Your Lexus Dealer Experience

[dutchie01]

I have noticed several threads where people seem very unhappy with the Lexus dealerservice sometimes even leading to total mistrust. Living in Holland i have no insight in the UK dealers and can only report about my experiences over here.

In spite of the fact that Lexus is marketing their service as first class, red carpet and so on i find them just like any other garage. Things go wrong, things go right. What i do notice is that the salesguys are really lacking knowledge about their product sometimes to such an extent i just can believe it. How many cars do Lexus have on offer, how many do you sell per dealer? For instance new facelift model question what is changed and answer cannot be given without looking in the folder? Or, what is the weight of the GS compared to IS? again no clue, i can go on and on. Also the service managers are not always easy to talk to, i tend to talk directly to the mechanics if possible much better. Anyhow good people and bad people and nothing better or worse than other makes.

But how is the dealer experience in the UK, is it really that bad? And if you tend to avoid the dealers what is the alternative for maintenance?

 

Merry Christmass all!

[Bluesman]

I have used Lexus Reading several times and I have always felt I have had excellent service.

 

[tayaste]

I've only got good things to say about Lexus Chester, I've used them since I bought my first Lexus from them in 2001 to this day.

[Verbout]

Never been in one, phoned Bradford Lexus when I first bought the car to enquire about its history and then again to enquire about a recall.

Both times got the usual run around on the phone system, nothing unusual there, but got the information I needed.

[doog442]

The main lesson is not to be seduced by the acres of marble and glass at a Lexus dealership. My first experience was pretty bad. Despite being assured the car had never been in a collision and had a full service history I found out it neither had a full service history and had been involved in quite a bad accident - only after i traced the original owner. When I received the so called service book it had been freshly stamped (backdated) the only problem was the stamp had the same date on it for the previous 4 years !!! I believe the salesman was subsequently 'moved on'. That was 9 years ago.

Two years ago I started trawling Lexus dealerships again. I found cars on the forecourt that were simply not up to standard. Bodywork issues, worn brakes, scuffed alloys etc and sales staff only interested in selling you a vehicle on finance. I went elsewhere and this I believe is where Lexus are letting themselves down. Many of their dealerships are not dynamic enough,used vehicles are poorly prepared and salesman simply lack basic knowledge of the vehicles they are selling.

I returned again three months ago. I went to look at a nearly new car and found the same issues, poor preparation. This thing still had the outlines of stickers where it had been stuck on display in a local shopping centre and was in a terrible state despite being pre warned about a test drive. I eventually found a Lexus dealer who knew how to price, prepare and sell a car - the problem was it was some distance away.

I still don't trust them, so I will mark oil filters and air filters to ensure they changed when serviced etc. Its a shame but other marques (BMW and Audi ) are forging ahead in customer service stakes, its a shame some Lexus dealerships are so slow to catch up.

[Shahpor]

I have used both Lexus Edgware Road and Reading and have found them both to be excellent so far.

Edgware Road especially went above and beyond helping fix a problem I was having that wasn't their fault to begin with.  Got really first rate customer service from everyone who worked there.

[DanD]

I have been using Lexus Hedge End/Southampton for the past 4 years and would not go anywhere else.

ALL staff are polite without being pushy, all are very responsive to requests, and all know their products well, including the two ladies who man the service desk. I have nothing but praise for the whole team, from top to bottom: it is thanks to them that I remain faithful to the Lexus brand.

[royoftherovers]

4 hours ago, tayaste said:

I've only got good things to say about Lexus Chester, I've used them since I bought my first Lexus from them in 2001 to his day.

That`s interesting Stephen. 

I`ve used them for 39 months. Reception girls are fine and welcoming, Tom is excellent, but I`ve never had an acknowledgement from anyone else on any occasion I`ve visited. Mark Mitchell however (owner) always acknowledges every customer he  passes regardless of whichever marque he is in.

Phone calls have on occasions not been returned and problems not always resolved.

