New buyer: Lexus GS450h 3rd generation, pre-facelift vs post facelift

[Shahpor]

2 hours ago, Hangie said:

PLUS

- You will get proper stamp into service book. For essential service they are giving out some small piece of paper with info that car undergone essential service

- You will get courtesy car if needed with full price one

 

There might be some more in background like maybe more senior mechanics are getting full price ones but it is just an assumption.

 

I swear I am not doing this on purpose, but the above 2 points aren't accurate, at least not at the dealer I use, which is Lexus Reading.

The service agent actually told me that there is a bit of confusion because, at their dealership, the essential service is not what it is called.  They call is a value service instead.

Anyway, you do get a stamp in the book (I got one in mine), and you do get a courtesy car (again, I got a CT for the day). 

[cruisermark]

Maybe different dealers work in different ways?

 

[royoftherovers]

2 hours ago, Shahpor said:

I swear I am not doing this on purpose, but the above 2 points aren't accurate, at least not at the dealer I use, which is Lexus Reading.

The service agent actually told me that there is a bit of confusion because, at their dealership, the essential service is not what it is called.  They call is a value service instead.

Anyway, you do get a stamp in the book (I got one in mine), and you do get a courtesy car (again, I got a CT for the day). 

Shahpor,

You are on hiding to nothing here.

The only people who must provide an owner with the definitive information he is looking for are the Lexus Dealerships he wishes to use.

Comments/ suggestions/ advice/guidance, provided whilst given in good faith on this Forum, count for nothing against what he is told by a responsible official who will in due course carry out the work for him.

Oh I do wish each contribution was numbered!!

 

Regards

John

Regards

John

[Hangie]

1 hour ago, Shahpor said:

I swear I am not doing this on purpose, but the above 2 points aren't accurate, at least not at the dealer I use, which is Lexus Reading.

The service agent actually told me that there is a bit of confusion because, at their dealership, the essential service is not what it is called.  They call is a value service instead.

Anyway, you do get a stamp in the book (I got one in mine), and you do get a courtesy car (again, I got a CT for the day). 

 

1 hour ago, cruisermark said:

Maybe different dealers work in different ways?

 

It looks that way. In Guildford I was told and even shown that piece of paper which there are using instead of stamping the book. I was also told I wont get the courtesy car with essential service. I went for full price service after all and get nice NX200t for whole day.

 

Point is you need to check with your dealer as it seems to be different from one to another.

 

PS. I don't mind being corrected. Anyone can be mistaken and it is good to know when :)

[HenryHippo]

10 hours ago, Shahpor said:

Download the brochure from the Lexus website which shows you the difference between the full and essential service.  Then you can decide if the extra items are worth the cost.

Both services include the visual safety check, so either should suffice for the extended warranty.

And I know there are pictures on the autotrader advert, but that is no excuse for not posting some better quality ones yourself.  

Got to be the full works this time

Haha I actually haven't spent much time with her in daylight. Dark when I leave home and dark when I get back. This weekend though!

[HenryHippo]

Also I have been offered the 24 months warranty for £1095, without an inspection which surprised me but sure 

Any scope to shop around for a better deal, or do all dealerships operate at this price?

[royoftherovers]

6 minutes ago, HenryHippo said:

Also I have been offered the 24 months warranty for £1095, without an inspection which surprised me but sure 

Any scope to shop around for a better deal, or do all dealerships operate at this price?

£1095 is what I have paid Jamie.

I think that you should be looking to build and develop a lasting and worthwhile relationship with your chosen Lexus Dealer rather than trying to save a few pennies.

Regards

John

[steveledzep]

47 minutes ago, royoftherovers said:

I think that you should be looking to build and develop a lasting and worthwhile relationship with your chosen Lexus Dealer rather than trying to save a few pennies.

My thoughts too.  Developing a rapport with your servicing agent (whether dealer or independent) is worth far more than a couple of quid saved.

[Shahpor]

7 hours ago, royoftherovers said:

Shahpor,

You are on hiding to nothing here.

The only people who must provide an owner with the definitive information he is looking for are the Lexus Dealerships he wishes to use.

Comments/ suggestions/ advice/guidance, provided whilst given in good faith on this Forum, count for nothing against what he is told by a responsible official who will in due course carry out the work for him.

Oh I do wish each contribution was numbered!!

 

Regards

John

Regards

John

This is true John, and perhaps I worded my reply badly.  I apologise to you all if I overstepped my mark.

On this point though, it is annoying that there doesn't seem to be conformity between dealers.  After all, it should be Lexus UK that set the standards. 

After all, the work that is being carried out by the dealer in Guildford should be exactly the same as is done in Reading, so why are the customer being treated so differently?

What we have also seen is that sometimes the staff at the dealership get it wrong, and when pressed, go and check and see that they are incorrect.

