Primest Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 The Lexus Service Center has recommended a power steering flush on my 2009 ES350. They've been recommending this, and I've been declining, every time I'm in for maintenance since 35K miles and most recently at my 50K maintenance. For comparison pricing, I called a Toyota service center to ask what they would charge. The Toyota rep said they NEVER FLUSH power steering unless a leak develops because it is a sealed system - they would not perform this service on my ES350! What's up with this? The system is not leaking. I have no steering noise or problems steering. Isn't the Lexus system the same a Toyota? Along with the steering flush, the rep is also recommending an injector flush and throttle body cleaning. We've always used premium fuel and 99% of the road use is at high speeds on the interstate. Because of the seemingly bogus request for the power steering flush, I'm doubting the need for this second recommended service. This is the only Lexus service center in the area. Should I trust these recommendations or not? Should I have my service done at the Toyota dealer? It's bad enough that the Lexus dealer has high service prices - but to recommend unneeded services would cause me to lose all confidence and search for an alternative. Thanks for anyone's comments!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LennyF Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 All dealers, including Lexus need to keep a steady cash flow coming in. This is how they do it. Some services are totally unnecessary, others are important. You have to decide what right for you and your car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob_es350 Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 All dealers, including Lexus need to keep a steady cash flow coming in. This is how they do it. Some services are totally unnecessary, others are important. You have to decide what right for you and your car. hey, seems like a no-brainer...if it is not in the service schedule of the manual, I would say f it..unless there is a problem of course which you don't claim to have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Save your money and give it to your local food bank. I have never heard of a power steering flush for no reason,(but that's no guarantee of accurate information) but it sure doesn't pass the smell test. As for the injectors and throttle body, as was said, if it works don't fix it. For a Lexus, 50,000 miles is not a lot of miles. The Toyota product and the Lexus line come out of different factories and the Lexus does not share all of the same parts. You can always check with a Toyota dealer for parts and service prices, but not all Toyota dealers will work on Lexus cars. Also Steven, welcome to the Lexus Owners Club. Be sure and look around and feel free to post again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickC5 Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 IMHO, those "recommendations" are pure hogwash! If you feel the need to clean your injectors, Big Lots have bottles of STP Injector Cleaner for $1.50. Agree that the PS flush makes no sense at all. If you don't wish to change dealers, at least let those guys know that they can keep their recommendations to themselves--you don't want to hear them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990LS400 Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LennyF Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Actually that’s not a far fetched as you might think. Dealers and repair shops in this area are offering a nitrogen tire fill. They let out as much air as they can and re fill them with compressed nitrogen. Pricing ranges from $10 to $25 for 4 tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LexBob2 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Actually thats not a far fetched as you might think. Dealers and repair shops in this area are offering a nitrogen tire fill. They let out as much air as they can and re fill them with compressed nitrogen. Pricing ranges from $10 to $25 for 4 tires. I wouldn't pay for the nitrogen tire fill, but my car came with it. I can't vouch for any increase in gas mileage which is sometimes touted, but I have noticed that the tires do maintain their pressure better during temperature changes. I rarely if ever have to add air to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990LS400 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 I wouldn't pay for the nitrogen tire fill, but my car came with it. I can't vouch for any increase in gas mileage which is sometimes touted, but I have noticed that the tires do maintain their pressure better during temperature changes. I rarely if ever have to add air to them. The air you breath is 78% nitrogen. I suggest that you check your tires at least monthly and more often if the temperature changes more than 20 degrees. Tire pressure changes about 1 psi per 10 degress of temperature change - whether the tires are filled with 78% nitrogen or 100% nitrogen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob_es350 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Actually that’s not a far fetched as you might think. Dealers and repair shops in this area are offering a nitrogen tire fill. They let out as much air as they can and re fill them with compressed nitrogen. Pricing ranges from $10 to $25 for 4 tires. wtf, air is mostly nitorgen anyway.. ok, just looked it up to see if it made any sense...yip..will maintain pressure longer with PURE nitrogen.. still silly, just check um more often Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Actually that’s not a far fetched as you might think. Dealers and repair shops in this area are