$125 Too Much For Oil Change At Lexus Dealer?

[greatest1]

I use Lexus dealership for a valet service. They charge me $125 for oil change every 5000 miles. This is very high despite the convenience of the valet service. Can I take my LS430 to my local garage to do oil change?? The price seem like a rip off to me.

[SW03ES]

Anyone can change the oil. I personally would still use the OEM Lexus filter but you can buy them online.

Value is in the eye of the beholder (by the way, $125 is not just for the oil change, its an oil change, a tire rotation, and an inspection). Personally I'm more than happy to pay Lexus to service the car to get the free loaner, I'm not comfortable with valet service but the service rep is great, the service I get is great, and it involves absolutely ho hassles for me.

[greatest1]

Anyone can change the oil. I personally would still use the OEM Lexus filter but you can buy them online.

Value is in the eye of the beholder (by the way, $125 is not just for the oil change, its an oil change, a tire rotation, and an inspection). Personally I'm more than happy to pay Lexus to service the car to get the free loaner, I'm not comfortable with valet service but the service rep is great, the service I get is great, and it involves absolutely ho hassles for me.

I am pretty sure the tire rotation and inspections were extra. What upset me was they would nickel and dime you like charging $10 for "gasket" (I still can't find out what gasket they were referring to on oil change) and charging you for 6Qt of oil when car only has capacity for 5Q. It isn't the money, but the ethics behind their charge were troubling me.

[greatest1]

Anyone can change the oil. I personally would still use the OEM Lexus filter but you can buy them online.

Value is in the eye of the beholder (by the way, $125 is not just for the oil change, its an oil change, a tire rotation, and an inspection). Personally I'm more than happy to pay Lexus to service the car to get the free loaner, I'm not comfortable with valet service but the service rep is great, the service I get is great, and it involves absolutely ho hassles for me.

Do you know of address to file a complaint if it is fond that the dealership was practicing unethical business?

[1990LS400]

Anyone can change the oil. I personally would still use the OEM Lexus filter but you can buy them online.

Value is in the eye of the beholder (by the way, $125 is not just for the oil change, its an oil change, a tire rotation, and an inspection). Personally I'm more than happy to pay Lexus to service the car to get the free loaner, I'm not comfortable with valet service but the service rep is great, the service I get is great, and it involves absolutely ho hassles for me.

Do you know of address to file a complaint if it is fond that the dealership was practicing unethical business?

Charging $125 for an oil change is not unethical. A dealer is free to charge what he wants and a customer is free to decide if he wants the work done for the price the dealer charges. It's called "the free market". And you are free to take your business elsewhere or to do the work yourself.

It is up to you want you want to pay. I've changed my own oil for the past 40+ years and wouldn't dream of taking my cars to a dealer or quick lube shop for an oil change. But I have always had a nice garage and a complete set of tools.

For my current LS, an oil change, including six quarts of Mobil 1 synthetic 5W30 and an OEM filter, costs less than $30 and takes less than one hour during which I check all other fluids and the tire pressure.

As I have said many times on this forum, the most important thing you can do to prevent damage to your cars is to take them to repair shops as infrequently as possible.

[mywong23]

agree with above posts...

I think you really start to bond with your car after you start changing the oil and washing it yourself :whistles:

[djspawn00]

Anyone can change the oil. I personally would still use the OEM Lexus filter but you can buy them online.

Value is in the eye of the beholder (by the way, $125 is not just for the oil change, its an oil change, a tire rotation, and an inspection). Personally I'm more than happy to pay Lexus to service the car to get the free loaner, I'm not comfortable with valet service but the service rep is great, the service I get is great, and it involves absolutely ho hassles for me.

I am pretty sure the tire rotation and inspections were extra. What upset me was they would nickel and dime you like charging $10 for "gasket" (I still can't find out what gasket they were referring to on oil change) and charging you for 6Qt of oil when car only has capacity for 5Q. It isn't the money, but the ethics behind their charge were troubling me.

$10 for a gasket? I think they may be referring to the washer that fits around the drain plug... you can buy them online for 98cents. $125 seems to be around what many dealers charge for an oil change although not all of them include tire rotation or synthetic oil. If you took you car to a reputable shop and knew they were using quality oil and filters its really no problem at all. I used to buy my own oil(mobil1) and filters(oem) and just go to any shop and hand them $10 or $15 to have them change the oil for me. Now I just do it myself since taking old oil to a shop for disposal is not a hassle.