In fact, I had this exact issue with my warranty during my first visit to Lexus Reading.  The service agent told me 100% that the car needed a full Lexus service history to qualify for the warranty.  I had to called the warranty company direct to confirm this wasn't the case.  But what if I hadn't and just accepted that the service agent knew what he was talking about?

 

 

PS perhaps I am being dense, but what does a hiding to nothing mean? 

[Shahpor]

1 hour ago, HenryHippo said:

Also I have been offered the 24 months warranty for £1095, without an inspection which surprised me but sure 

Any scope to shop around for a better deal, or do all dealerships operate at this price?

That is a surprise.  Which dealer is that?

[royoftherovers]

36 minutes ago, Shahpor said:

This is true John, and perhaps I worded my reply badly.  I apologise to you all if I overstepped my mark.

On this point though, it is annoying that there doesn't seem to be conformity between dealers.  After all, it should be Lexus UK that set the standards. 

After all, the work that is being carried out by the dealer in Guildford should be exactly the same as is done in Reading, so why are the customer being treated so differently?

What we have also seen is that sometimes the staff at the dealership get it wrong, and when pressed, go and check and see that they are incorrect.

In fact, I had this exact issue with my warranty during my first visit to Lexus Reading.  The service agent told me 100% that the car needed a full Lexus service history to qualify for the warranty.  I had to called the warranty company direct to confirm this wasn't the case.  But what if I hadn't and just accepted that the service agent knew what he was talking about?

 

 

PS perhaps I am being dense, but what does a hiding to nothing mean? 

I agree with you Shahpor, inconsistency of interpretation and application of defined practices  within a National Framework of Lexus Daealers will only lead to unsatisfied and disgruntled owners. Ask OLD TROUT who I feel has been let down badly.

Can I suggest that you GOOGLE "A HIDING TO NOTHING?"

 

Regards

John

[GSLV6]

I find it odd that some dealers won't stamp the book unless one of the full price services is carried out.  All they need do is write "Essesntial Service" in the box and put their dealer stamp on it.  That way, come sale time, at least people can flick through the book without having to wade through reams of paper.  All Lexus dealers enter all service work electronically anyway, so the book is more for the customer and potential buyers to see what's been done and when.  If a dealer refused to stamp my book for an Essential service, I'd ask to speak to the centre manager and complain.  If they persisted, I'd take my car elsewhere to be serviced.

There are set differences between the full price services with respect to mileage, as there would be I guess with the Essential services which ought to cover the basic service requirements commensurate with age and mileage since last service (plus overall mileage).  There's nothing to prevent anyone going to an independent and having them service the vehicle and stamp the book for you.  They can carry out much the same work as the premier service for less, and I guess the only thing they can't do are some of the software re-flashes if needed.

I'm with some of the others here.  I was under the impression that Lexus UK set out common approached to be followed for each of their UK Franchises, but it appears that some are beating their own path.  Perhaps a letter to Lexus might shed some light or even get some of these differences addressed for the sake of continued customer satisfaction.  After all, now that Lexus are looking for a larger share of the pie with more models to choose from, they need to keep that reputation where it currently stands to continue to compete at the same level.

[HenryHippo]

11 hours ago, Shahpor said:

That is a surprise.  Which dealer is that?

Reading :)

 

Your local too isn't it?

[Shahpor]

Yep, I am in Basingstoke, so use Reading too.  Perhaps you can show me around your GS sometime?

@GSLV6 Yep, I would also not be happy if the dealer wouldn't stamp the book for me.  After all, it is still being serviced by that dealer, which all the stamp signifies anyway.

@royoftherovers  Well, I am not very familiar with horse racing, hence why I didn't understand that reference.  Next time I know it means having no chance of succeeding.

[HenryHippo]

1 hour ago, Shahpor said:

Yep, I am in Basingstoke, so use Reading too.  Perhaps you can show me around your GS sometime?

@GSLV6 Yep, I would also not be happy if the dealer wouldn't stamp the book for me.  After all, it is still being serviced by that dealer, which all the stamp signifies anyway.

@royoftherovers  Well, I am not very familiar with horse racing, hence why I didn't understand that reference.  Next time I know it means having no chance of succeeding.

Sure sure. I'm still showing myself around at the moment

 

Trying to figure out if the Bluetooth can play music as well as make calls. 

[HenryHippo]

Noticing something odd with my car

The mirrors keep changing slightly. Maybe this is because they drop when I reverse and don't return to their usual position after.

Or is it possible that the previous owner programmed a default mirror position with their key, and whenever I use that key it assumes the new position.

Oh and speaking of keys, I only have one, is their a cheaper option than going to Lexus for a spare key?

 

Thanks!

