horrible experience at Lexus of Reno
08-03-11, 12:02 PM
#1
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horrible experience at Lexus of Reno
i have had nothing but problems with the dealer here in Reno Nv. it's poor customer service, over priced parts and labor. we just took our car in for its 35k tune up and we were told the rotors were worn out! this is still the first set of brake pads and the rotors have never been turned! The service manager tried telling me thats how they are made. so my wife had them replaced, after i talked to a Lexus mechanic in another state he said that was B.S. and that the rotors should last 100k or more as long as you keep the brake pads changed. after going back to the dealer and getting the old rotors and brake pads i took them to 3 other shops in town to have them looked at everyone agreed that the rotors should not have been so worn out with only 35k on the car and 20% life on the original brake pads. Now I am dealing with Lexus corp. trying to get reimbursed for faulty rotors and the 2hrs labor they claimed it took to install them.( installing new front rotors takes about 45min according to the mechanic I talked to)
So watch out if you take your car to the Lexus dealer in Reno. I would recommend taking it else where to get worked on!!
They take advantage of the soccer moms out there that don't know anything about cars
So watch out if you take your car to the Lexus dealer in Reno. I would recommend taking it else where to get worked on!!
They take advantage of the soccer moms out there that don't know anything about cars
08-03-11, 12:39 PM
#4
tell you wife to call you before anyone works on your car.defer the work untill you get a second opinion.you dont know if the rotors that were given you were yours or ones taken out of the scrap bin.
Last edited by jimbosr1; 08-03-11 at 12:42 PM.
08-03-11, 04:04 PM
#5
The majority of dealerships will take advantage of your wife, not just lexus one. Dealership prices on parts and labors are always high, that's how they survived; I don't know what other dealerships you are comparing lexus prices to.
Rotors should not be worn out by 35k, unless under horrible conditions. However, did you ever ask lexus to measure how thick they are? That would have shown exactly who the liar is.
OP name does not make me feel pity
Rotors should not be worn out by 35k, unless under horrible conditions. However, did you ever ask lexus to measure how thick they are? That would have shown exactly who the liar is.
OP name does not make me feel pity
08-03-11, 04:17 PM
#6
First, lol @ your username.
Secondly, Many dealerships (not all) will try and screw you on service, especially if your a woman. They want your money, and many will be very sneaky just to try and get you to hand it over to them. You can't fall for it though. Even your wife should know if something doesn't sound right, might be time to call either you or someone else knowledgable on the matter. My gf would have straight laughed in the service managers face and just told them to forget it and do just what was asked lol. It's true that many will try and bump up the price for women because they think most won't know what the car needs (and its partially true sadly). I've seen this all before, my GF gets sold all this BS crap when she takes her car to the dealer for service, they don't try and sell me anything when I take it in though. Hopefully Lexus Corporate will help you out, but you gotta figure something out when it comes to these kinda situations and make sure your wife doesn't let it happen again.
Secondly, Many dealerships (not all) will try and screw you on service, especially if your a woman. They want your money, and many will be very sneaky just to try and get you to hand it over to them. You can't fall for it though. Even your wife should know if something doesn't sound right, might be time to call either you or someone else knowledgable on the matter. My gf would have straight laughed in the service managers face and just told them to forget it and do just what was asked lol. It's true that many will try and bump up the price for women because they think most won't know what the car needs (and its partially true sadly). I've seen this all before, my GF gets sold all this BS crap when she takes her car to the dealer for service, they don't try and sell me anything when I take it in though. Hopefully Lexus Corporate will help you out, but you gotta figure something out when it comes to these kinda situations and make sure your wife doesn't let it happen again.
08-04-11, 09:31 AM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Well, with all due respect, let the moderators decide if this was an improper post or not.......that's their job, and what they are here for.
Welcome to CL, lexusucks....and CAR CHAT. I understand your frustration with what you went through....not all service shops are competent, even with an organization like Lexus which generally gets stellar grades for customer-service.