Having said that Lexus Chester is in my view a better Dealership than non- Mark Mitchell Dealerships locally.

In my lifetime of experience I find that people make organisations more frequently then organisations make people.

Regards

John

[Richard1200]

Have used Lexus Bristol for almost 10 years and 5 new cars and have no negative words to say about them. Always excellent service.

[ISJason]

Hi. I've used Lexus Birmingham for four years.. always going beyond and above the call of duty for me. And excellent service and customer relations. I guess it depends on the dealership and how motivated they are..Although of course it should not be like that.. they should all be the same.

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[olliesgrandad]

5 hours ago, doog442 said:

 

I still don't trust them, so I will mark oil filters and air filters to ensure they changed when serviced etc. Its a shame but other marques (BMW and Audi ) are forging ahead in customer service stakes, its a shame some Lexus dealerships are so slow to catch up.

Sorry, Can't agree with this comment -I change my cars every 10 months or so due to my big mileage (36,000 pa approx.). 2 years ago had a very bad customer service issue with a brand new BMW Mini [ One of which was a collision avoidance system hell bent on slamming the brakes on in clear motorway conditions - No fault codes showing sir, therefore there cannot be a problem], Issues with the Dealership, BMW Customer Service and Allianz  (their recovery contractor). This resulted in a change for 2 vehicles to Mercedes where again I had such a bad issue with their recovery service (again Allianz) that they sent me a goodwill gesture cheque for the poor service. Getting a car into a Mercedes dealership now is like asking for the holy grail if it needs a service or warranty work.. Covering 6-700 miles a week if my car tells me to book a service I cannot wait 3 weeks (waiting with vehicle) or 5 weeks (with a loan car) for a service.

[tayaste]

3 hours ago, royoftherovers said:

That`s interesting Stephen. 

I`ve used them for 39 months. Reception girls are fine and welcoming, Tom is excellent, but I`ve never had an acknowledgement from anyone else on any occasion I`ve visited. Mark Mitchell however (owner) always acknowledges every customer he  passes regardless of whichever marque he is in.

Phone calls have on occasions not been returned and problems not always resolved.

Having said that Lexus Chester is in my view a better Dealership than non- Mark Mitchell Dealerships locally.

In my lifetime of experience I find that people make organisations more frequently then organisations make people.

Regards

John

I've ordered two new IS's in the last 20 months from them, Alan and Jason sorted me with the first one for the Mrs and both of them we're superb. Last September I picked up the second and was looked after by Wayne, had some good chats with him, mostly non purchase related and he was a great bloke.  I've had a few calls from him to see how things are going. Admittedly, I've had nothing go wrong with either of the cars yet so not had to get back in touch but I feel confident things would get sorted promptly.  

When I purchased my first IS200 in 2001 from them I did have a few things that required attention that always got done promptly under warranty. It had a leaking water bypass pipe that was replaced, a new set of wheels due to corrosion, 3, yes 3 new radio/cd players (the 6cd multi changer was problematic back then) and then I had some paint complaints sorted too.

Now a little story. The winter of 2002 I skidded on black ice off a dual carriageway and smashed it through somebody's garden wall at 6 o'clock in the morning. When I called the RAC they asked where they should take it, I asked them to dump it at Lexus in Chester as it was undrivable and I didn't want to get it moved twice ( I was only in my twenties then so didn't know what to do with it). Now, I'd love to have seen the face on the first person that went into work that morning at the relatively new dealership and seen a 2 year old IS smashed up. I gave them a quick phone call in the morning when it opened and although they didn't have a body shop repair facility, they assisted getting it sorted at one of there authorised repair facilities with the insurance.

Somewhere, on an old memory card, I still have the photos of the crash, I'll have to dig them out, I think the repair bill was somewhere in the region of £9K. Back in 2002 that was a lot of money.

So, I can't complain really with the service from them. 