[GSLV6]

I had this with my GS.  It is a very common issue with the Mk3.  When  you activate the mirror dip for reversing, they are meant to return to where they started but often don't.  More commonly, mine wouldn't dip far enough when reverse was engaged and I had to manually dip them more, but often they would return to where they started.  I was unsure whether is was a mechanical issue (corrosion or dirt) or an electrical one but I never got it sorted.  You'll probably find that Lexus charge more than it's worth to sort it.  For example, betweeen £30 and £60 for a diagnostic check then whatever the cost of replacement parts or simply re-flashing the system ECU (which would be needed if it was software related).

Either disable the auto dip feature or just adjust manually if they don't return.

 

 

[Chris111]

Try operating both mirrors so they move to their furthest positions. Press and hold the 'up' arrow until the mirror stops moving, then down, again until it stops. Bring the mirror back to central and then move it right until stops and lastly bring back full left. Then set them in the position you want and a press the memory button for the seating position. You don't have to move them in this order and you may have to do it more than once but you have to make sure you move them so the mirror stops moving before you release the control button. This worked for me so hopefully will help you too. I read somewhere that the motors get 'lazy' but this helps to 'free' them. I do this every three or four months and have not had a problem since I have done this.

Hope it helps.

[royoftherovers]

4 minutes ago, Chris111 said:

Try operating both mirrors so they move to their furthest positions. Press and hold the 'up' arrow until the mirror stops moving, then down, again until it stops. Bring the mirror back to central and then move it right until stops and lastly bring back full left. Then set them in the position you want and a press the memory button for the seating position. You don't have to move them in this order and you may have to do it more than once but you have to make sure you move them so the mirror stops moving before you release the control button. This worked for me so hopefully will help you too. I read somewhere that the motors get 'lazy' but this helps to 'free' them. I do this every three or four months and have not had a problem since I have done this.

Hope it helps.

Up, a bit, down, a bit, side left, a bit, side right, a bit.STOP.......who remembers The Golden Shot with Bob Monkhouse and Ann Aston ?

Thanks for the memory and the advice Chris.

 

Regards

John

[GSLV6]

1 hour ago, Chris111 said:

Try operating both mirrors so they move to their furthest positions. Press and hold the 'up' arrow until the mirror stops moving, then down, again until it stops. Bring the mirror back to central and then move it right until stops and lastly bring back full left. Then set them in the position you want and a press the memory button for the seating position. You don't have to move them in this order and you may have to do it more than once but you have to make sure you move them so the mirror stops moving before you release the control button. This worked for me so hopefully will help you too. I read somewhere that the motors get 'lazy' but this helps to 'free' them. I do this every three or four months and have not had a problem since I have done this.

Hope it helps.

 

I tried doing this with mine, and it worked for a few days but then reverted to "normal", so stopped fretting and just adjusted manually when needed.

[hprice1099]

I think everyone needs to chill and look at the bigger picture, every dealer has a margin of £££ to make each month which covers servicing. After I little research and approaching different dealers you can get them to negotiate the price of a service plan and extended warranty plan.

I was offered the 24 month extended warranty for £895 for my GS, almost all other dealers reduced it to £995.

The service plan I have in place as below, I pay monthly for this but I had the choice to pay the total in full.

50k service £275.00 plan £179

60k service £675.00 inc spark plugs plan £369

70k service £275.00 plan £179

£1225 minus £727 plan

Saving £498.00

 

Be cheeky and ask for a discount 

[HenryHippo]

5 hours ago, hprice1099 said:

I think everyone needs to chill and look at the bigger picture, every dealer has a margin of £££ to make each month which covers servicing. After I little research and approaching different dealers you can get them to negotiate the price of a service plan and extended warranty plan.

I was offered the 24 month extended warranty for £895 for my GS, almost all other dealers reduced it to £995.

The service plan I have in place as below, I pay monthly for this but I had the choice to pay the total in full.

50k service £275.00 plan £179

 

60k service £675.00 inc spark plugs plan £369

 

70k service £275.00 plan £179

 

£1225 minus £727 plan

Saving £498.00

 

Be cheeky and ask for a discount 

That's really good. Did you just ring dealers in turn until you got the best offer?

[hprice1099]

2 hours ago, HenryHippo said:

That's really good. Did you just ring dealers in turn until you got the best offer?

Basically yes, some told me to do one but most where willing to negotiate 👍👍

[HenryHippo]

11 hours ago, hprice1099 said:

Basically yes, some told me to do one but most where willing to negotiate 👍👍

Nice. Take it you don't have the luxury of going to your nearest dealer now?

[HenryHippo]

Got to the gym and when I parked up I noticed the boot wasn't properly closed. I didn't notice it when I popped the trunk leaving the house and never happened before

tried closing it to avail. I had a look on the US forums and someone bent the latch and paid $1000 to repair. Someone else on here flipped a yellow switch and tried disconnecting the Battery. 

Is it worth me trying either of these? Or would the Lexus warranty (that I haven't yet paid for) cover me? Thanks