I will try to make a long story as short as possible. Our 2008 RX 350 was determined to need a new engine due to sludge buildup. After about 60 days of back and forth with the dealer and corporate office they agreed to replace the engine and only charge for labor ($5000). Seemed like our only option so we agreed.
My wife picked up the vehicle and paid the $5000 - after driving 5 miles she noted the car was still smoking, called the dealership and they said that was normal and would go away after a week or so. She drove the car home that night and it had burned through 1 qt of oil in about 100 miles - she drove another 100 miles the next day and burned another qt of oil...we took the car back to the dealer and this is where it only gets worse.
1. They did not replace the engine, only the short block - the service manager and technician told me that a new engine was not available that it would have to be built from parts - this is not true, I called another dealership and got the part number and price and gave it to them...they acted surprised. They responded that the Sales Manager and the Customer Service did not understand what a "new" engine meant - however they seem to be the only one that thinks that a "new" engine means a new half an engine (short block) instead of a entire long block.
2. We agreed they would charge only for labor for a NEW engine, however they charged us for 50% of parts and labor - the service manager commented that he was not made aware of the agreement by his regional supervisor...strike 2.
3. Yesterday he called and said they discovered that the PCV valve was bad, they replaced that and the engine no longer smokes...my question is was that the original problem and why was that not discovered with 3 diagnostic tests at $110 each and did I pay $5000 for something that was not needed, if the PCV valve fixed the problem with this engine - would it have fixed the problem with the old engine? Strike 3!
Needless to say, I am very irritated, and feel like we have been scammed by the dealership, they now have the vehicle in their shop, while we have a loaner and await their reponse to these issues. I await to see how they will rectify this situation which has only gone from bad to worse....any thoughts?