$140 Oil Change
#16
Skip the tire rotation. BMW recommends against it for several reasons - mainly because the added cost does not give you significant increased tire life. I think that when we had our RX the tire rotations were something like $45-$50 of the service (and they wanted to do them every 5K or so). So at 30K you are out $300 and that just doesn't make up for the limited tire life increase.
#17
I am now convinced that "some" stealerships are ripping owners off bigtime.We get the oil changed every 5000 miles.Wife calls me up one day and says the "low oil"warning light goes on.She was at the mall where there is a Sears service center,so,I tell her to buy 2 quarts and have an attendant put oil in.When he pulled the dopstick,the very bottom of the stick was wet.She immediatley went to the Lexus dealership.Keep in mind,they changed the oil 5000 miles ago,no oil leaks were observes,and the car runs great as its a 2006.
She explains what happened and the idiot tech tells her that she should not have put oil in it. The wife angrily replies,"Oh really?You want me to drive here and possibly have the motor seize?I don;t think so!" He then states that there may be a leak,which is BS as there is nothing leaking.
I am convinced that they never changed the oil on our last visit but we sure as hell were charged for it.There is no way any new car uses 4 or 5 quarts of oil in 5000 miles.I am going to write a letter to Corporate letting them know what happened,not that it will do any good.I will either do the oil changes myself in the future or my wife will ask to watch when and if they do a service again.
By the way they really bent us over on teh 15,000 mile service as that was over $300.00.
She explains what happened and the idiot tech tells her that she should not have put oil in it. The wife angrily replies,"Oh really?You want me to drive here and possibly have the motor seize?I don;t think so!" He then states that there may be a leak,which is BS as there is nothing leaking.
I am convinced that they never changed the oil on our last visit but we sure as hell were charged for it.There is no way any new car uses 4 or 5 quarts of oil in 5000 miles.I am going to write a letter to Corporate letting them know what happened,not that it will do any good.I will either do the oil changes myself in the future or my wife will ask to watch when and if they do a service again.
By the way they really bent us over on teh 15,000 mile service as that was over $300.00.
#19
I pay $50.. oil only... they use a synthetic blend... boo but I dont want them to ticker with trying to rotate staggered wheels.. who knows what some of those tech's do.. some do wonders don't get me wrong. but some... no comment
#20
Mercedes are a different story.. On my previous '01 C320, they had to use there oil vacuum machine(not sure what it's really called) to suck out all the oil at the bottom of the pan. That requires a lil more time. But I knew a technician who worked on my car personally and I saw how he does a correct and proper oil change. He removes the underbody panel and removes the whole oil pan to drain it. that requires some time though, I sat there and watched. But I pay a small fee for labor, and parts were at cost... oil was free mobil 1 from the pump baby.
#21
i own a lube station here in houston tx and there is no reason that your oil change should cost that much.
if you think about it
at walmart you can purchase 5 quarts of mobil 1 extended performance ( the oil you can drive up to 15k miles on) for $27.
im assuming if you have a gs 430 your holding 7 or so quarts. so if you purchased it yourself you would be looking at around $35-40 with the synthetic oil filter.
tire rotation can be done free at any ntb or firestone or discount tire regardless if you ever purchased tires from there or not.
unless you purchased an air filter which would run you about $12 at autozone or orielys
it shouldnt pass $70..keep in mind if you did the oil change yourself, got a free tire rotation and put in the air filter yourself
but $140...
if you think about it
at walmart you can purchase 5 quarts of mobil 1 extended performance ( the oil you can drive up to 15k miles on) for $27.
im assuming if you have a gs 430 your holding 7 or so quarts. so if you purchased it yourself you would be looking at around $35-40 with the synthetic oil filter.
tire rotation can be done free at any ntb or firestone or discount tire regardless if you ever purchased tires from there or not.
unless you purchased an air filter which would run you about $12 at autozone or orielys
it shouldnt pass $70..keep in mind if you did the oil change yourself, got a free tire rotation and put in the air filter yourself
but $140...
#22
i know this is probably not for my best interest or to any oil change station, but..
the cheapest route would be to go purchase your own oil/filter at walmart
purchase your own air filter at your nearest auto parts store
go to your nearest oil change lube station and go ask for a "drain and fill"
then ask for a curiosity air filter install and topping off of your washer fluid/ coolant
they usually charge around $15 for that service but saves you from getting dirty
the cheapest route would be to go purchase your own oil/filter at walmart
purchase your own air filter at your nearest auto parts store
go to your nearest oil change lube station and go ask for a "drain and fill"
then ask for a curiosity air filter install and topping off of your washer fluid/ coolant
they usually charge around $15 for that service but saves you from getting dirty
#24
I just dropped off my gs for the 15,000 service. They quoted me 280. I called 5 dealerships and I heard 280 on up to 389. I called Toyota and they quoted me 200. I have the advans and they are howling like I have a jacked up pickup when I go about 60 mph. So, I want the dealer to tell me what they can do to correct it, that is give me new tires at a discount. I also put in the K&N air filter so I told him to take that off the work order. He then asked if I wanted the cabin air filter changed. He said they charge 95 bucks for that. I said, NO. So he wrote up the order as a 20,000 service because that really the only difference. So I am expecting it to be around 140 and hopefully I can get some tires at a real discount. Hey, I also got a free loaner. Toyota doesn't offer that by me.
