ramy

Hi all,

My 05 ES330 is due for 60K service and the dealer is giving an estimate of $500..I wanted to know what most of Lexus owners do...go to the dealer or have it done at a local shop? If i take it to the dealer, they'll probably do some unnecessary stuff..which i dont want them to do and pay for it.

What are the things that are *really* needed to be done at 60K service? I could probably tell the dealer to do only those and minimize the expense.


Thank you

PFB

Its very simple. Just have him stick to whatever is recommended by Lexus in your maintenance manual for the 60k schedule.

Nothing more, nothing less.

ramy

Thanks.
Would there be any disadvantage going to a local shop vs dealer for the same job?
Also any recommendations on good service center chains?
Location: Alpharetta/Atlanta - Georgia

BradTank

Those 60k mile "services" are mainly ways for dealers to service your wallet. There's a lot of "inspect this, inspect that" when no actual service on the vehicle is performed. I've seen $600, 60k mile services where basically the only real work performed was an oil change.

A lot of it you can do yourself, even if you have no mechanical knowledge. Things like air filters and cabin filters take 5 minutes to do, but the dealer will charge you over $150 in parts and labor alone just to change those out.

I would look closely at your owners manual, and only pay for specific items that the book says to replace. I wouldn't pay to have things like the exhaust or ball joints "inspected".

One item I would have done is getting your coolant flushed if it has never been done, it's probably due.

pauloil

how does one drain the cooling system to first rinse a few times with dis. water and then add fresh coolant? is there a drain **** on the back of the engine block as well as the radiator. or better, which heater hose can you put a flush tee into?

miltonlin

Yes, you can always them the list of services and pick only the ones you want. keep in mind a lot of the inspection can lead to "we suggest you replace this and that..."

Taking to your car to dealer does not normally save you money over the local shop. Someone's got to pay for the drinks and donuts. Do you trust the local shop to work on your car? I had Toyota dealer work on my RX, and they f'd up the spark plugs and brake job. This is after the service advisor told me he had his Lexus tech (previously worked at Lexus dealer) work on the RX. Uhh, sorry, but maybe that is why he is not a Lexus tech full time. WTF.


You are out of the basic warranty, but maybe not out of the powertrain warranty?
So if they find something related to powertrain, or if you wanted them to reflash the shift points for instance, that should be covered at no cost. No local shop could do that.

KLF

I can't remember where I read it, maybe in my Owner's Manual, but the coolant in these cars is a "Long Life" type, it is good for 100,000 miles.

BradTank

From my understanding, it's 5 years or 100k miles, whichever comes first.

I think having your coolant flushed a minimum of once every 5 years is prudent, no matter how special the stuff is they put in it. In the OP's case, it would be coming up on 6-7 years, and if he waited until 100k miles, he'd be looking at 10 years on the original coolant, not a good idea.

Manufacturers in an attempt to market their cars as "low maintenance" sometimes overdo it. You've seen cars that say "No tuneup for 100k miles" etc. and it's usually a recipe for disaster.

It's not worth replacing your head gaskets to save a few dollars on coolant.

OceanView

I just did a 60K service on an 04 ES330.
Not too difficult if you don't mind getting dirty.

I did the following:

Radiator Fluid Drain and Fill - Use Lexus/Toyota Super Long Life 50-50 mix (1.25 gallons)
Transmission Oil Drain and Fill - Type F Fluid - 3 qts
Brake Fluid Drain and Fill - DOT 3 - 2-3 qts
Power Steering Fluid - ATF fluid - 1 qt
Oil and filter change.

You could also change the Air Filter if you need one.

Visual inspection of Tires, Brakes, Belts, Hoses. Look for leaks.

Total time for me was 4 hours.
Cost was about $100.
Probably saved about $500.

pauloil

how do you drain the block and not just the radiator if you want to replace all the coolant? is there a drain **** on the back of the engine block as well as the radiator. or better, which heater hose can you put a flush tee into? does removing the lower hose drain the block. what about doing the thermostat?

OceanView

I didn't drain the block because it's too much work and too messy to do at home. I just drain the radiator and refill on an yearly basis.
I didn't change the thermostat yet. I may do that later this month.

ramy

Thank you all for the posts.
I ended up going to the dealer and the estimate is about $500.00.
However, they're trying to upsell battery since it failed load test-
and the drive belt/Serpentine belt which they say needs to be replaced.
Battery - $175 and belt -$175.
I told them to stick with service for now.. but need some input with serpentine belt (whatever that means)
I can probably install a good battery for around $100 ..but not sure about the belt thing.

Thanks again for all the info.

ramy

Also, please suggest a good battery make/model for the car.

Thanks

OceanView

$175 for battery is high depending on what brand they give you.
You can get Optima batteries for less than that price and they are probably better than OEM.

What are they gonna do for the $500? they may just say it's 60K service but it may be as simple as an oil and filter change. All those other fluids that I mentioned above are probably not gonna get changed at that price.

I'm not sure about the belt needing change as I can't inspect it for you.
I usually change mine when I do the timing belt which is at 90K miles.
But you should inspect your own to be sure.

ramy

Of that 500, about 380 is for labor as far as i remember
i need to find out what that belt does and where its located to inspect.. not sure if its visible easily enough