RX 450h LexusCare warranty. Buy 1 get 1 free!

Barry14UK · September 4, 2019

Just received a reminder from Lexus that the warranty of one year given with my car when I purchased it is is almost up. I have been offered a two year extension for the price of one year at a total price of £995. (Didn't realise that supermarket style buy one get one free had now spread to the motor industry!)

I only do about 5K miles annually now and although I like the car, mainly bought for comfort reasons, the cost of extending the warranty plus annual servicing at high Lexus rates makes me question whether I made the right decision. When I factor in the additional loss from depreciation, plus Tax and Insurance, I wonder whether it would be more sensible to sell the RX and use a Taxi for short journeys and hire an SUV for the few long journeys I do each year. Alternatively, I could retain instead of sell my trusty E39 BMW for local journeys. Excluding service on the BMW, most of which I have done myself, problems caused due to faults have been minor and come to under £1000 over the 12 or so years and about 60K miles partly using BMW Independent's. I could do almost all the servicing on the RX myself but then I would not have the Lexus stamp in the service book which can help retain more of the car's value and desirability if I decided to sell it in awhile. Also, the eye watering price of some of the Lexus parts should something major need replacing, would be of concern.

The car has done circa 38K miles and what I should like to ask members is whether due to the good reputation and ruggedness of the RX450h there is only a very small chance of needing non service components in the next 2 years and 10K miles, so I could at least save on the extended warranty?

Lager shandy · September 5, 2019

Lexus extended warranty is double the price of the same toyota warranty .also it ties you into having it serviced at lexus no block exemption here .id recommend selling and buying a Yaris hybrid or ct200 on pcp about 7.5 k pcp over three years .this all depends on your budget and running cost .or buy a older car and have it service every two years due to mileage.

Herbie · September 5, 2019

Ah, the Lexus Paradox strikes again :laughing:

People are attracted to the brand because of the reputation of reliability and then get a warranty just in case it's not reliable.

It used to make me laugh and to an extent it still does. However, I became one of these people myself when we got our current car and that was for a couple of reasons.

1. These cars are just so complex and parts so expensive (even a single headlight is over £800 and is a sealed unit so individual bulbs (LEDs) can't be replaced).

2. This is the newest and most expensive car we've ever had, so it just seemed to make sense to do it for a little while at least.

The warranty cost is actually very reasonable - it's the requirement to have servicing done at the dealers that's the killer. I'm used to paying mates rates for servicing!

Gliderpilot · September 5, 2019

I got a service plan when I got me Lexus a couple of months ago. I got it from a Toyota garage, so I'm paying just over £20 a month for a 3 year service plan which includes a hybrid health check done by Lexus and 3 MOTs. I also got an 18 month warranty thrown in for free.

royoftherovers · September 5, 2019

1 minute ago, Gliderpilot said:

I got a service plan when I got me Lexus a couple of months ago. I got it from a Toyota garage, so I'm paying just over £20 a month for a 3 year service plan which includes a hybrid health check done by Lexus and 3 MOTs. I also got an 18 month warranty thrown in for free.

same here.Took it out 6 year ago and havn`t paid any thing over and above since.

A no-brainer.

Just had a headlamp replaced.....under warranty (after 9 years).Another no-brainer. Barry needs his head testing !!

September 5, 2019

We have just recently had another 2 year warranty on our RX and have already had 2 rear trailing arms fitted under that warranty which was found when being serviced.I don't think they were that bad but were replaced anyway.Also it is going in again next week to have the'start up rattle' which we know is common on the RX checked out again and they are keeping it for a couple of days to gather info.

As usual they will be giving me a car and returning mine to my home when done.The thing is i didn't push for any of this but they are doing it anyway which shows they are doing things right when servicing, so for me the warranty is worth it and remember it now includes the mot fee as well.

olliesgrandad · September 5, 2019

15 hours ago, Barry14UK said:

Just received a reminder from Lexus that the warranty of one year given with my car when I purchased it is is almost up. I have been offered a two year extension for the price of one year at a total price of £995. (Didn't realise that supermarket style buy one get one free had now spread to the motor industry!)