[tayaste]

I've just remembered, I also took the IS200 back because the 'pop out' head light washer jets weren't 'popping out'.

They promptly took the car into the workshop, and told me they'd have a look immediately. 10 minutes later, they returned the car and told me they've got them working.

I asked what was wrong with them, ...... My washer fluid was low. 

[PaulWhitt20]

I have found Lexus Chester to be good, bought my first Lexus from then and use them for servicing. My current IS I got as an ex demonstrator from Lexus Stoke. However I will never go back to them as I felt ripped off. Not even given a full tank of petrol when I picked it up.

[steveledzep]

As has been alluded to, It's not the address of the Lexus dealer that matters, it's the quality of the staff !

 

I have no complaints about Lexus Cardiff, always looked after me well.  A special mention for Natalie and Charlotte who man the service reception desk.

[johnno]

2 hours ago, tayaste said:

I've ordered two new IS's in the last 20 months from them, Alan and Jason sorted me with the first one for the Mrs and both of them we're superb. Last September I picked up the second and was looked after by Wayne, had some good chats with him, mostly non purchase related and he was a great bloke.  I've had a few calls from him to see how things are going. Admittedly, I've had nothing go wrong with either of the cars yet so not had to get back in touch but I feel confident things would get sorted promptly.  

When I purchased my first IS200 in 2001 from them I did have a few things that required attention that always got done promptly under warranty. It had a leaking water bypass pipe that was replaced, a new set of wheels due to corrosion, 3, yes 3 new radio/cd players (the 6cd multi changer was problematic back then) and then I had some paint complaints sorted too.

Now a little story. The winter of 2002 I skidded on black ice off a dual carriageway and smashed it through somebody's garden wall at 6 o'clock in the morning. When I called the RAC they asked where they should take it, I asked them to dump it at Lexus in Chester as it was undrivable and I didn't want to get it moved twice ( I was only in my twenties then so didn't know what to do with it). Now, I'd love to have seen the face on the first person that went into work that morning at the relatively new dealership and seen a 2 year old IS smashed up. I gave them a quick phone call in the morning when it opened and although they didn't have a body shop repair facility, they assisted getting it sorted at one of there authorised repair facilities with the insurance.

Somewhere, on an old memory card, I still have the photos of the crash, I'll have to dig them out, I think the repair bill was somewhere in the region of £9K. Back in 2002 that was a lot of money.

So, I can't complain really with the service from them. 

I have been a customer of Lexus Chester since 2004, through IS200, IS 300 Sportcross, RX400, ISC250, CT200 and IS300h. The dealership is far and away the best of the many I have encountered in over 45 years of motoring and I would include all the staff as none of them are anything less than friendly, enthusiastic & efficient and all go out of their way to look after us.

Yes, I've had to complain once or twice over the 12 years but the response has always been immediate and entirely satisfactory. I can quote many examples of their outstanding service, like the first time I took my IS200 ( bought second hand) for a routine service. When I collected it I was informed that they had observed corrosion on the alloy wheels and had replaced them all under warranty. I had noticed only some minor black stains on a couple of the wheels but had not thought to report it. A week later I was astonished when I opened the boot and discovered that they had also replaced the (used) spare wheel as well!

I would buy elsewhere if the standard isn't maintained but I see no signs of this at all.

 

[Glover]

Mixed in respect of Lexus Nottingham.  Buying experience totally underwhelming they were only focused on selling expensive add-ons (tyre and wheel cover, accidental damage GAP etc. (which I could get for a third of the price on the internet).  I asked them to include rubber mats and boot liner they said no, so I said what about at cost price.  They could do that and gave me the price but when I said I didn't want the add-ons they said they couldn't do the mats at cost.  So I didn't have them and looked on the internet.  Got them and bumper protector from Lexus Birmingham delivered for less than their 'cost' price for rubber mats and liner!

