Extended warranty

wharfhouse · July 20, 2018

There have been quite a few discussions about extended warranty and of course there are different personal situations that will come into play as to its value. I took the 2 years extended warranty on my IS 300h when the original 3 year warranty expired as I planned on servicing the car at Lexus (has to be Lexus serviced for the extended warranty to be valid) and was happy with the comprehensive breakdown cover also included - and I'm not very good at putting money aside for the "just in case" scenarios! Earlier this year I stopped getting the indication on the dashboard that my washer bottle was nearly empty. First time was in all the snow and cold weather so just in case it was linked to that left it to the warmer weather but it was still not working. At the service I asked them to have a look and they reported that the sensor on the washer bottle had failed - the cost to replace - £462.48... Of course it's not a critical item and so without the extended warranty I would probably have left it, but asked Lexus if this was covered by my extended warranty and they checked and confirmed it was so just had it replaced under the warranty. One of the reasons I took the extended warranty was simply peace of mind - I know Lexus cars have a better reliability record than many makes (all?) and this was one of the factors in my choice of car, but all cars can develop faults regardless and I also know that Lexus parts can be expensive, probably more than some other makes. I was pleased to find that the extended warranty covered this.

Ben01 · July 20, 2018

If you have enough money and like peace of mind, why not. Especialy with cars VERY expensive to fix, even if reliable one, like Lexus.

Best bet called "extended warranty" I close encountered - porsche Boxter S, about 16k miles only, 2.5yr old. Somebody loan this for me for days and on third day both infamous PADM pieces (superspecial active mounts for engine/tranny) were gone. But somebody had extended warrany up to three years, very smart move, as price per mount was about £1000 plus a lot of coins for labor.

PaulWhitt20 · July 20, 2018

My car is just reaching the 3 years old mark and am considering the extended warranty. £800 is a lot for two years but so is £460 for a sensor! Hum, a dilemma. Piece of mind or trust your luck. Its a difficult decision. I've not needed the warranty and it still seems to be in full working order (touch wood) but you don't know what will break tomorrow.

I'm not ready to change yet so maybe the piece of mind will be worth it. Is there any movement on the £800 quoted on the Lexus website for 2 years extended warranty.

wharfhouse · July 20, 2018

15 minutes ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

My car is just reaching the 3 years old mark and am considering the extended warranty. £800 is a lot for two years but so is £460 for a sensor! Hum, a dilemma. Piece of mind or trust your luck. Its a difficult decision. I've not needed the warranty and it still seems to be in full working order (touch wood) but you don't know what will break tomorrow.

I'm not ready to change yet so maybe the piece of mind will be worth it. Is there any movement on the £800 quoted on the Lexus website for 2 years extended warranty.

Don't forget that the extended warranty cost includes full European breakdown cover for those two years, so depending on if you need this or how much of this you would purchase if you buying it separately take that part off in your thinking... With extended warranty it must be serviced by Lexus for the extended warranty to be valid, so if you are thinking of going somewhere else for servicing after the three years then it can't be used. A service by Lexus includes the Hybrid Healthcheck too which warranties the battery/invertor etc. for another service interval (usual 12 months or 10,000 miles, whichever is sooner), or that is £59 per year if you have it done separately by Lexus.

wharfhouse · July 20, 2018

Oh yes if it helps I was able to pay for the 2 year extended warranty with 12x monthly payments interest free. As I was also getting the car serviced by Lexus for the extended warranty also took out a couple of years service plan where I pay monthly too. As I said I'm not very good at having the money ready for big bills so where I can try to spread big items into monthly payments!

Casa1862 · July 20, 2018

The AA cover also covers two people in a household, I cancelled my wife’s which was close to £100, I don’t need to purchase one so another £100, deduct this and it’s very competitive. Yes, you have to get it serviced at Lexus but I’d do that anyway.

