I'm curious to get opinions on an issue. I have a 2009 IS 350 I bought new 11 years ago (I've only put 35,000 miles on the car). Since the car is RWD and I live near Chicago, I purchased winter wheels and tires from the dealer as part of their winter tire program. Under the program, the dealer stores your wheels/tires and switches them for you at no charge during the life of owning the car. For 11 years it's worked out great. A few months ago, the dealer (a local family who also owns 3 other dealerships) sold to Fields, a much larger organization with dealers in many states. Yesterday I finally got around to having the dealer put on my summer wheels/tires. Before I left, the new service director informed me that starting in the fall there will be an $84 charge every time I switch out the wheels/tires (which I do twice a year). I said the winter program is no charge for the life of the car, and he said new ownership said that will no longer be the case, with no exceptions. Am I wrong to be upset? I suppose the dealer can do whatever they want, and there is no contract or agreement for the winter tire program. But you would think new ownership would do everything it can to keep customers happy who are loyal to the dealer, especially given current conditions.

 

Was weird to see the Bredemann name change... but I don't think you can be upset. The owner of the business, an independent franchise, changed. If it was some sort of corporate owned entity that made that program guarantee in writing, then maybe there's recourse, but I don't see it in this particular case. Even companies like Costco and REI and Nordstrom have had to make adjustments to generous return policies over time.

 

You're not wrong to be upset, Lenscap2. At least you didn't have to pay for the spring switch.

 

Do you have the deal in writing?

You're not wrong to be upset.

 

My $.02

If it really matters... one phone call to Lexus Corp outta do it... politely explain your position and it's something you've found to be a difference maker in your purchasing decision... NO dealer wants a customer satisfaction case opened, especially under Lexus

Have an issue with Genesis Finance doubling my sales tax unannounced on my Genesis after a year with the car... when I got attitude, called both Finance AND Corporate. I'm looking at credit plus some free "perks"... if you don't ask...

 

Lexus won't have the ability to control a private dealer in a situation like this.

 

I agree with this. No dealer wants to see a customer go. Lexus customer service will log the complaint and then see what happens.

Not at all wrong to be upset. If this dealer wants to keep you for service at their location, they will honor the deal. I have recently moved on from a dealer I had been going for almost 30 years, it took a number of things to make this happen and one of them was when they started selectively choosing whom they would give car washes to during oil changes....Actions speak louder than words...I hope
you get what you want.



 

Unfortunately for these big dealer chains, they don't care if they lose one customer or a few customers for a policy change like that. Its all about numbers, and they have engineered in a certain number of customers they will lose because of that change.

Sounds like an opportunity to find an independent mechanic.

 

very unfortunate that this happened, you are right to be upset!
whether at a car dealership, gym membership (when they were open), or any business where they implement something new, it is a waste of time to argue/fight it, you would think they wouldn't pull things at a time like this!

 

I disagree that it is a waste of time.

 

You're not going to change the policy. Its a corporate thing, its way above the head of anybody there at the dealership.

 

Since you presumably have some time at home. Good time to buy a wall rack for your alternate set of wheels/tires and install it in your garage for storage purposes.

Plenty of mobile providers these days, especially since it sounds like you have a fully mounted set of tires and 2nd wheels, even easier. So then you don't even have to go in anywhere. Also a good chance to learn the ease of the quick hoist of a jack, some stands and swapping them out yourself.

 

I agree that you probably can't legally force the new owner to change his or her policy, but you can also do two things yourself. First, point out that, once the pandemic and business is back to normal, nothing is stopping you from buying your next Lexus (or different-brand vehicle) at another dealership. Unless the new owner is a real snob (or simply doesn't care), I agree with Jill that most places don't want to lose customers. Second, you can leak the story to your local TV station...they often have reporters on the lookout for business practices that screw longtime customers, and are happy to air them on the daily news for all to see. We have a local program, here in D.C., on ABC-Channel 7, called 7 on Your Side, that does that. (Steve...you're local here...you may have seen that)

Oh...and, next time, at least part of my advice is consider an AWD IS (they are still available, even brand new), which comes better-equipped for winter-driving to start with, and you won't have to worry about the switching wheel/tire stiff to start with.

 

The dealership doesn't care about one lost sale from a customer that clearly keeps cars a long time. Whats of more value to them is the service business.

Local news is also not going to be interested in the story about something so minor during these times. This sort of thing doesn't rise to that level.

And as we have argued many times before, AWD doesn't negate the benefit of winter tires in a place like Chicago.

Just speak with your wallet and take your business elsewhere

 

Thanks for the dialogue, folks. Someone from the dealer called me as a standard follow up and I mentioned my concern. She agreed with me and said they should start charging new winter tire customers, but grandfather in previous customers, and would raise the issue up the chain. I still don't think anything will come of it, though.

A few replies to earlier comments: The 2009 IS 350 was not offered in AWD, only the 250 was. In fact, my car was a special order as the 350s were rare in my area. Also, this is the longest I have ever kept a car. I have a very short work commute and we use my wife's car most of the time, so no real need to get a new car at the moment. Finally, my family has bought 10 Lexus models since the 1990s, all new: 3 LSs, 3 GSs, 2 ESs, 1 IS and 1 NX.

Another quirk with the new ownership group: They will only allow you to use their car wash if your car has a Fields (the ownership group) license plate frame. This doesn't affect me as I don't use the car wash since it has huge brushes that seem to scratch the paint. But I also don't like dealer license plate frames and wouldn't put one on no matter what.