Chrome from front bumper is peeling
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Nov 2014
Posts: 27
Likes: 1
From: il
This is poor service on the part of the dealer, not Lexus as a company. Dealers are all independently owned, and service quality varies.
Issue is that Lexus pits the onus on the dealer to determine whether something is a warranty defect or not. If Lexus decides it's not once they get the report (after the work is done) they stick it to the dealer and don't cover it. That's what this dealer was trying to avoid at the expense of providing good service to their customer.
This dealer needs to be better trained as to what clearly is a defect. All the years I've done business with multiple dealers I can't imagine they would not honor a claim for something like this. Clearly this trim is defective.
Issue is that Lexus pits the onus on the dealer to determine whether something is a warranty defect or not. If Lexus decides it's not once they get the report (after the work is done) they stick it to the dealer and don't cover it. That's what this dealer was trying to avoid at the expense of providing good service to their customer.
This dealer needs to be better trained as to what clearly is a defect. All the years I've done business with multiple dealers I can't imagine they would not honor a claim for something like this. Clearly this trim is defective.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,631
Likes: 4,045
From: Maryland
Originally Posted by ssonechko
This is the problem ... short sight - they more afraid to loose some money today, than to loose customer forever.
Pit Crew
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 197
Likes: 10
From: md
This is poor service on the part of the dealer, not Lexus as a company. Dealers are all independently owned, and service quality varies.
Issue is that Lexus pits the onus on the dealer to determine whether something is a warranty defect or not. If Lexus decides it's not once they get the report (after the work is done) they stick it to the dealer and don't cover it. That's what this dealer was trying to avoid at the expense of providing good service to their customer.
This dealer needs to be better trained as to what clearly is a defect. All the years I've done business with multiple dealers I can't imagine they would not honor a claim for something like this. Clearly this trim is defective.
Issue is that Lexus pits the onus on the dealer to determine whether something is a warranty defect or not. If Lexus decides it's not once they get the report (after the work is done) they stick it to the dealer and don't cover it. That's what this dealer was trying to avoid at the expense of providing good service to their customer.
This dealer needs to be better trained as to what clearly is a defect. All the years I've done business with multiple dealers I can't imagine they would not honor a claim for something like this. Clearly this trim is defective.
Pit Crew
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 197
Likes: 10
From: md
That was my point from the start. It's a new car, just do it and have a customer who will go out and extol the virtues of the dealership which is a reflection on Lexus; and may write a glowing evaluation on other sites.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,631
Likes: 4,045
From: Maryland
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 442
Likes: 129
From: Texas
As a teenager in the 80s, I had a 1964 Thunderbird from my grandfather. Neat car, but safety was not an option on that car. In a curve in the mountains, a WV bug invaded my lane and smacked into my car right on the corner of the chrome grill. VW bug front crumbled while my grill just had a little dent. Pretty strong car, but only did 7MPG. Luckily we were going pretty slow. A much more higher speed crash would have impaled the metal steering wheel and dashboard into my chest, probably head a neck injured since my seat had no head restraints, and I did not even had a shoulder seat belt. By the way, the chrome was rusting out and did not last long before I sold it to a collector and traded for a car I could afford to fill-up.
I do wish some of the bumper material was stronger, but I understand the need to make them lighter, crumble and absorb in a crash, rust-proof, and most of that is just cosmetic and easy to replace. At least the plastic parts could be made that they do not peel off. However, those front bumpers take a beating with the splash and wind pressure of chemicals from the road: coolant, oil, water, road grime, road anti-freeze treatments, along with heat and cold.
I do wish some of the bumper material was stronger, but I understand the need to make them lighter, crumble and absorb in a crash, rust-proof, and most of that is just cosmetic and easy to replace. At least the plastic parts could be made that they do not peel off. However, those front bumpers take a beating with the splash and wind pressure of chemicals from the road: coolant, oil, water, road grime, road anti-freeze treatments, along with heat and cold.
8th Gear
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 8
Likes: 1
From: Saskatchewan
Cheap material used is the issue.
This peeling (wrinkling) chrome foil is/was a poor choice on the materials sourcing for a brand that wants to be ‘luxury’. (Some suit somewhere probably got a bonus for switching off of real chrome and saving so much money.)
As I’m not the original owner Lexus will not do anything about replacing the front and rear trim when mine started to wrinkle. They did helpfully point out that it ways in the manual that if you wash the car and water gets under the foil it will wrinkle. Thereby intimating that it’s my fault they used cheap *** materials that even Kia won’t touch. I expect this on a Ford, not on a Lexus. Bad Lexus, bad.
As I’m not the original owner Lexus will not do anything about replacing the front and rear trim when mine started to wrinkle. They did helpfully point out that it ways in the manual that if you wash the car and water gets under the foil it will wrinkle. Thereby intimating that it’s my fault they used cheap *** materials that even Kia won’t touch. I expect this on a Ford, not on a Lexus. Bad Lexus, bad.