Is300 30,000 Mile Maintenance

[GalletGun]

Hey guys before I get to the main point, here is a little background on my car. My car is a lease and ever since I have gotten this car I have taken it to the lexus dealership for its periodic maintenance's. As you all know it is very expensive. Since my car was leased for four years I did not know what I was gonna do witht the car when my lease matured so I always took it to the lexus dealership for maintenance just in case If I ever planned to give the car back to them and I didnt want my lease to be void if I took it to a "Nonlexus" place and they screwed up my car.

WEll it turns out after four years since I am so happy with my car and its in perfect condiditon, I will be keeping it for myself. Since my car is no longer leashed to my lexus dealership, this brings up the problem of should I still go to lexus for my 30,000 mile maintenance which will be very very expensive or should I take it to "nonlexus" place with a very good reputation where it will be much less? (right?)

Orrrrr, should I do it myself? Now you guys should know I am a novice when it comes to car maintenance since I have always taken my car to the dealership for maintenance. Here is the list from the lexus manual of what is covered under the 30,000 maintenance.

-replace air filter I know I can do this

-replace brake fluid I know where the container is but how do I remove the old brake fluid?

-replace engine coolant I know where this is too, but how do I remove old engine coolant?

-replace engine oil and filter I know how to replace the filter, but how to remove old engine oil?

-retorque drive shaft flange boots Obviously I cant do this, I mean I have a torque wrench for my wheels, but I am assuming its not the same thing...I would have to get this done at a place

-rotate tires Dont have to do this b/c I had new tires installed and its only been like 1000 miles on them.

-road test vehicle ...this is irrelevant I road test whenever I drive my car...

-inspect the following:

__ball joints and dust covers seems unnecessary right? I dont notice anything unusual

__body I can do this.. I am not blind...

__brake lines and hoses can not do this, unnecesasary? get done at a place?

__bake linings/drums and brake pads/discs not necessary, not time to change brakes, no noises.

__differential oil in the manual is says only replace if car is used for towing a trailer or as a camper, which its not..

__drive shaft boots can not do this, get done at a place?

__exhaust pipes and mountings unncessary, im not blind..

__fuel line, connections, bands, vaper vent sys. hoses can not do, unnecessary?, get done at a place?

__fuel tank cap gasket not blind...

__rack and pinion assembly unnecessary? ge tdone at place?

__steering linkage and boots nnncessary? get done at place?

__transmission fluid get done at place? or does it need inspecting, no engine problems, IF I can check it myself how would I go about doing that and what do I look for if it needs replacing.

-inspect nuts and bolts on chassis and body unnecessary.

What do you guys think should I do? Should I #1 just go to lexus dealership and get it done, or #2 take it to a "nonLexus" place to get it done, or #3 do all the things that I can do and ignore all the unnecessaries and anything that is important that I can not do myself get it done at a place, b/c I enjoy getting my hands dirty and doing stuff myself.

Your opinions would be much appreciated!

[Parking17]

I've got 37k on my "04. Runs smooth as silk.

The best thing to do is follow the maintenance schedule on the owners manual.

You probably will be asking yourself "do you really need your brake fluid changed at 30k?" In my opinion, I think it would be ok to have certain things not inspected and others looked at. Just use your judgment based on how your car is driven. After all, you would know about that more than anyone. If the brake fluid is full and there are no leaks, then I would probably leave it alone.

If you just want preventive maintenance done, and don't know a mechanic, I would go with one that is approved by your local auto club. (like AAA)

If you want to do the maintenance yourself (which I do), these forums have a lot of good info on changing oil, and such. It's a good task to start with. (suggest you buy ramps instead of using a jack so you have room for the oil pan)

Hope this helps and glad you're happy with the car.

[djspawn00]

Mostly everything that you should do is covered in this forum if you utilize the search function, most tutorials have pictures and all. You should be fine with the tutorials on here, I've used them and they are very helpful. Just make sure that when changing fluids you replace with the correct fluid and use the correct disposal methods. Also be careful with brake fluid as it can eat away at your paint.

[bartkat]

I took from the suggested maintenance items and made a list and gave it to my mechanic at a local tire shop. I made sure he got all the fluids from Toyota as specified.. He did the inspection, changed the brake fluid and coolant and signed off on the list. I paid him about $80.

The point is, that you have proof that the work was done, and that approved fluid and/or parts were used, you're ok. It does not have to be done by Lexus.

I get my oil changed on a regular basis and buy the filters from Irontoad. I just get that done at a locally owned quick oil change place.

All of the above should satisfy Lexus' service schedule.

PS. The reason for the brake fluid change is that moisture can get into it and cause problems later on. As for coolant, the corrosion inhibitors and water pump lubricants can break down over time. It's much cheaper to change these out on schedule than to have to replace damaged parts later on.

[smooth1]

Iv'e been doing all my own servicing an all my " toy" cars for years. The reason I do it is so that I get to know the car inside and out better that way. Also I can do the improvements, such as better fluids than stock recommendations. For example, when you go ti the dealership and they replace the coolant, they use Toyota approved coolant at a 50/50 mix. I live in Florida, it never freezes here, barely ever goes below 50. So to help run cooler I use dionized and filtered water about 85% and 15% coolant, and water wetter. Engine runs about 20 degrees cooler. ( Water Wetter has about 20 times the rust and corrosion inhibitors, and lubricates everything very well. I've been using this combination an about 3 different vehicles over the years and have never had a problem. Oil is oil so long as of course your using the premo stuff. Also I converted the trans and brake fluid to synthetic, also switched to steel braided brake lines at the same time. etc.etc.etc.

So when I get on it, I know what "it" is.