I only do about 5K miles annually now and although I like the car, mainly bought for comfort reasons, the cost of extending the warranty plus annual servicing at high Lexus rates makes me question whether I made the right decision. When I factor in the additional loss from depreciation, plus Tax and Insurance, I wonder whether it would be more sensible to sell the RX and use a Taxi for short journeys and hire an SUV for the few long journeys I do each year. Alternatively, I could retain instead of sell my trusty E39 BMW for local journeys. Excluding service on the BMW, most of which I have done myself, problems caused due to faults have been minor and come to under £1000 over the 12 or so years and about 60K miles partly using BMW Independent's. I could do almost all the servicing on the RX myself but then I would not have the Lexus stamp in the service book which can help retain more of the car's value and desirability if I decided to sell it in awhile. Also, the eye watering price of some of the Lexus parts should something major need replacing, would be of concern.

The car has done circa 38K miles and what I should like to ask members is whether due to the good reputation and ruggedness of the RX450h there is only a very small chance of needing non service components in the next 2 years and 10K miles, so I could at least save on the extended warranty?

Do it. Don't forget it includes full AA cover for you and a partner plus 2 mots which covers anything required. If you become a Gold Member here you will get discount on all servicing.

Lager shandy · September 5, 2019

I'm taking out my extended warranty this month .And then when that finishes 1 month before the beast hits 10 years old I'm going to put another two years on the car .i will then see how it is fairing at the end of 12 yrs old . So that's probably going to cost me about £4100 with servicing and tyres+insurance including tax.or do I gamble and do £50 oil and filter by myself once a year x4 £200 servicing tyres £500 tax £600ish £1400 over 4 years and bank the rest into a repair fund £2700. Keeping in mind I don't use the car for commuting etc .so I wouldn't be in a rush to fix it . Ahh forgot hybrid check does that need full service history to keep Battery warranty ?.or can I just do a health check once a year .

olliesgrandad · September 6, 2019

The health check I believe can be done without servicing. The warranty issue is the conundrum. Would £2700 cover the cost of all repairs that might be required. I mentioned to the dealer on service that I thought the rear camera was slower in engaging than my previous 2 Lexus. They decided that they would replace the hard drive. The part alone was £1800 and with fitting would have been closer to the £2000 mark. To me extending the warranty was worth the approx £83 a month for 11 months it will cost.

I have Gold membership so my Dealer gives me 15% discount on practically everything. To me it works, but to others it might not.

JBPRX400h · September 6, 2019

Also covers breakdown cover abroad.

JBP

DocT · September 6, 2019

17 hours ago, olliesgrandad said:

Do it. Don't forget it includes full AA cover for you and a partner plus 2 mots which covers anything required. If you become a Gold Member here you will get discount on all servicing.

I completely agree. I've had a Lexus warranty on my car for three years now (first year came with the car) and have just renewed it again. It's worth remembering that the warranty is underwritten by Lexus and there's none of the third-party wriggling! I had a new radiator, oil cooler, brake caliper and air-con pipe fitted recently, all of which came to far more than the cost of the warranty.

Re. the included breakdown cover, I had a problem with the 12v Battery recently and called out the AA who arrived within 40 minutes. The AA man told me they give priority to Lexus calls.

If you have a car over 5 years-old and are a Gold Member, Essential Servicing isn't much more than third parties and it includes the Hybrid Health Check and warranty.

I shall sell my car privately in a year's time as it will still have 12-months manufacturer's warranty - which is quite a good selling point! 😉

Barry14UK · September 6, 2019

Thank you for your thoughts. I will think on options.

If I omitted to take out the warranty while the car is still relatively young with low mileage now, would I still be able to take out a warranty in a couple of years time?