[qha_vn]

Ha ha ha, cant help agreeing this statement "the most important thing you can do to prevent damage to your cars is to take them to repair shops as infrequently as possible"

[SW03ES]

I am pretty sure the tire rotation and inspections were extra. What upset me was they would nickel and dime you like charging $10 for "gasket" (I still can't find out what gasket they were referring to on oil change) and charging you for 6Qt of oil when car only has capacity for 5Q. It isn't the money, but the ethics behind their charge were troubling me.

Double check, $125 sounds like the 5k service which includes a tire rotation & balance and an inspection.

All dealers itemize out the parts used, its simply a disclosure. The 6 Q of oil when it only takes 5 is weird...

I do agree with Jim though. Charging a high price is not unethical, its simply a result of dupply and demand. If people didn't pay those prices they wouldn't be able to charge them because there would be no business. The "frills" you get at the dealer aren't free, valet service costs a LOT, the valets are cheap but the insurance coverage is huge, a fleet of 40 $35,000 loaner cars is an expensive investment, they get a break on them but they aren't provided free of charge. The marble and leather lined lobbies and plasma TVs are expensive too. The old Nordstrom or Wal Mart analogy works well here. Nordstrom sells a Hickey Freeman suit for $1,400, there's a store here called "SYMS" that sells the same suit after the season for $400. Nordstrom isn't being unethical, they're simply charging what the market will bear.

I wash my car myself, but thats because I enjoy it and I've never had someone else wash it witout marring the paint because of the color. The demands on my time get harder and harder to bear and my next car will be silver so I can happily let someone else wash it. I do not have the time or the desire to change my own oil, and to be honest my hourly rate is higher than the dealer, getting it serviced while I work makes me money.

[Rice]

Sorry man, but with all due respect, the only word that came to mind when I read your post was SUCKER :chairshot:

I've never paid more than $20 for an oil change at an independent shop. That always includes inspection because mechanics use oil changes as an excuse to find something wrong with your car. I guess it all works out for the best, since they are motivated to find and fix the problem and I pay almost nothing for the oil change in the process.

Dealer, on the other hand, is not motivated to fix your car if it is still under warranty.

In addition, if you think that dealer will give you a better oil change than joe shmoe down the street, you are mistaken.

The only caveat to my logic is finding a good shop and a good mechanic whom you trust. I did, so I am good.

[SW03ES]

Dealer, on the other hand, is not motivated to fix your car if it is still under warranty.

This is absolutely not true. Its in fact quite the contrary. Dealers don't do warranty work for free, they charge Lexus for it and in fact they get paid MORE for warranty work than they do when they bill you for it.

As far as dealers trying to do oil changes and find issues with your car. I've used many service advisors at several dealers, I have a teriffic one now. And while I wasn't always satisfied, nobody ever tried to get me to do repairs that weren't warranted. Certainly they found brakes that needed to be done, etc. But it was all legitimate. I'm 100% satisfied with my dealer and wouldn't take the car anywhere else, cheaper or not.

And please, don't call people names.

[gordonw]

If you think thats too much, my recommendation is don't consider trading your 2005 LS430 for a LS460. The LS460 takes 9.1 qts of synthetic as recommended by Lexus.

[SRK]

I change my own engine oil. Have done so since 1974. No shop has ever done that job for me. However, if I didn't want to change the oil on my Lexus's, I'd take them to the dealer. That's because the dealer will ensure the right parts are used, and also ensure the car is not otherwise damaged while in their care and control.

I've seen lube rack "mechanics" take cars for joy rides. And smash them up. I've seen lube rack folks mis-install cartridge filters and spin-on filters and blow oil all over the engine and shop. I have removed the cheesy little nylon washers that the quick lube places put on my customers cars drain plugs - finger tight! They short fill the engine to make more money - because at $29.95 they don't make money. They use "Charging Rhino" brand oil filters. They take all the old oil bottles and put them in racks to recover the drippings, and then sell the drippings when they have enough. Jack stand, floor jack, chassis hoist scratches are common. Greasy fingerprints on every part of the car, and all of your parking lot change missing.....