The way I viewed it, £200 for the warranty (taking the AA saving into account), maybe another £150 for Lexus service premium, so £350 per year to keep the car on tip top condition and have a piece of mind, I’d need to really want a replacement every 3 years when I could have a reliable vehicle with similar cover and performance for £350 per year. I’d loose £15k now if I want to replace my IS300h with a near identical model, £15k or £350? Easy decision for me!

ganzoom · July 21, 2018

22 hours ago, wharfhouse said:

At the service I asked them to have a look and they reported that the sensor on the washer bottle had failed - the cost to replace - £462.48...

If you belive it really costs £462.48 to replace a sensor I also have some magic beans you might be interested it :).

wharfhouse · July 21, 2018

30 minutes ago, ganzoom said:

If you belive it really costs £462.48 to replace a sensor I also have some magic beans you might be interested it :).

Of course if I chose to do it myself or possibly get an independent garage to do it I am sure it would be a lot less but that is what Lexus chose to quote and would have charged if I had given the go ahead. Without investigating further I don't know what was involved or what body work needed removing to get to the sensor. As it is they did it under the extended warranty so I didn't have to worry myself with any of that 😀

RgrWynne · July 21, 2018

I believe that 2 year extended warranty for £800 is a bargain. If you want any sort of comparison, try the outside warranty companies, who also come with “ small print exclusions “ I have an ext’d warranty on my wife’s Honda, which like Lexus has a brilliant reputation, and recently had an alternator fail, cost was £750 , including new drive belt £86. I know that it could be done in a much cheaper way independently, and of course the Honda dealer like Lexus will quote. “full ” price, which they don’t actually pay, but given that I really am not bothered and when I sell the car, the buyer has the piece of mind that the job has been done properly, with a guarantee.The Honda warranty was £750 for 3 years, but of course the Lexus range are more complex. That is my view anyway.

rayaans · July 21, 2018

5 hours ago, wharfhouse said:

Of course if I chose to do it myself or possibly get an independent garage to do it I am sure it would be a lot less but that is what Lexus chose to quote and would have charged if I had given the go ahead. Without investigating further I don't know what was involved or what body work needed removing to get to the sensor. As it is they did it under the extended warranty so I didn't have to worry myself with any of that 😀

Don't forget that under extended warranty they charge their full parts and labour price as Lexus UK pay for it. I bet if you were cash paying they'd do it for £300-350

wharfhouse · July 21, 2018

23 minutes ago, rayaans said:

Don't forget that under extended warranty they charge their full parts and labour price as Lexus UK pay for it. I bet if you were cash paying they'd do it for £300-350

Not so sure on that as they just gave me the quote after I asked them to look at it at the service - it was me who said that I had the extended warranty and would it be covered under that - they said they would check and called me back a day later and said that yes it would be. Without the extended warranty might have tried to beat them down a bit on the repair cost but as it is will never know if there was any room for negotiation 🤔

65mike · July 21, 2018

Hi all.

I have a 1 year Lexus warranty that i got when i purchased the car last October i had a DSC light come on so took car to the dealer and was investigated and found a sensor had gone was replaced under warranty and i asked would they tell me the cost, there labour rate was £180.00 a hour and the part i think from memory was £600.00 ish so about £1000.00 so as the lady from service said you have had your moneys worth from the warranty.

I have since purchased the 2 year Lexus extended warranty which in my view was a no brainer not to so i have a 3 year warranty now happy days.

65mike

ganzoom · July 21, 2018

4 hours ago, 65mike said:

Hi all.

I have a 1 year Lexus warranty that i got when i purchased the car last October i had a DSC light come on so took car to the dealer and was investigated and found a sensor had gone was replaced under warranty and i asked would they tell me the cost, there labour rate was £180.00 a hour and the part i think from memory was £600.00 ish so about £1000.00 so as the lady from service said you have had your moneys worth from the warranty.

I have since purchased the 2 year Lexus extended warranty which in my view was a no brainer not to so i have a 3 year warranty now happy days.

65mike

£600 for a sensor, what was it made of pure gold???

DSC/TC system errors are usually due to faulty ABS sensors, ABS sensors sub £50 items, nearly all are simply clip in/out design, and access is usually about as hard as jacking up the car and taking a wheel off - 30 min job max. These kind of mad inflated repair/warranty claim costs is exactly why I hate main dealers, they are essentially robbing people blind. If I did my job the way some of these car dealers operate I would be up in court in no time and facing charges of either incompetence or fraud - probably both, but because 'they all do it' car dealers just get away with it........

