer to me might be the exception, I still believe the selling dealer will have your best interest. I don't mind driving the distance twice a year. I make a day out of it and visit stores and places not near me.

BertL

Right, after all those other thread discussions about octane, I'd suspect it was 91 (highest avail here), just as my 2006 owners manual says is required. ...but then again, I don't plan to test it either. ...and yes, a pretty nice silent gesture that I'll remember for sure.

billy44bo

I love to use the out of state Dealer when I can. I do not like to pay the city of Mobile, sales tax on a car when I do not live in it. Save me over 2.5% in sales tax. Never had a problem with it when I did take it to the local dealer to have something done. I did get my RX450h from the local dealer this time but I took there tag holder off the car and put the LEXUS NEW ORLEANS tag holder from my 2005 RX on it when I put the tag on the car. Would put there tag holder back on the car but it will coast them $$$ . This is American and there is no thing as free advertizing with me .

peh

I bought mine from a dealer that was 2 hours away but I service it at my local dealership without any problems. I feel they treat me the same as if I bought it from them.

mac12

I live in a rural area and have no dealerships within two hours time of me. I bought from a dealership that is in state, but about three hours away. My first two free services were preformed by a closer ds and they could not have been any nicer.

GRPFAN

Don't Lexus dealerships pride themselves on top quality service?
Because of that, I have a hard time understanding why one would be better or worst then the other.

Price wise for premium service , their all expensive and all after the same thing in mind, your money.
That's why a check with a Toyota dealership is a good way to compare $$$$$ for the same service.