An oil change at the dealer here costs about the same as a tank of gas. Big deal. Done right, with a loaner, and a trained mechanic checks the car for you.

[chrisls400]

I use Lexus dealership for a valet service. They charge me $125 for oil change every 5000 miles. This is very high despite the convenience of the valet service. Can I take my LS430 to my local garage to do oil change?? The price seem like a rip off to me.

Good timing! I just had my 95 ls400 serviced today. The local dealer utilizes the valet service as well. Normally my invoice for the 5K service is around $75; however, today I informed the guy who picked up my car to please not rotate the tires, as I have that done where i purchased them. Just got my car back and my bill is $44.42, which includes filter, gasket, oil and check and top off all fluids. They also informed me that my lateral strut bars need replacing. I do feel a little better having a dealer look over the car, since theoretically they should know all of the ins and outs of it compared to a general mechanic who works on all types of vehicles. Anyway, I thought this would help you save some $$ next time.

[nc211]

My take on the $125 oil change, falls in line with a $10 cup of coffee. I'm in the same boat as SRK when it comes to oil changes. The last time anyone but me changed the oil, it cost me $250 bucks to have the lower pan replaced due to the tech overtightening the bolt and stripping out the threads on the pan. I paid half, they paid half, to have it fixed. That was back in 05'. But, you have to also take into consideration the car itself, and if it's worth $125 for an oil change. SWO's is new(er) than mosts, and worth more too. My old 95' is worth 4 figure$. So $125 for an oil change and inspection doesn't really serve me well. I don't need a mechanic to tell me "that part is wearing out".... no sh*t sherlock, it's nearly as old as the kid who just handed me the keys. And of course, my ever-evaporated patience with fixing it up.

[pishta]

I change my own engine oil. Have done so since 1974. No shop has ever done that job for me. However, if I didn't want to change the oil on my Lexus's, I'd take them to the dealer. That's because the dealer will ensure the right parts are used, and also ensure the car is not otherwise damaged while in their care and control.

I've seen lube rack "mechanics" take cars for joy rides. And smash them up. I've seen lube rack folks mis-install cartridge filters and spin-on filters and blow oil all over the engine and shop. I have removed the cheesy little nylon washers that the quick lube places put on my customers cars drain plugs - finger tight! They short fill the engine to make more money - because at $29.95 they don't make money. They use "Charging Rhino" brand oil filters. They take all the old oil bottles and put them in racks to recover the drippings, and then sell the drippings when they have enough. Jack stand, floor jack, chassis hoist scratches are common. Greasy fingerprints on every part of the car, and all of your parking lot change missing.....

An oil change at the dealer here costs about the same as a tank of gas. Big deal. Done right, with a loaner, and a trained mechanic checks the car for you.

I change all my oil. It lets me bond with the car..:-) but my wife...she took our car to ji$$y Lube and the "Check Engine" light came on 3 miles later with the smell of gas fumes. WTF? limped it to the dealer and they said the upper fuel tank seam split! How in the world did that happen? They think the lube place hit the fuel tank with a lift pad! It was replaced under warranty, but that is just irresponsible, along with the cross threaded plug on my in laws Honda that leaked forever. Do your own oil, learn to change a tire while you are at it, it may save your life...

[SW03ES]

Jiffy Lubes don't use lift pads, they have underground work areas. The dealer just said that to scare you.

[ROBERT THOMASON]

Just had the oil changed in my 00 LS400 at an independent shop that specializes in foreign cars.. He allowed me to stay in the work area and shot the bull with him. He is very particular and careful as he does his work. He has attention to detail also. It is the little things that impress me. HE wiped out the funnel before using it, washed his hands before getting in my car, etc. He charged me $56.00 dollars for Mobil 1 synthetic and used a NAPA Gold filter, toped off any fluids and checked my breaks, any wear on belts, front end, reset my service light, etc. I dont do dealerships because of the prices and the stuffy atmosphere.

