BoaterRoger

Hi,

I brought my 1997 Lexus SC400 to the dealership for 70,000 mile maintenance recently, and also asked that they take care of the Virginia state safety inspection.

I got a call from the service guy a few hours later saying that my car failed inspection. He said the rear wheel bearings were worn out and had to be replaced. Price: $1920 ($2100 with the alignment). He said the price is mostly labor (I think they have to take the axle off?).

Here's what I'm wondering:

How can something so expensive wear out so early on this supposedly extremely reliable car? All of the regular maintenance (every 5,000 miles) has been done at the dealership, by the way. Isn't preventative maintenance supposed to make sure something like this doesn't wear out?

How was this discovered during a safety inspection? It could have been part of the regular maintenance routine, but in that case why didn't they catch this (the wear) during the last time I brought it in?

So the main questions I have are is it normal for the rear wheel bearings to be worn out at 70k miles, and should it cost $2k to fix this?

Thanks for your input.

-AngryCustomer

Hi,

I brought my 1997 Lexus SC400 to the dealership for 70,000 mile maintenance recently, and also asked that they take care of the Virginia state safety inspection.

I got a call from the service guy a few hours later saying that my car failed inspection. He said the rear wheel bearings were worn out and had to be replaced. Price: $1920 ($2100 with the alignment). He said the price is mostly labor (I think they have to take the axle off?).

Here's what I'm wondering:

How can something so expensive wear out so early on this supposedly extremely reliable car? All of the regular maintenance (every 5,000 miles) has been done at the dealership, by the way. Isn't preventative maintenance supposed to make sure something like this doesn't wear out?

How was this discovered during a safety inspection? It could have been part of the regular maintenance routine, but in that case why didn't they catch this (the wear) during the last time I brought it in?

So the main questions I have are is it normal for the rear wheel bearings to be worn out at 70k miles, and should it cost $2k to fix this?

Thanks for your input.

-AngryCustomer