rxdriver

I just got a notice in the mail today about a potential settlement in a class action lawsuit about the oil gelling issue affecting 1999-2002 RX 300's.

Basically it says that Lexus/Toyota will cover oil gel issues with an 8 year / unlimited mileage warranty. If you have previously paid for repairs related to this problem, or if your claim was denied in the past, then you should again contact Lexus corporate and reference this settlement.

And oh yeah, the lawyers involved get $1.8 million in fees and $150,000 in expenses.

The info in the notice is also posted on this Web site: http://www.oilgelsettlement.com/

TunedRX300

Lexmex can testify this since he went to law school. Additional 120 days of sludge warranty coverage is an insult to owners' intelligence.

1) Lawyers are laughing all the way to the bank if the settlement is reached: $ fee is a handsome reward
2) Toyota is smiling since a tiny cost of 4 months of additional warranty extension allows it to buy off all future rights of 1mzfe and 2sfe owners. This means no need to pour R&D $ to find a fix, no more worrying of someone sueing for a meaningful settlement, and getting a huge warranty liability off its balance sheet FOREVER on all affected models, which happens to be leading volume sale models of Toyota's SUV, family sedan, family van, two door coupe. What a bargain!
3) Owners get 4 month of additional warranty. This tiny amount of benefit really affect those with sludge problem between 8 years and 8 years 4 months. If your car has sludge under 8 years, you are covered under previous warranty extension. If you are over 8 years 4 months, Toyota has no obligation to cover you.

I would opt-out by sending a written letter, these lawyers do not represent me, nor do they fight for my right. I still get access to Customer Support Program by opting out.

As for 4 month of additional warranty, they would have to find another sucker to take it.

Lexmex

TunedRX300 hit the points correctly.

Law firms will spend time doing economic analyses to figure out (often via game theory) the possible scenarios for their client, especially with regard to automobiles. I used know someone when I lived in D.C. who worked for one of the bigger law firms and litigated action for Ford Motor. His point was that the consumer will never get what they want, but also Ford Motor will never get what they want either. In the middle of all this is the lawyer, who is the ultimate victor. In the end, as my father always mentioned to me growing up, there is no justice.

parula

Just got my letter yesterday. Any idea why the affected models does not include 2003?

rxdriver

I wondered that, too. Either it's a misprint, an oversight, or Toyota changed something in 2003 and didn't tell anybody.

toy4two

whats the harm? Wouldn't it be better to get an additional 4 mo's than nothing. Its my understanding that after 8 yrs Lexus won't cover you anyway.

I would like to see some changes to this frivilous class actions as well as "riders" on bills in Congress.

TunedRX300

Actually that 4 months of additional coverage is not free, owners will forsake all future rights to sue or obtain something meaningful...Unless we opt-out.
Huyndai have 10 year 100K powertrain. I understand it does it to obtain people's confidence and sales, and proactively address any reliability problem, even though Huyndai cars may be as reliable as Japanese cars.
But heck, Toyota already admitted a design flaw of 1mzfe engine, won't it be reasonable for Toyota to offer something similiar so our resale value are not affected? Afterall, 1mzfe has a design problem, and reliability is a real concern and need to be at least be addressed on the same level.

1) How much $ would one pay for a 8 year old RX300, without knowing the history of the car and a Toyota issued engine recall?
2) How much $ would one pay for a 8 year old RX300, with another 2 years of engine warranty coverage?

The only thing frivilous in this lawsuit is the benefit to owners. Anyone wonder why 120 days, not two years? IMHO, because Toyota will not settle out of court and the case is in the hand of juries. This means no sure $ for the lawyers.

I received another letter from another law firm, sueing Honda for 5 speed automatic transmissin. Guess what, same pattern
1) Honda/Acura extended the tranny warranty for 8 years 100K
2) Lawyers is asking for 9 month/9K miles additional
3) Settlement is described in the letter
I received the letter the same day as the Toyota lawsuit letter. Anyone believe it is just a coincidence?

Lexmex

There is never any free lunch. Lawyers and their clients try to set these things up to 'sucker' the most amount of people. Whether it was working in a trial lawyer's office or a corporation, I can assure you that the wording was carefully crafted (just like advertising) to make it sound like a great deal. Loss mitigation so to speak.

LexRexBlue

I guess I haven't done my homework, but plowing through 7+years of papers isn't high on my list. I thought we received something from them years ago. I remember just stashing it in the folder with my other receipts. I received the letter from Toyota/Lexus today. Ironically, my car will turn 8 on Dec. 5. I don't think this does much for me. However, I've never had the problem before--just the transmission. They covered that.

parula

I received letters about oil gel for a '99 not for an '03.

HarrierAWD

The original powertrain warranty is 6 years or 70K miles. The "gel" warranty is 8 years with unlimited mileage. That's an extra 2 years, or 24 months, or 730 days.

I think that Toyota/Lexus offered a great deal to its customers. Those who are dismayed by this can trade in the RX300 and get a Ford Exploder or Chevy Trailblocker.

TunedRX300

It is kind of old to pull this "America: love it or leave it" logical fallacy.
http://onegoodmove.org/fallacy/fd.htm
How about the option of Lexus step up to the level that Hyundai has always offered, which is 10 years, for all its cars in its original powertrain warranty?

Sure, a flawed design patched up by a "less-than-Hyundai" extended warranty may be a "great deal" to some, but many bought Lexus brand to avoid recall in the first place. This is just engine alone, do you want to ask Fern, RX_in_NC about the transmission? Oh, they should just bite the bullet and pay out of their pockets or buy a Ford or Chevy if they don't like Lexus' tranny reliability...
Heck, some would be more than happy to take Fox Network's hush $ and allow the network to air OJ Simpsn's "If I did it", but not to families of Brown and Goldman.

It is Thanksgiving, let's eat turkey and not argue over this. I am done with this thread.

HarrierAWD

Also it's worth to note that the "120 days" is not extended warranty as a poster claims. The oil gelling warranty is still 8 years. The "120 days" was simply the extended time to file a claim. It's important to read the document carefully before posting, so that other are not misled with false information.

parula

When I called the person who answered did not know why the 2003 was not included in the class.

HarrierAWD

For the RX300, the engine oil gelling issue was eliminated starting with August 2001 build. So the 2003 model is not affected. My 2002 RX300 was built in January 2002, so it's not affected, either. However, Toyota/Lexus decided to include all 2002s in the extended warranty programme.

For those who own other Lexus / Toyota vehicles, these are the affected models:

# Camry, built August 1996 to July 2001
# Camry Solara, built June 1998 to May 2001
# Sienna, built July 1997 to May 2001
# Avalon, built July 1996 to May 2001
# Celica, 4-cylinder, built August 1996 to April 1999
# Highlander, built November 2000 to July 2001
# Lexus ES 300, built August 1998 to July 2001
# Lexus RX 300, built January 1998 to July 2001
Source: Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A