As far as brake-rotors go, they don't necessarily have to be replaced each time you get you get new pads (with most drivers, pads usually last 30,000 to 60,000 miles....so 35K is not out of line). Engineers design metal brake rotors (as opposed to the ceramic-rotors on some high-performance sports-cars) to perform safely at a certain minimum-metal thickness. When a brake job or pad-replacement is done, the technician is supposed to measure the remaining thickness of the rotor's contact-surface with a micrometer to see how much metal is left. If the thickness is still OK, and there is no evidence of any other problems such as a metal-crack, metal-fatigue, or warpage due to heat build-up and a pulsating brake-pedal, then they should just clean the rotors and replace the pads without any additional charge. If the rotors are out-of-round (which can also be checked with a micrometer-like device), they can be mounted on a metal-lathe-like machine that shaves the warped metal and precisely-restores the contact-surface so that the pedal won't pulsate. But doing that, of course, takes metal off of the rotors, and can usually be done only once or twice before the rotors are down to minimum-spec thickness and simply have to be replaced along with the pads. Automakers, of course, are under a lot of pressure today to take weight and cost out of their vehicles, and so some of them use rotors that are as lightweight and contains as little metal as possible to get the job done. That, of course, can sometimes mean shorter rotor-life.
Welcome to CL, lexusucks....and CAR CHAT. I understand your frustration with what you went through....not all service shops are competent, even with an organization like Lexus which generally gets stellar grades for customer-service.
As far as brake-rotors go, they don't necessarily have to be replaced each time you get you get new pads (with most drivers, pads usually last 30,000 to 60,000 miles....so 35K is not out of line). Engineers design metal brake rotors (as opposed to the ceramic-rotors on some high-performance sports-cars) to perform safely at a certain minimum-metal thickness. When a brake job or pad-replacement is done, the technician is supposed to measure the remaining thickness of the rotor's contact-surface with a micrometer to see how much metal is left. If the thickness is still OK, and there is no evidence of any other problems such as a metal-crack, metal-fatigue, or warpage due to heat build-up and a pulsating brake-pedal, then they should just clean the rotors and replace the pads without any additional charge. If the rotors are out-of-round (which can also be checked with a micrometer-like device), they can be mounted on a metal-lathe-like machine that shaves the warped metal and precisely-restores the contact-surface so that the pedal won't pulsate. But doing that, of course, takes metal off of the rotors, and can usually be done only once or twice before the rotors are down to minimum-spec thickness and simply have to be replaced along with the pads. Automakers, of course, are under a lot of pressure today to take weight and cost out of their vehicles, and so some of them use rotors that are as lightweight and contains as little metal as possible to get the job done. That, of course, can sometimes mean shorter rotor-life.
Last edited by mmarshall; 08-04-11 at 11:37 AM.
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08-04-11, 01:35 PM
#9
Welcome to the world, this is how all car's dealerships are. It is a problem with basic human nature, not a problem with a particular dealership or brand 
All human would rip off another human if it is legal and they can get away with it without consequences. Such as the case here with a dealer ripping off an ignorant house wife.
Hell most human would even do it if it is highly illegal with serious consequences.........lol.
All human would rip off another human if it is legal and they can get away with it without consequences. Such as the case here with a dealer ripping off an ignorant house wife.
Hell most human would even do it if it is highly illegal with serious consequences.........lol.
Last edited by BNR34; 08-04-11 at 01:40 PM.
08-04-11, 02:30 PM
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well it is true that most dealership will do their best to suck you dry, my experience at Acura dealer has been pretty smooth. first of all, no up selling when i purchase the car, second, no any BS service work.
Lexus is getting pretty arrogant at times. i recall when i did car shopping fouryears ago and went to longo lexus (biggest Lexus dealer in he west cost, if not national wide), the sales person didn't show any, ANY care to me because i was 24 at that time and doesn't seem to dress impressively. does it never occur to him that i might have a well pay job and means to buy a car? needless to say i went to Acura next door and get myself a type-s. the best dealer i have ever been to is metro inifiniti, no pressure sales, friendly service, and very knowledgeable staff.
i am very impressed with the Lexus CT, but i will not buy anything from longo lexus.
Lexus is getting pretty arrogant at times. i recall when i did car shopping fouryears ago and went to longo lexus (biggest Lexus dealer in he west cost, if not national wide), the sales person didn't show any, ANY care to me because i was 24 at that time and doesn't seem to dress impressively. does it never occur to him that i might have a well pay job and means to buy a car? needless to say i went to Acura next door and get myself a type-s. the best dealer i have ever been to is metro inifiniti, no pressure sales, friendly service, and very knowledgeable staff.
i am very impressed with the Lexus CT, but i will not buy anything from longo lexus.
08-04-11, 02:48 PM
#11
Lexus Fanatic
Do you really believe that rotors on any car will last 100k ?!?!? Thats just insane. I have an LS460 that had the rotors turned at 33K miles and they already need to be replaced at 46k miles. This is normal stuff. Also turning a rotor is simply buying you time. The best thing is to replace them. When you turn the rotor you decrease mass and increase the chance of warping. This is the only time I have even turned a rotor on any Lexus I have owned and I will never do it again.