[anthonyiez]

...or find an independent that knows what they are doing, uses oem parts and charges a fair price like $34.95, plus throws in a car wash with every service. B)

[JBMLEXUS430]

I own a 2003 LS430 and the first thing I did when I brought it home was change the oil myself. When I was in school I worked at the local lube shop for extra money. I could not believe the crap oil they put in cars and the filters are another story. It was really bad because the owner wanted to sell the shop, so supplies were at a minimum. We actually ran out of oil! For about a month the owner would just buy 12 cases of NAPA 10W30 each day and we would dump that in all the cars. You want castrol no problem go to the stock room and fill up a jug with 5 qts of Napa oil and call is Castrol. That's why I've changed my own oil ever since then. Plus the gentleman in a earlier post was right you can change your oil with Mobile 1 and use a factory filter for $30. If you go to your local lube shop for a Mobile 1 oil change they will change you $50 or $60 dollars.

One question I recently purchased 4 factory oil filters for my LS. One thing I didn't think about was shelf life. Do I have to worry about the filter going bad(drying out) or the rubber seal going bad? I live in Denver and it's pretty dry out here.

[90LS400Lexus]

My local Lexus dealer would change the oil in my old LS400 for something like $33.00.

[pishta]

Jiffy Lubes don't use lift pads, they have underground work areas. The dealer just said that to scare you.

Some do out here. They Offer tire rotation although we didn't request it. They also only had 2 pits and quite a few cars in line.

[johnhoward]

I pay Toyota to do mine, and I watch them go through all the lights, fluids, belts, battery check, filters, tire pressure and they vaccume the car. I pay 30$ and they do good work. I do get the up-sell pitch for odds and ends, but I feel that's a good price. I used to do my own service for years, but for 10 bucks more, I don't have to do it myself, in the floor of my garage... As for Lexus dealerships, in my few experiences in two different cities. They charge labor to install snap-on parts (that are already marked up)...

I.E. When have you ever paid labor to have wiper blades installed? Or, a filter installed? etc..

That's a rip off. I went to a dealer in Nashville, and they wanted to charge me 50$ for a cabin air filter, and half an hour labor to install the damn thing... I took the service advisor out and took my filter out in

10 seconds, and put the new one in. I did this twice in less than a minute.. He tried to charge me 35$ to put in the new filter. What a crock.. I never went back to a dealer again... He took the labor charge off.

I agree, that service techs will mess up your car... My wife had an Accord that she took to Sears to have oil service done. The stripped the plug into the pan, and had to replace the whole pan etc.

She didn't find this out until the next oil change place couldn't get the plug off... So, take it to a reputable place and hope they don't have a yahoo working on your car...

2cents

[DClK]

I pay Toyota to do mine...

i too take my used 2004 lex to toyota for simple things like oil changes, tire balance/rotation. i'm sure you know, at leat until recently, toyota and lexus were the same dealership in japan. in my mind, toyo/lex is one in the same. even though toyo isn't as inexpensive as an independent, it isn't as expensive as lex. here in central florida, toyo service prices are usually half of what lex service charges for the same work. like someone said, you pay for all that comes w/ the lex service experience (valet, loaners, etc). and what little extra i get from toyo (the guy who preps the car while the service manager does the write-up) i pay for too. there are only two lex dealers in my area and both a farther away than toyo, so that's another incentive for me to use toyo.

if i had access to a nearby lift, i would change my oil and do my rotations myself. i just changed the battery the other day, and short of getting the black cover/case off, it was a breeze.

my one experience with lex service was getting my front/rear brakes and rotors done. since it was dealing with a brake sys problem and not routine replace pads, i took it to lex and paid ~$550. toyo probably could have done the same for half but i didn't want to run the chance of them running me through the ringer with "we also found this wrong and that wrong..." before they fixed the problem. it was nice that since lex had to order a part, i had a loaner for three days.

but, just like others have said, i will not pay $99 every 5K for oil/rotation/and 27 point inspection.

be cool,

[rwallican]

I think it's all in how you look at it. I like going to the dealer because of the loaners and because you don't have to sit and wait on your car or have some "courtesy van" drop you off at home. I used to use an independent shop for all of my services but it just became too inconvenient. When they did the 90k service, they let me borrow their 90 honda accord to get around in! I paid about $300 less but had to get around in that junk!

To me, it's like anything else---you get what you pay for. You will definitely pay less at "other" places, but you won't get that Lexus service. And, to me, there's peace of mind having someone work on your car that's highly trained and up-to-date on all new technologies. I also love the car washes when it gets cold outside. You have to pay for convenience and I'm definitely willing to do so when it comes to my car.