I honestly don't understand why people just bend over and take it, BMW/Honda/Nissan/Lexus they are all at it, this also happens in other industries but for some reason its look upon in far worse light than car dealers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cartel

You just have to look at the profit margins of a group like Sytner, this is after running costs of lavish show rooms, schools of sales staff etc. Finding a breakdown of how much of the profit comes from the service/repair department seems impossible, but I would guess they probably generate at least 50% of their profit from aftersales department.

https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/midlands/record-revenue-and-profits-for-sytner-group

Shahpor · July 21, 2018

On ‎7‎/‎20‎/‎2018 at 9:14 AM, wharfhouse said:

There have been quite a few discussions about extended warranty and of course there are different personal situations that will come into play as to its value. I took the 2 years extended warranty on my IS 300h when the original 3 year warranty expired as I planned on servicing the car at Lexus (has to be Lexus serviced for the extended warranty to be valid) and was happy with the comprehensive breakdown cover also included - and I'm not very good at putting money aside for the "just in case" scenarios! Earlier this year I stopped getting the indication on the dashboard that my washer bottle was nearly empty. First time was in all the snow and cold weather so just in case it was linked to that left it to the warmer weather but it was still not working. At the service I asked them to have a look and they reported that the sensor on the washer bottle had failed - the cost to replace - £462.48... Of course it's not a critical item and so without the extended warranty I would probably have left it, but asked Lexus if this was covered by my extended warranty and they checked and confirmed it was so just had it replaced under the warranty. One of the reasons I took the extended warranty was simply peace of mind - I know Lexus cars have a better reliability record than many makes (all?) and this was one of the factors in my choice of car, but all cars can develop faults regardless and I also know that Lexus parts can be expensive, probably more than some other makes. I was pleased to find that the extended warranty covered this.

I do agree that a hidden benefit of having the warranty is for the little 'incidental' problems that I might not otherwise fix.

For example, my drivers seat developed a 'notch' when getting in and out. I thought it was just wear and tear (my car is 10 years old now) but I thought there was no harm in trying to get my extended warranty to cover it, and I was quite surprised when they did!

I probably would have just left it as is otherwise, but it is still nice that I have a new seat frame to sit on. Funny thing is, when they removed my old one, I had a look at it and couldn't see anything obviously wrong. The service guy then tells me it is probably just worn springs, so I am surprised they got the warranty company to cover it.

doog442 · July 21, 2018

On 7/20/2018 at 9:14 AM, wharfhouse said:

At the service I asked them to have a look and they reported that the sensor on the washer bottle had failed - the cost to replace - £462.48...

Lexus don't help themselves with prices like that ....but a warranty price will naturally be higher than normal.

As an aside I usually stick softened water in my washer bottle (I live in a hard water area ) additionally there are some great threads out there about windscreen washer fluid...its a minefield and often pops up on BMW forums where failures are common.

Martin F · July 21, 2018

1 hour ago, ganzoom said:

DSC/TC system errors are usually due to faulty ABS sensors, ABS sensors sub £50 items, nearly all are simply clip in/out design, and access is usually about as hard as jacking up the car and taking a wheel off - 30 min job max.

Have you ever actually removed an ABS wheel sensor?

Believe you me if its metal and the two different metals have reacted it takes more than 30 mins !

Ben01 · July 21, 2018

1 hour ago, Martin F said:

Believe you me if its metal and the two different metals have reacted it takes more than 30 mins !

With plastic ABS sensor (like GSes in my scope) is no better, typically they design hole for sensor pretty tight, and after couple of years corrosion etc. on body/hole could "lock" the plastic and it is impossible to move. And it does not help the old plastic in "outdoor" condition is quite brittle. Sometimes I have to drill them out. In all my cars when I had to touch the ABS sensors, only in some americans it was easy job.

