zogy

Anyone else out there have (had) issues with Cam Gears? My wife’s 2010 RX350 has been having agrinding noise during cold start-up (or after a few hours of sitting), for thepast 6 months. The car is 38 days outside of warranty (53,000miles) and the dealer just suggested replacing the cam gears. Lexus Corporate says they will cover ½ … so$2000 out of pocket for me to fix.
I see that Lexus recalled other 350 motors (IS350, andGS350), but curiously did not recall the RX models. Plenty of discussion on those forums, justwondering if the RX350 is totally immune. The dealer identified the issueimmediately when they heard it … so I know they are familiar with thesound/problem.
Frankly, shocked thatLexus could pull the “outside of warranty” card, given the timing. My own fault for waiting to mention it to thedealer until the next service (50k miles) … kicking myself of course; but would have likely been a “couldnot duplicate” situation if I took it in solely for the start noise (at leastthe is what I am telling myself to make me feel better).

lesguy

Did you complain about the noise during any prior service visits? If so and they failed to address, legally, they have to cover the repair under warranty

lesguy

Wait, doesn't the Lexus power train warranty... Which is 7 yrs 72k cover this?

Lexotic430

Powertrain warranty should covers

zogy

The vehicle was delivered on 7/13/2009, and the powertrain warranty is 72 months (6 years) .... so it expired last month.
I purchased it CPO from Lexus, and that warranty was 3 years from date of purchase and expired on 4/8/2015 (it was 100,000 miles). So it's definitely out of warranty.

I am just beside myself for not taking to the dealer earlier (I had no idea the warranty expiration was getting close)... she mentioned the noise like 6+ months ago, and it was at the time quite intermittent ... I was not looking forward to getting the dealer to replicate it. I mentioned it only in passing during the recent 50k service (figuring they would not be able to duplicate it); which is when they heard it, and gave me the bad news.

Really didn't think I needed to purchase the extended warranty when I bought it (it's a Lexus after all). In retrospect, really poor decision on my part.

FLYCT

Soggy,

Don't kick yourself for not purchasing an extended warranty. It would likely have cost you more than the $2k you need to spend on the repair. Therefore you're still ahead.

raylor4

Soggy,
Thanks for the heads-up. I have a tendency to ignore little sounds too.
Ray A.

NateJG

That's a very astute observation!

zogy

Yeah that is probably true. so I'll stop kicking myself for that.... But I am still going to kick myself for not getting is in when my wife complained about it 6+ months ago. I frankly didn't hear it until recently when I was parked next to another car recently during start up (helped with reflecting the sound).... my hearing ain't what it used to be. I almost didn't mentioned the noise this time since it is intermittent and requires the car sit for some time, and I figured a "could not duplicate" was eminent.

lesguy

just a note for the future. A "cannot duplicate" doesnt 100% automatically relieve the dealership from warranty responsibility when you've made prior, documented claims about a specific noise that ended up being directly related to the defect. Having a prior and recent service ticket/receipt that says "customer complains of intermittent engine grinding noise on startup" even if accompanied by "technician inspected/could not reproduce" can mean all the difference in the world in getting a post warranty claim fully covered.

food for thought moving forward

NateJG

Irrespective of how rediculous-sounding the observation may be to me, I found it easier on me to relay my wife's observed noise or complaint to the servicing entity and pay whatever the fee - versus the risk of hearing Ad nauseum "I told you so".

zogy

Point well taken ... and something I am generally am aware of. The real issue is me not keeping an eye on the warranty expiration date (a good lessons learned for everyone reading this post).

Before the warranty expired I probably should have also told them about the throttle surge the first time you hit the accelerator in the morning and nearly send yourself through the windshield ... but that is a topic for another time

zogy

Amen .... NateJG .... you are a very wise man