petmbro

Hi Everyone,

After 8 years of BMW ownership and countless thousands down the drain in repairs and maintenance I've decided to jump ship to Toyota. While browsing a 2012 Highlander and a 2011 Venza at a local car lot a 2010 RX 350 caught my eye and I fell in love. The car is a 2010 RX 350 with 100,341 miles on it and every available option under the sun. It was sold as a lease vehicle and then as a CPO, where it was traded in a few months ago and sent to auction at the direction of the Used Car Manager.

Here's the issue: I brought the car in for an independent inspection at a local Toyota shop and it came back clean but for some reason I wasn't satisfied. When looking over the Carfax I saw it spent it's entire life getting serviced at the same Lexus dealer in the Boston suburbs by both owners. I called the dealer and they emailed me the entire service history of the car. Everything looked completely normal except for two items (the full history is attached):

1. The final service report from 08/2017 states "PREOWNED MAINTENACE INSPECTION ~ ~PREOWNED MAINTENACE INSPECTION ~ ~ ~ ~100260 RECOMMENDING WHOLESALE PERFORMED A PRE OWNED INSPECTION. THE ENGINE TIMING COVER IS LEAKING, RECOMMENDING WHOLESALE OF THIS VEHICLE. VEHICLE BEING WHOLESALED PER UCM"
2. The service report from 01/2017 states: "ABSORBER, SHOCK/STRUT (REAR) - REPLACE, THE RIGHT REAR SHOCK IS LEAKING. ~ ~ ~ ~,CUSTOMER DECLINED SERVICE -CUSTOMER WILL HAVE WORK PERFORMED LATER SUGGEST REPLACING RIGHT REAR SHOCK NEXT SERVICE ESTIMATE $451.00"
3. Also back in 07/2015 the front shock was replaced at 75k: "STRUTS - FRONT: LEVEL 1 LEAK RF STRUT. (198900729) ~ ~STRUTS - FRONT: LEVEL 1 LEAK RF STRUT. (198900729) ~ ~ ~ ~75910 THE TECH REPORTS - THE RIGHT FRONT STRUT HAS BEEN REMOVED & REPLACED. (AS IT WAS CONFIRMED AS LEAKING) TOTAL $638.55"

Now having never owned at Toyota or Lexus in my life how big of an issue are these? For the 1 shock $638.55 ($346.59 part cost) seems asinine, as well as replacing only one at a time instead of both, as is typically done. The car drove fine and I didn't notice any ride abnormalities but If I have to replace 3-4 shocks at $350 each that seems a little steep, but at 100k its not that unheard of.

My major concern is the leaking timing cover. The used car lot and the independent Toyota mechanic both claim the car has a clean bill of health however after discovering this line item after the fact I'm a little alarmed. A follow up call to the local Lexus dealer told me it was a 20 hour repair requiring the engine to be pulled to the tune of $4800. I know BMW's are famous for oil leaks, especially ones that start off microscopic and snowball into every single engine seal, which is something I'm all too familiar with.

Bottom line: should I run or give it a shot? Right now I negotiated down from $16k to $14,500, and if I could get it even lower I'm wondering if it could be a good buy? I know zero about these cars and I'm hoping you all can shed some light.

Thanks in advance!

salimshah

Lexus service is not cheap and parts are also not cheap [cheaper as compared to say Benz]. That said the repairs are typically few and far in-between.

Do understand that at 100k + miles you are going to run into issue. The items you listed are not major failures.

Salim

tempestv8

I sold a BMW e39 530i Touring Wagon and replaced it with a RX450h. Prior to my purchase, the number 1 issue that concerned me about any purchase of the Lexus RX was the timing cover oil leak. Followed somewhat closely by the oil cooler hose failure.

Here are some discussion threads:
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/12...fe-engine.html
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/15...-2500-fix.html
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...over-leak.html

Lexus TSB: http://www.revbase.com/BBBMotor/TSb/...dPdf?id=137267

In Australia, any oil leaks means that the vehicle is not going to pass a roadworthy inspection. So if the onus is on the purchaser to obtain a roadworthy, and a timing chain cover oil leak needs to be rectified, then this is going to be a hefty repair bill; my understanding is that the engine needs to come out for this repair.

When I was about to purchase a used RX450h the (non Lexus) dealer wanted to sell me extended warranty but when I read up the terms and conditions of the warranty, it didn't cater for oil leaks.... so naturally I didn't bother taking on the extended warranty.

N4TECguy

The timing chain cover leak is a common one. Usually people just let it leak because it generally doesn't turn serious, but one can't know for sure. I would see if maybe the dealer can fix it first since their cost is lower, or if they will throw in a warranty that might take care of it.

Neither is ideal, but be aware that many of these Toyota 3.5L engines suffer from this failure - it was a known defect all the way back to the 2005 model year (not in the RX but in other ToyoLex models that this engine was used in) and as you can see, they either don't know how to fix it or don't care to fix it. Once you realize this is a long-running issue (although not necessarily affecting every example), you should realize that even if you find one without the leak, you might still run into it at a later date. Hence, my two suggestions above - use the problem as a bargaining chip.

Shocks aren't a huge issue. The rear ones tend to fail visibly. I replaced both of mine for $150 DIY. Only 2 bolts on each shock, easily accessed. The front ones are tougher, but they generally don't leak. At 100k, it's still good to replace them, but it might be a few hundred bucks in labor at a shop

petmbro

Thanks for the feedback everyone. After a testy confrontation with the dealer regarding the leaking oil (he tried to tell me that the Lexus report was false) and speaking with a coworker of mine who owns an 07 RX 350 with similar oil leaks I have decided to pass on the car. Shocks I can live with but after dealing with countless oil leaks with the BMW I'm ready to move on to a car that won't continuously stain my garage.

Thanks again!

ukrkoz

Asinine? 2012 Highlander hybrid half shaft is $820 before tax. Plus labor to install. That is part that costs $200 220 I believe, for a non hybrid version.

raylor4

I think you did the right thing. Even if the timing cover never leaked much, the idea would be stuck in your craw and ruining your driving experience. Keep looking for your ideal car.
Ray A.