BTW not every ABS sensor is "sub £50 item" - for my GS genuine sensor costs rather 150 than 50 like for newer versions, with socket on sensor.

Ala Larj · July 21, 2018

I look at warranties as any other insurance. You hope you never need it but useful if you do. It's a peace of mind thing in my opinion and nobody is forcing you to take it. I've had a few claims which have far outweighed the cost regardless of over inflated dealer prices. And from my experience lexus warranties have relatively small small print and I've never had any squirming out of responsibility. In fact I've had the opposite when have had issues addressed that I wasn't aware of!

ganzoom · July 22, 2018

5 hours ago, Ben01 said:

With plastic ABS sensor (like GSes in my scope) is no better, typically they design hole for sensor pretty tight, and after couple of years corrosion etc. on body/hole could "lock" the plastic and it is impossible to move. And it does not help the old plastic in "outdoor" condition is quite brittle. Sometimes I have to drill them out. In all my cars when I had to touch the ABS sensors, only in some americans it was easy job.

BTW not every ABS sensor is "sub £50 item" - for my GS genuine sensor costs rather 150 than 50 like for newer versions, with socket on sensor.

So your be happy to pay Lexus £1000 to replace a £150 sensor no questions asked?

This is what I don't get, dealers charging rip off prices and owners defending dealers?? Its equivalent to day light robbery with the theif than getting a pat on the back by the victim!!

Hadrian · July 22, 2018

10 hours ago, doog442 said:

Lexus don't help themselves with prices like that ....but a warranty price will naturally be higher than normal.

As an aside I usually stick softened water in my washer bottle (I live in a hard water area ) additionally there are some great threads out there about windscreen washer fluid...its a minefield and often pops up on BMW forums where failures are common.

I'm considering an extended warranty when our 12 month warranty runs out. More than anything, it's for peace of mind.

Regarding washer fluid, avoid the Halfords one. I used it on an Accord I had several years ago. It took me ages to flush it out with a hose pipe.

As every time I washed the windows, it smelt like cats pee.

65mike · July 22, 2018

11 hours ago, ganzoom said:

£600 for a sensor, what was it made of pure gold???

DSC/TC system errors are usually due to faulty ABS sensors, ABS sensors sub £50 items, nearly all are simply clip in/out design, and access is usually about as hard as jacking up the car and taking a wheel off - 30 min job max. These kind of mad inflated repair/warranty claim costs is exactly why I hate main dealers, they are essentially robbing people blind. If I did my job the way some of these car dealers operate I would be up in court in no time and facing charges of either incompetence or fraud - probably both, but because 'they all do it' car dealers just get away with it........

I honestly don't understand why people just bend over and take it, BMW/Honda/Nissan/Lexus they are all at it, this also happens in other industries but for some reason its look upon in far worse light than car dealers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cartel

You just have to look at the profit margins of a group like Sytner, this is after running costs of lavish show rooms, schools of sales staff etc. Finding a breakdown of how much of the profit comes from the service/repair department seems impossible, but I would guess they probably generate at least 50% of their profit from aftersales department.

https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/midlands/record-revenue-and-profits-for-sytner-group

Hi all.

Don't get me wrong i don't agree with the cost but a £50.00 pound part it was not, by what i was told it was a 2 man job to trace the problem as soon as the codes were ready it disappeared so it was the Laptop and 2 technicians in the car and finding all the peramiters while driving and then working out what was wrong.

Then the dashboard needed to be removed ( and it still rattles) to get at the sensor,

Iam pleased all is ok and the warranty paid the bill no i think the prices are a joke but what can you do just scrap it or get it repaired.

65mike

wharfhouse · July 22, 2018

2 hours ago, ganzoom said:

So your be happy to pay Lexus £1000 to replace a £150 sensor no questions asked?

This is what I don't get, dealers charging rip off prices and owners defending dealers?? Its equivalent to day light robbery with the theif than getting a pat on the back by the victim!!

