So i went to the dealer today to get an oil change and for them to check a recall on the fuel pressure gauge that alot of IS 250 owners have experienced. Service was great but while there i had them check for the "clank" noise that some of us get on cold start up. Sure enough they notice the sound! It's barely under 50,000 warranty so they are working on it (warranty covers it). Well i get a call with an update saying that they water pump has some corrosion on it and they will have to replace it. Wow, only 48,500 miles and i have water pump issues. I though Lexus had the toyota reliability? Could i be wrong?





BTW dealership oil for full synthetic ($9 a quart) is way too expensive. I could run Royal purple for less. NTM that the engine takes 7 quarts? wow. My F-150 V-8 takes about that much. Wow! must be because of the direct injection system? any comments?

Sorry for the long post, just excited to be here

 

Sorry to hear about your issues. Glad it's under warranty. Next time bring in your own oil. I buy Mobil 1 at Costco and order the filters from Sewell Lexus (vendor on here). Hope all goes well and welcome to CL.

 

^^ Costco Mobil 1 ftw. Stock up when the coupon book has the $9 off a case of Mobil 1 coupon. I think I still have two boxes and 4 quarts left.

 

how much do you guys wind up paying for the materials and having the dealer change it?

 

dude, it costs at least 8 dollars a quart at any auto store. I'm sure they're raping you on labor for the oil change though

 

That "clank" noise is covered under the powertrain warranty which is 6 years/70,000 miles. So at 50k, you got 20k miles left where that issue will be fixed under warranty. A few people here have had issues with the water pump actually, so its not surprising they are replacing the water pump either.

As for the oil , as Sffd103 said, buy the oil yourself (and Costco does sell it cheap) and buy a few filters from Sewell (Don't just get one, or shipping isn't worth it) and bring them the oil + filter with you when you go to the dealership. Have them just perform the labor....i find this costs about $40 at Lexus. If you take your Lexus to Toyota for an oil change i find the labor is closer to $20. I just prefer the Lexus dealer because A) its MUCH nicer lol and B) It gets reported on the vehicle service history automatically

6pk of Mobil-1 is about $40 at Costco. You can get an extra quart for about $7 at Walmart too.

 

+1 on that. I still get charged for $40 on labor even though I bring my own materials. Still pretty pricey.

 

They won't charge any less whether or not you bring your own oil or use theirs. It's just their standard labor cost unfortunately lol. Most dealerships are at about $120/hr for labor, in my experience. They usually just rate it at 20 mins for an oil change, which is where they get the $40 from based on the $120/hr rate.

 

Actually they do charge less if you bring your own oil.

I had an oil change once and looked at my invoice and they charged me for using their oil by accident when they were using the oil I brought. They credit me back for the mistake.

 

You got lucky they heard the noise and caught the water pump.

 

Wow $40 for oil change labor?? I always bring in my own oil but have them charge for labor and filter($5) only and costs about $27 total.

 

This is why I try to just DIY..

At least BMW has free maintenance for 4 years..

 

Well, free in that you paid $9000 more for the car in the first place... (at least that was roughly the difference in invoice from my IS350 to a similarly (but still slightly less well) equipped 335i...I certainly did not go through 9 grand in oil changes in 4 years.

 

Gotta pay to play. Would rather pay $9000 for something least reliable but way more funner. Running consistent low 12s with simple mods is what I'm talking about.. To each of their own..

Btw, what 335 cost $9000 more than a IS350? MSRP vs MSRP the 2012 335 cost $42,050 vs 2012 IS350 40,020.

 

Friend of mine got his water pump replaced a while ago with under 30,000 miles. I have a feeling mine is going bad too or it could be a loose tensioner making the noise on mine.