Just a heads up Mr Lexussucks...........Lexus corporate is going to tell you there is nothing they will do. The most you can do here is just go to the manager, and even then he is going to tell you that your nuts. You drive a high end luxury vehicle that will require maintenance . This is the result. Im not saying they didnt bend the truth a little but I think you may be over reacting a little. When I service my cars I feel that the extra care I get as well as the loaners ,and having a tech work on my car who is actually trained on my specific vehicle is worth it to me. I cant imagine going to some random shop and sitting for hours or having someone give me a ride to and from the shop. Thats just a waste of time. Time is money. Save the time and headache and pay the extra money is my attitude
I wish you the best of luck. My only concern is that you are still going to be pissed at the end of all of this
Just a heads up Mr Lexussucks...........Lexus corporate is going to tell you there is nothing they will do. The most you can do here is just go to the manager, and even then he is going to tell you that your nuts. You drive a high end luxury vehicle that will require maintenance . This is the result. Im not saying they didnt bend the truth a little but I think you may be over reacting a little. When I service my cars I feel that the extra care I get as well as the loaners ,and having a tech work on my car who is actually trained on my specific vehicle is worth it to me. I cant imagine going to some random shop and sitting for hours or having someone give me a ride to and from the shop. Thats just a waste of time. Time is money. Save the time and headache and pay the extra money is my attitude
I wish you the best of luck. My only concern is that you are still going to be pissed at the end of all of this
08-08-11, 10:04 PM
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I drive a 2500 dodge ram with a cummins diesel engine, the truck weighs 11,286 lbs its lifted with big rims and tires and I tow my toy hauler with it. I am on my first set of rotors with 200k miles. Now the rotors have been turned a couple times and I have replaced the brakes about every 60k miles. But the rotors haven't wore out!!!!!!
Now my wife's little lexus IS 250 AW doesn't weigh anything and she doesn't ride the breaks. The breaks on our car were just at 20% (first set of brakes) no metal to metal grinding and the rotors that the dealer gave me that they claimed they took off our car were wore out. I double checked there measurements with my micrometer. There was no warping on the rotors and the brake calipers are releasing the break correctly. I dont under stand why lexus is using such cheep parts that wear out so fast and they claim thats how they were engineered.
I have never had the chevy dealer charge us when a part wore out sooner that it was suppose to on our Tahoe. Our Tahoe has over 65k miles and on the second set of brake pads the rotors were fine, didn't even need turned. (once again much heavier vehicle)
I talked to my wife and she agreed not to go back to the lexus dealer, and my main purpose now is to talk ever person that I know and post something on every lexus blog so less people will buy a lexus. Maybe if enough people do this there sells will go down enough so that they will realize that they need to put quality parts that don't wear unreasonably soon in there cars and get control of there dealers that are trying to take advantage of the soccer moms out there.
Now my wife's little lexus IS 250 AW doesn't weigh anything and she doesn't ride the breaks. The breaks on our car were just at 20% (first set of brakes) no metal to metal grinding and the rotors that the dealer gave me that they claimed they took off our car were wore out. I double checked there measurements with my micrometer. There was no warping on the rotors and the brake calipers are releasing the break correctly. I dont under stand why lexus is using such cheep parts that wear out so fast and they claim thats how they were engineered.
I have never had the chevy dealer charge us when a part wore out sooner that it was suppose to on our Tahoe. Our Tahoe has over 65k miles and on the second set of brake pads the rotors were fine, didn't even need turned. (once again much heavier vehicle)
I talked to my wife and she agreed not to go back to the lexus dealer, and my main purpose now is to talk ever person that I know and post something on every lexus blog so less people will buy a lexus. Maybe if enough people do this there sells will go down enough so that they will realize that they need to put quality parts that don't wear unreasonably soon in there cars and get control of there dealers that are trying to take advantage of the soccer moms out there.
Last edited by lexusucks; 08-08-11 at 10:29 PM.
08-09-11, 05:35 AM
#13
Lexus Fanatic
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maybe your wife drives with her foot on the brake. 
08-09-11, 05:56 AM
#14
This story makes no sense whatsoever. Car on the original set of brake pad, yet the rotors were turned? Thats the first time I hear about something like this - you just don't do it, period. Whoever turned the rotors for you, must've been an idiot and shaved them way too much, and then brake pads that were already worn out, almost instantly brought their surface back to the pre-turned condition.