I don't think you can say anyone is "happy" but the parts cost is fixed (unless you can find an alternative source or non-OEM - for some parts that's possible but for many - especially Lexus specific - it's not) and the hourly labour rate is (as quoted in the above) set by the dealer and so the only variable is whether it really takes as long as the dealer says to do the job and if they can justify that. In my case regards the washer bottle sensor I would guess that (once you add in vat) that the sensor was probably in the £100 region and there was a couple of hours labour. As I said I don't know what is involved with changing that sensor - I tried to see if there was anything online but nothing for the IS. The work involved in other cars I looked at was anything from easy access, after removing a wheel, to a much more complex access of removing various parts of the bodywork and the reservoir. If for the IS it is more the latter then a couple of hours to test, disaseemble, replace, reassemble and test all works does not seem so unreasonable. I remember the story about the French car manufacturer that meant a visit to a garage just to change a headlight bulb as it required the bumper removing. The time to carry out what sounds like a simple repair is often more than it should be but is down to the issue of ease of access which is down to the design.

I have used independent garages for previous cars and had mixed experiences. For straightforward servicing and jobs then they were OK though only did the bare minimum. However for more complex jobs they did struggle at times taking longer than they estimated and not alway completing a repair to the level I would have liked - for example breaking clips and not replacing them etc.

I have also done quite a lot of work myself in the past on cars but have pretty much given up these days except for simple jobs as without the right tools and diagnostic equipment there are so many ways to end up getting stuck part way through and as I can't be without the car for a few days while I sort that out I have to weigh up the cost of using the dealer against the loss of my income when I can't deliver my skills to my clients because I'm stuck under a car.

Ben01 · July 22, 2018

4 hours ago, ganzoom said:

So your be happy to pay Lexus £1000 to replace a £150 sensor no questions asked?

FYI I prefer cars worth less than four expensive ABS sensors, and I am deeply sad my current GS is worth slightly more, so I am not a target for any warranty, normal or extended, at all. Because I like peace of mind (and hate depreciation, but this is another story) and if anything is seriously wrong I like to scrap the barge and to buy another one. But as I said above: if you like peace of mind and have enough money, why not to extend warranty, it could be very smart bet, especially on expensive cars.

And even if I think £100-120 per work hour at Lexus sucks (plus as above comments, don't forget expensive parts and modern cars are not designed for maintenance), I never think it's rip off or robbery, I simple never ever use Lexus garage or plan to use them.

65mike · July 22, 2018

Hi all.

Alas the times have now gone when you could take the car to pieces i look under the bonnet now and close it quickly as all i see is wires and pieces off plastic so have no interest init i top up anything that needs it and have changed sidelight bulb but not indicator build garage done that for me at a cost🙄

The warranty to me is a god send and i hope i never need to use it again but is there as a insurance.🙂

Alas we all have premium cars so the manufacturer charges what he like's Lexus are not alone in this they all do it the only way to try and reduce cost is to get parts cheaper if you can places like eBay or a breakers yard or paten parts this is the only way i can see of reducing the cost and if you can do it yourself all the better.🙂

I will say this Lexus do seem reasonable on tyres before i purchased the is250 i needed 2 rear ones and there was no way the dealer would put 2 new ones on as the deal he gave me for my part exchange XK was a dream come true so i said to the sales manager can we split the cost and he agreed and the price i paid was a steel for the tyre i paid for.🙂

The brake pads and discs seem fairly good on cost seeing as they are supply and fit too and they should know what they are doing as they are trained by the manufacturer.🙂

65mike

Ben01 · July 22, 2018

1 hour ago, 65mike said:

they should know what they are doing as they are trained by the manufacturer

Keyword "should", I don't know your places, but there are no ancient zen masters from Tahara at Lexus Glasgow, rather boys with some training and practice. And half of the car, even advanced hybrid etc. is still a pretty normal, like: pads and discs are not rocket science exactly. And you could still DIY on the modern car, especially in high-street garage style ("semi-randomly replace any pieces until customer will be happy") and sometimes better than high-street garage (because I trade off lack of Lexus tools and equipment for "I could investigate any problem 5 times longer and deeper than any busy garage with £120/hr tag").

But all this is of course irrelevant for prices of labour at premium garage or extended warranty, for sure.