KevinK Posted March 27, 2004 Posted March 27, 2004 My 2002 RX300 is due for the 30K service. According to the manual, it needs coolant change, brake fluid change, oil/filter change and tire rotation. The lexus dealer will charge for $585 for the 30K service (including transmission fluid which is not recommended in the owner's manual). Can I ask Toyota dealer to do the service, OR DIY? Will this void the waranty? Thanks.
93LSOwner Posted March 27, 2004 Posted March 27, 2004 I'm not sure about this, but someone here mentioned that Toyota dealers are not very pleased too see a Lexus drive into there lot of service. Lexus dealers might tell you other things to look for too, but your car only has 30k though. Who knows better about Lexus then a Lexus dealer!
Lexusfreak Posted March 27, 2004 Posted March 27, 2004 Because of the newness of the vehicle, I would stay away from the DIY route. If you have a good reliable mechanic thats cheaper than the dealer that's one possibility (make sure you have & use Lexus/Toyota parts & fluids with bills to prove should there ever be a problem). As long as you can prove to the dealer that all required service was performed, the warranty is valid. If you don't have a good mechanic, you might not have a choice but to take it to the dealer but as mentioned the Lexus dealer know their vehicles best! B)
jimbostar Posted March 27, 2004 Posted March 27, 2004 I think for simple, straight forward stuff the Toyota dealer should be OK, as a matter of fact, my local Lexus dealer didn't have the machine to do a power tranny flush, so I had the local Toyota dealer do it. The thing I like about having Lexus do more complicated work is that they have the experience with our model cars and have parts in stock that they might need for something unanticipated.
monarch Posted March 27, 2004 Posted March 27, 2004 Maintaining your RX 300 for the first 6 years or 90,000 miles is actually amazingly simple and inexpensive if you are armed with the two factory manuals and some basic tools like two floor jacks and some jackstands. The factory manual, for example, would tell you the proper jacking points and where to place the jackstands so that you can do your own tire rotations. Since YOU are doing the work, you won't overtighten the lug nuts like so many shops do and therefore you won't ever be bothered with the problem of warped brake rotors and all the vibrations that causes. The manual will also tell you have to drain and refill the transmission oil pan. You can buy the required 3 quarts of Toyota Type T-IV fluid at a Toyota dealer in 1 quart bottles for pocket change. The manual will also tell you how to change the brake fluid. Again You can buy the required 3 pints of genuine Toyota Brake fluid at a Toyota dealer in 1 pint bottles for pocket change. The manual will also tell you how to change the radiator coolant. Again You can buy the required 1-2 gallos genuine Toyota red antifreeze at a Toyota dealer in 1 gallon jugs for $12-15 each plus 1-2 gallons of distilled water from a super market. Just drain the radiator and refill with a 50/50 mixture of the two. The factory manuals cost about $120 if you get them on ebay and quite a bit more if you order them from the source listed in your owners manual. Dealers have all kinds of gimmicks up their sleeve like "coolant flushing machines" "brake fluid flushing machines" "transmission flushing machines" etc. just so they can charge megabucks for simple fluid change services. None of this flushing business is really needed (except in the case of a badly neglected an abused car). Just partial fluid changes every 30,000 miles or so is all the factory manual recommends and is all that's needed to keep all the fluids and lubes fresh enough to protect the components for decades and hundreds of thousands of miles. Indeed, your Lexus will be better off because it will receive nothing but factory original fluids whereas dealer service depts typically install non-genuine Toyota fluids and lubes in order to save money.
KevinK Posted March 29, 2004 Author Posted March 29, 2004 Thanks very much. I could not find a 2002 RX300 service manual on ebay. Do you think that a 2000 manual will also work?
lxs300 Posted April 5, 2004 Posted April 5, 2004 Monarch, Good information for people who can little time and save a lot on these maintenances. Does any of these DIY maintanance void warranty ??
Lexusfreak Posted April 21, 2004 Posted April 21, 2004 I think if you have all reciepts for everything you should be fine unless something catastrophic happens, then I have no idea. If your not comfortable DIY, then try the reliable mechanic route that was suggested as they should be quite a bit less than the Lexus dealer & get a bill should there be any issues.