#25
A few months ago I performed the 15K service myself on my '06 GS430 using genuine Lexus parts bought from one of our sponsors.
IMHO, Tuthman's post is a typical example of why I can't justify spending the $$$ for a Lexus dealership to perform a task that I can easily handle.
Example, the cabin filter is $32.40 so let's call it $40 by the time it is shipped to you. It takes 5 minutes to change the filter if you take all the time in the world, you could actually do the work in two if you were in a hurry. Using the 5 minutes as a base labor rate and the difference in cost between the $95 quoted Tuthman and the $40 for the filter, that calculates out to a labor rate of $660 per hour to perform a basic task.
Don't get me wrong, I don't have an issue spending money on something of value (I own a 3GS don't I?) but simply throwing away money is crazy.
IMHO, Tuthman's post is a typical example of why I can't justify spending the $$$ for a Lexus dealership to perform a task that I can easily handle.
Example, the cabin filter is $32.40 so let's call it $40 by the time it is shipped to you. It takes 5 minutes to change the filter if you take all the time in the world, you could actually do the work in two if you were in a hurry. Using the 5 minutes as a base labor rate and the difference in cost between the $95 quoted Tuthman and the $40 for the filter, that calculates out to a labor rate of $660 per hour to perform a basic task.
Don't get me wrong, I don't have an issue spending money on something of value (I own a 3GS don't I?) but simply throwing away money is crazy.
#26
Just wanted to let you guys know that the dealership agreed with the shape of my tires and called me and offered to replace for free with a set of Michelins.
I was a bit skeptical of this dealer, but that does alot to win me over.
I was a bit skeptical of this dealer, but that does alot to win me over.
#27
you can call around and see what various dealers charge. in my area it varies from $100-$150. i have been taking it to the dealer than does $100 b/c they do a great job and i have a good relationship w/ the service advisor.
i personally don't know how (or want) to DIY and i don't have the time to do it. sure i could go to jiffy for oil change, then to costco for free tire rotation, then to some auto parts place to buy all the fluids i need to top off, and then to the local hand car wash, but i'd rather not drive around to do all those things when i can just go and have them do it all in one shot.
everyone is different though, so it's whatever you are willing to tolerate and i suppose what/how much you value your time.
BMW offers free scheduled maint b/c it has been successful in getting people to try the brand and not worry about repairs. all the other luxury brands have done away with the free scheduled maintenance AFAIK.
i personally don't know how (or want) to DIY and i don't have the time to do it. sure i could go to jiffy for oil change, then to costco for free tire rotation, then to some auto parts place to buy all the fluids i need to top off, and then to the local hand car wash, but i'd rather not drive around to do all those things when i can just go and have them do it all in one shot.
everyone is different though, so it's whatever you are willing to tolerate and i suppose what/how much you value your time.
BMW offers free scheduled maint b/c it has been successful in getting people to try the brand and not worry about repairs. all the other luxury brands have done away with the free scheduled maintenance AFAIK.
#28
#29
For the price you paid for this luxury auto wouldn't you want people who are factory trained to work on Lexus cars to do work on your car? or would you rather have some so-so mechanic at Jiffy lube do the work? Besides service is only recommended every 6 months. A trained Lexus mechanic also looks over your car and lets you know if there is anything wrong and if it is then it should be covered under warranty. A local oil change place will only recommend unwanted services not that Lexus or other dealerships don't do anyway but the tradeoff is that while they do oil change they will do the necessary adjustments if needed where a local shop will not. BMW does the free maintenance so that they can have certify vehicles for resale but even then the free maintenance only covers a oil change once a year or longer depending how much mileage is on car. After free maintenance period be prepared to get raped for routine service. Just my thoughts. By the way re; tire rotation. If Lexus damages your wheels while rotating and you complain then most likely they will replace wheel for free but at a local tire shop you're on your own
As for damage, that's what insurance is for. A Lexus dealer might be more willing to take the blame, but not necessarily. The couple dealers I've seen are fairly loose with the visual inspection before they take your car and I can imagine a dispute arising.
You've never owned a BMW if you're knocking their free maintenance. Their's was/is the best. Others had it for a couple of years but gave it up. None were as good as BMW's. The BMW plan included brakes and other wear and tear items. Basically, it excluded tires and gas. And BMW maintenance may be expensive, but Lexus is even worse if it's $140 for an oil change. Is that $140 oil change even synthetic oil?
#30
Holy cow I would have never thought Dealers would charge this much for a simple oil change. how some people can justify the price is beyond me. Then again, I dont have all the money in the world.