I was rushed into a handover late one evening; very rudimentary.  I think they wanted to meet a end of month sales target.  Went back later with a few queries and ended up training the salesman, who's since left.  An example: how do you use the headlight washers?  He said I don't think it's got them (RX450h).  I said I think it has so he went round the front and said it's just got blanking plates!  Like they'd fit blanking plates on a car costing almost £50,000 new.  I explained to him that they pop up on stalks.

They didn't get back to me about any queries although they said they would but when I expressed an interest in a test drive advertised on the forum they phoned me first thing next morning.  It's not all bad; Zelda the original sales person I dealt with when I first started looking knows the cars inside out and is very approachable but she wasn't in when I bought it otherwise the experience might have been far better, and the reception staff are great.  I've had a couple of little things needed doing e.g. setting up the windows to open and close remotely on the key.  Done in a few minutes free of charge. so that's a positive experience and the car was well prepared again very positive.

I think the problem is it's an Inchcape dealership.  If I'd known that at the time I wouldn't have bought from them.  Had another money grabbing experience with them many years ago when buying a Toyota and vowed never to use them again.  As a result my Toyota has never been serviced by them (I go to an ex Toyota franchise in Kettering who are absolutely brilliant) and the only parts I've ever bought from them are a rear screen wiper blade every 2 or 3 years.  Their loss; they are too focused on making as much money as possible out of the sale and don't look at the whole customer relationship.  They probably make far more out of servicing than they make out of a single sale.

Don't know what I'll do about servicing; I want to have it main dealer serviced but I have an aversion to Inchcape due to the buying experience.  If anyone has any good experience of the Nottingham branch I might be swayed.  Otherwise might try Birmingham as it's the closest non Lexus dealership to Nottingham that I'm aware of.

But the car is brilliant!

[Glover]

Speed of the hand deceives the eye!  Meant to say closest non Inchcape!

[200h]

i use lexus chester but only because they are 5 minutes from work,as john has said the reception girls are good

but the service side is lacking ,there is no urgency to complete a task,my car should of been repaired and after 2 months

of no replies i had to start pestering them to get my car booked, i was then accused of damaging my car when the damage

occured at lexus chester.they could do alot better.

 

[bluenose1940]

doo442 said "I still don't trust them, so I will mark oil filters and air filters to ensure they changed when serviced"

This is exactly the sort of thing that worries me.  My car has just been in for its third service and it has still only done 10900 miles, so do they actually do what they are supposed to do at each annual service, despite the mileage.  I wish that I had thought to mark my filters, didn't enter my mind!

[marrat]

If you think you need to mark filters and whatnot to check whether the dealer did what was supposed to be done, it's probably time to look for another dealer 

[SHELLDRAKE]

I had incident with Lexus Chester which cost me "Thousands of pounds" since then I don't use them anymore.

[tayaste]

19 minutes ago, SHELLDRAKE said:

I had incident with Lexus Chester which cost me "Thousands of pounds" since then I don't use them anymore.

Just out of interest, Who do you use now Norman? 

[ISJason]

Hi Glover.. if you take the car to Lexus Birmingham I can virtually guarantee you that you have no trouble whatsoever. I have always had excellent service and very customer friendly and helpful and do what they say they will. I brought my RX 400h from Lexus Nottingham four years ago but have no experience of the servicing side. But the sales lady was very good but as you say I think she's moved on. Then, I think her name was Sara.

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[Shahpor]

3 hours ago, bluenose1940 said:

doo442 said "I still don't trust them, so I will mark oil filters and air filters to ensure they changed when serviced"

This is exactly the sort of thing that worries me.  My car has just been in for its third service and it has still only done 10900 miles, so do they actually do what they are supposed to do at each annual service, despite the mileage.  I wish that I had thought to mark my filters, didn't enter my mind!

I think @doog442 is perhaps being a little paranoid. This is not some back street garage that is looking to make a few quid but not doing the basics.

The only thing I would suggest is to enquire directly about the air filter since it might have not been changed due to the mileage.