Dear forum mates:

We have a 2014 RX 350 AWD with about 25K miles. We heard noises under the hood and had it checked out by the dealer. They said it was the water pump's bearing failed and replaced the water pump.

This is a lease with a very good purchase option price, so we have been thinking about buying it when the lease is up next month.

However, I know water pumps usually don't need to be replaced until much later. Would such an early failure of water pump be an indication of something more serious? I had a Camry with water pump problems before and they never seem to be fixed completely.

Should I still buy this Lexus? I can buy it at about $5K+ below market price (for dealers). Otherwise the car runs well.

Thanks for any advice!

 

If you are getting it well below market price, buy it and trade in (if you don't have faith in car). Even if you keep the car, the car should be still under warranty for 1-2 years depending on when you bought it. So you can safely keep it till that point. I had similar experience with Camry. Was yours 1999-2002 version? Mine was 2001 and water pump was replaced under warranty. Traded the car soon after that - so not sure about reliability on that.

 

My RX had a bad bearing in the water pump at 22k and was replaced under warranty. Recently hit 61k and I haven't had any issues at all since the pump.

 

Water pump failure is not indicative of any other potential future mechanical issues. They have seals and sometimes you have one, out of the hundreds of thousands that are built for this engine that is used in lots of Toyota and Lexus vehicles, that the seals will fail prematurely. It happens. Buy the car.

 

If the water pump is the only mechanical component (among the hundreds of components in the car) that's giving you problems, .

 

My water pump was replaced at 110K (~65,000 miles) due to bearing noise. I just hit 130K (80,000 miles) yesterday, no other issues with engine.

 

Thank you everybody for your advice. I understand that water pump issues generally do not relate to others.

Just some clarifications. The residual value (lease end purchase price) for my car will be $32,500.
Just checked Kelly's and the price range will be $32K to $38K. Certified pre-owned price will be $38K.

Please let me know if you have a different opinion based on these numbers. (maybe my purchase price is just a fair price?)

I am also interested in buying the extended warranty for peace of mind. Does anybody know how much is it?. Is it worth it?

(Chandlervt - Yes, my Camry was in the same year range. It was bought used though. I used re-manufactured pumps and they failed about 1 year later.)

Thanks again!

 

I don't remember the price of the extended warranty that I had gotten, but I was assured that if I don't touch it, I can get all my money back by the end of the term. I think it was written somewhere too...