Maximaboy1 Posted June 23, 2004 Posted June 23, 2004 I've spoken with a variety of Toyota dealerships. They all have told me taht they will do Lexus services. Toyota and Lexus are the same company; toyota designs the car and engines. If all of you feel very smart and confident in paying 150% to 200%+ more for "assurance", please tell me why you would spend that much more at the Lexus Dealership than the Toyota Dealership. The parts and labor are the same. The parts for a fact, are the same. A bottle of ATF-Type 4 at Lexus is $8, while Toyota only charges $4.
steviej Posted June 23, 2004 Posted June 23, 2004 More detail is put into making the customer comfortable at most Lexus dealerships. Not saying that every Toyota dealership doesn't, but they are far and few between. There are also some parts that are not routinely stocked at the Toyota dealership that are stocked at Lexus. For example, the windshield wiper blades from Lexus ARE different than the ones at Toyota. Lexus are better and are a different material. Lexus provides a free rental. Coffee, cappacino, espresso, buffet on Sat., big plush seats if you are waiting. Free exterior car wash and interior vacumming after your service. My dealership is even thinking of going WIFI, so you can do business or mobile computing while you wait. (yeah, right, like I'm going to do that....but I could). It all comes down to what you are willing to pay and how you are or are not willing to wait. At my lexus dealership, I feel like I am at a Starbucks internet cafe, hotel lobby or something. At the Toyota dealerships, I feel like I am at a garage. steviej
Lexusfreak Posted June 23, 2004 Posted June 23, 2004 Agreed steviej, I was suprised & very impressed when I took my ES in for some warranty work to get my dome light replaced under warranty. The made several different pot's of top shelf coffee, free newspaper, 600 channels on their TV & they even washed, dressed the tires & vacumed the car when they gave it back to me!
infiniti_g35c Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 i have a question for you guys as well, i just bought a 2001 LEXUS IS300 from a third party, meaning it wasnt from a dealership because i got absolutely an amazing deal on it. We negotiated the price down to a little under $16,000 for this car before tax, etc and it had 65,000 miles on it when i bought it. it is a clean title, but the interior is a little worn out, but nothing that looks that bad. Anyways, when talking to LEXUS, they were going to charge me $3500 for an extended warranty up to 100,000 miles, which is only 30,000 miles away and i really didnt find it necessary. I mean, in the end, will it come out worth it? Wont i be better off just taking the car into a dealership to get serviced, everything checked, and paying for it? Some things that need to be fixed are: drivers door handle is loose, there is a small lightbulb out in the front headlight, the tires need to be rotated, the brake pads changed, possibly oil change and whole system flushout. Am i looking in the range of the $1000's to get this all done? And another question, since my warranty is no longer valid, do i get a loaner car from my dealership? just some quick questions! THANKS! I mean i dont know, without warranty, is the customer still treated the same? I need this work done no matter what, and getting it done at a LEXUS dealer i think will be the best because the car, when i bought, wasnt in THAT great of condition and i have no clue how he had maintained it. So anyways, just some advice would be good! THANKS!
Lexusfreak Posted August 24, 2004 Posted August 24, 2004 If your paying 'Lexus bucks' to fix your Lexus they will treat you just fine! ;) B)
vas2fl Posted August 26, 2004 Posted August 26, 2004 I wouldn't pay $3500 to certify (warranty) the car. Certification on my used Lexus was $1500 from the dealer (56k on the car). Just take it to a reputable independent shop, where you will pay much much less for service. The dealer charges 2-3x as much, and they want you to think it's worth it. Of course, that's up to you, but an ASE certified mechanic who works on Toyotas and Lexus is has a good rep will be able to do everything much cheaper.
VBdenny Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 The Lexus dealship here has always charged me a fortune for what I considered fairly routine service. My exectations were not met as they left parts off my car requiring me to go back and wait again. Luckiliy I noticed the under engine shield had not been replaced or they probably would have had me for a new alternator as well. While I do feel they are highly competent, I do feel they rip you off. Maybe free coffee and Internet service while waiting meets some peoples expections, I would rather has fast, correct, and reasonably priced service. Some friendly people would be a bonus.
GoldenStateSilverSport Posted December 6, 2005 Posted December 6, 2005 I did my major tune-up at a Toyota dealership and it cost me almost half the price lex was going to charge me. I talked to my service consultant and he knew what he was talking when i asked him various questions about my Lexus.