offering a nitrogen tire fill. They let out as much air as they can and re fill them with compressed nitrogen. Pricing ranges from $10 to $25 for 4 tires. wtf, air is mostly nitorgen anyway.. ok, just looked it up to see if it made any sense...yip..will maintain pressure longer with PURE nitrogen.. still silly, just check um more often Alright!...I've held it in for as long as I can take it...you can say what you want, but I'm not going to hide it any more. .. I...use, NITROGEN IN MY TIRES!!! There. It's out in the open. Seriously, this topic is about as much fun as which is the best gasoline to use in a ES350. No one ever agrees. For me, I like it because in my experience it does keep the proper inflation point over a longer period of time. It runs cooler than only 78% "air". I don't think it does a thing to help improve mileage, but over the 4yrs i have used it, I believe, that means it is my opinion only not scientific fact, that the tire wear has been less as well. O.K. Come on.. lets hear the cat calls. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LennyF Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 I wouldn't pay for the nitrogen tire fill, but my car came with it. I can't vouch for any increase in gas mileage which is sometimes touted, but I have noticed that the tires do maintain their pressure better during temperature changes. I rarely if ever have to add air to them. The air you breath is 78% nitrogen. I suggest that you check your tires at least monthly and more often if the temperature changes more than 20 degrees. Tire pressure changes about 1 psi per 10 degress of temperature change - whether the tires are filled with 78% nitrogen or 100% nitrogen. 100% nitrogen is touted for two reasons that i’ve hears. One it had no moisture like air does and also the nitrogen molecules are larger then the other gas molecules in air thus holding the pressure better. As an example, I filled several balloons once with CO2, they deflated in an hour. CO2 molecules are tiny and pass right through the rubber balloon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990LS400 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 O.K. Come on.. lets hear the cat calls. LOL Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty! I've noticed that the pressures in the new tires (Michelin MXV4 H-rated) on our Camry - filled with 29 psi of 100% nitrogen when Costco mounted them on a recent warm fall day - fluctuate at about the same rate as the regular air filled tires on my LS as outside temperatures rise and fall. As outside temperatures have declined to lows below 20 degrees, I've had to add air to the Camry's tires several times to keep them at or above 29 psi. If I hadn't, the Camry's tires would be at around 24 psi on a 20 degree day - not good. It's simply not practical to visit Costo everytime the Camry tires need air even if I can just about hit Costco with a rock (metaphorically speaking) from our front door. Item on shopping list for today - * buy a new electric air pump. The hose on the one I've used for years ruptured last week - probably from too much use. I found it not fun to pump up 8 tires with a bicycle pump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob_es350 Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Also ask the dealer to replace the air in your tires - that tire air wears out pretty fast. Hahahaha..Bingo!! Actually that’s not a far fetched as you might think. Dealers and repair shops in this area are offering a nitrogen tire fill. They let out as much air as they can and re fill them with compressed nitrogen. Pricing ranges from $10 to $25 for 4 tires. wtf, air is mostly nitorgen anyway.. ok, just looked it up to see if it made any sense...yip..will maintain pressure longer with PURE nitrogen.. still silly, just check um more often Alright!...I've held it in for as long as I can take it...you can say what you want, but I'm not going to hide it any more. .. I...use, NITROGEN IN MY TIRES!!! There. It's out in the open. Seriously, this topic is about as much fun as which is the best gasoline to use in a ES350. No one ever agrees. For me, I like it because in my experience it does keep the proper inflation point over a longer period of time. It runs cooler than only 78% "air". I don't think it does a thing to help improve mileage, but over the 4yrs i have used it, I believe, that means it is my opinion only not scientific fact, that the tire wear has been less as well. O.K. Come on.. lets hear the cat calls. LOL you have a good sense of humor anyway,if 100% nitrogen floats your boat, wtf..go for it, lol as for me..the air I breath is good enough for my tires Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW03ES Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 LOL...I echo what others have said. If its not in the maintenance schedule...it doesn't need to be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old_Timer Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Thanks for all the good advice on this forum. I too have been faced with an overzealous dealer that wants to do the 60k service and do the following: replace spark plugs, rotate and balance tires, replace outer belts, air filter and cabin air filter, oil change and filter, replace pcv valve....all for the low price of around $750. This is on a 2009 ES350 and to me just seems a tad out of control. I am inclined to call the local Toyota dealer and just see what they can do as far as the lexus recommended maintenance. The lexus dealer I work with treats me like I'm an outsider anyway as I didn't buy the car at their dealer! That....and their coffee is lousy! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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