Toysrme Posted December 6, 2005 Posted December 6, 2005 That' cool man, but you're digging for gold! ;) VBdenny Aug 28 2004, 06:24 AM GoldenStateSilverSport Posted Today<12/5/05>, 07:36 PM
lenore Posted December 6, 2005 Posted December 6, 2005 More detail is put into making the customer comfortable at most Lexus dealerships. Not saying that every Toyota dealership doesn't, but they are far and few between. There are also some parts that are not routinely stocked at the Toyota dealership that are stocked at Lexus. For example, the windshield wiper blades from Lexus ARE different than the ones at Toyota. Lexus are better and are a different material.Lexus provides a free rental. Coffee, cappacino, espresso, buffet on Sat., big plush seats if you are waiting. Free exterior car wash and interior vacumming after your service. My dealership is even thinking of going WIFI, so you can do business or mobile computing while you wait. (yeah, right, like I'm going to do that....but I could). It all comes down to what you are willing to pay and how you are or are not willing to wait. At my lexus dealership, I feel like I am at a Starbucks internet cafe, hotel lobby or something. At the Toyota dealerships, I feel like I am at a garage. steviej ← Take the savings by not using the dealership and invest it in the stock of Starbucks,etc..... However Starbucks does not support the American troops overseas in IRAQ, So they are out on my list. Boy is that expensive coffee and rental cars when you consider the price of Lexus service.
lenore Posted December 6, 2005 Posted December 6, 2005 i have a question for you guys as well, i just bought a 2001 LEXUS IS300 from a third party, meaning it wasnt from a dealership because i got absolutely an amazing deal on it. We negotiated the price down to a little under $16,000 for this car before tax, etc and it had 65,000 miles on it when i bought it. it is a clean title, but the interior is a little worn out, but nothing that looks that bad. Anyways, when talking to LEXUS, they were going to charge me $3500 for an extended warranty up to 100,000 miles, which is only 30,000 miles away and i really didnt find it necessary. I mean, in the end, will it come out worth it? Wont i be better off just taking the car into a dealership to get serviced, everything checked, and paying for it? Some things that need to be fixed are: drivers door handle is loose, there is a small lightbulb out in the front headlight, the tires need to be rotated, the brake pads changed, possibly oil change and whole system flushout. Am i looking in the range of the $1000's to get this all done? And another question, since my warranty is no longer valid, do i get a loaner car from my dealership? just some quick questions! THANKS! I mean i dont know, without warranty, is the customer still treated the same? I need this work done no matter what, and getting it done at a LEXUS dealer i think will be the best because the car, when i bought, wasnt in THAT great of condition and i have no clue how he had maintained it. So anyways, just some advice would be good! THANKS! ← If you feel you need that warranty, buy it from a Credit union, it will be a lot cheaper.
lenore Posted December 6, 2005 Posted December 6, 2005 The Lexus dealship here has always charged me a fortune for what I considered fairly routine service. My exectations were not met as they left parts off my car requiring me to go back and wait again. Luckiliy I noticed the under engine shield had not been replaced or they probably would have had me for a new alternator as well.While I do feel they are highly competent, I do feel they rip you off. Maybe free coffee and Internet service while waiting meets some peoples expections, I would rather has fast, correct, and reasonably priced service. Some friendly people would be a bonus. ← Amen!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hashhouch Posted August 19, 2006 Posted August 19, 2006 i have a question for you guys as well, i just bought a 2001 LEXUS RX 300 from a third Kia/ Hyundai in edmond, we thaught me and my wife we got absolutely a goodl deal on it. We negotiated the price down to a little under $13,000 for this car no warranty included etc and it had 95,000 miles on it when i bought it. it is a clean title, the interior and the body is in excellent conditions. Anyways, we drove that car for more then two month, we drove to texas also without a problem. three days ago the car stopped for no reason and we found out that the transmission is very bad, binds up in reverse and neutral. noisy in forward. 1st gear only, parts of planetary gearst + bearings in pan and filter, exteram harn part breakage. when talking to LEXUS, they were going to charge me $4300 for a refurnished transmission and labor to fix the problem. i aslo ckeked with a transmission expert ( Fleet transmission and he was willing to do the same work for 3100 an extended warranty on both labor and part up to 12 mounth. i really don't know what to do...this is my first time owning a lexus...
sgtm7 Posted August 23, 2006 Posted August 23, 2006 Next time go to carsurvey.org, when researching a car. The RX300 is famous for transmission problems.
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now