I am aware that parts on premium cars are expensive - I had an E Class MB and 5 series BMW before the Lexus. However, I am surprised that the cost of the Lexus warranty is so high bearing in mind that the RX is up with the best when it comes to faults, according to survey. It is expensive when compared with comprehensive insurance cover where insurers could pay out for anything up to write off value, heavy damage caused by a thief or vandal, as well as damage to other vehicles/persons caused by the insured.

Herbie · September 6, 2019

On 9/5/2019 at 1:40 PM, Eame64 said:

it is going in again next week to have the 'start up rattle' which we know is common on the RX checked out again

What's that Eamonn, I've never heard of it?

royoftherovers · September 6, 2019

1 hour ago, Herbie said:

What's that Eamonn, I've never heard of it?

More common on the GS 450H

Lager shandy · September 7, 2019

Found this on another site .http://carspecmn.com/toyota-and-lexus-v6-cold-start-engine-rattle-2gr3gr4gr/ not sure if it relates to the engine used in the Rx450

September 7, 2019

Thanks for that link Alan i will send that to lexus coventry even though they probably know this problem exists.

Lager shandy · September 7, 2019

There used to be a saying years ago ,a slappy tappet is a happy tappet 😇.

Normski · September 7, 2019

For me I think it's good value. Got another 2 years put onto my GS just before it hit 10 years. When you consider breakdown is just about £200 a year alone, totally rely on the car and do a fair few miles a year (approx.25k) it worked. Her RX F Sport is due now so will be going for the 2 year option there too :thumbsup:

Sherra · December 17, 2019

My extended warranty on my GS ended on Nov 30. Dec 5th EML light came on, typical !!

cidermonster · January 9, 2020

Good morning all

Happy New Year to you!

The extended warranty on my IS300h will expire in March and I too have received the 2-for-1 offer at a cost of £795.

I'm a Gold member, is there any discounting available for this does anyone know?

Thanks

Pete

olliesgrandad · January 9, 2020

56 minutes ago, cidermonster said:

Good morning all

Happy New Year to you!

The extended warranty on my IS300h will expire in March and I too have received the 2-for-1 offer at a cost of £795.

I'm a Gold member, is there any discounting available for this does anyone know?

Thanks

Pete

No you can't get discount on warranty (tried it).

Interestingly sold my car having paid monthly over 6 months for the warranty, because I hadn't claimed I had a £450+ refund which I was very impressed with.

The warranty is definitely good value. The dealer gave me a print out of my cars history.

It had a £115 +VAT water pump replaced tin August. The labour was £760. That was without VAT.

So if the car had been 5 months older and out of manufacturers warranty that is £1000 bill.

2 year extended warranty paid for in one hit....

cidermonster · January 9, 2020

11 minutes ago, olliesgrandad said:

No you can't get discount on warranty (tried it).

Interestingly sold my car having paid monthly over 6 months for the warranty, because I hadn't claimed I had a £450+ refund which I was very impressed with.

Thanks Les, I appreciate the swift response - I thought it might be expecting too much 🙂

Spottedlaurel · January 9, 2020

7 hours ago, cidermonster said:

The extended warranty on my IS300h will expire in March and I too have received the 2-for-1 offer at a cost of £795.

Interesting, is it less on other models? The 2-for-1 letter I've just had for my RX450 quotes a figure of £995.

With the AA membership covering my annual French holiday it's not bad value.

I need to ring up my dealer to confirm one or two things, but it's likely I will go for it on mine as the 1-year used warranty is about to come to an end, and I'm happy to keep it for a while yet.

6 hours ago, olliesgrandad said:

Interestingly sold my car having paid monthly over 6 months for the warranty, because I hadn't claimed I had a £450+ refund which I was very impressed with.

That's good to know. I'm not planning on moving mine on until sometime in 2021 but if circumstances dictate otherwise it's good to know I haven't lost the full amount.

It doesn't apply to mine as it's now over five years old, but it still seems wrong that Lexus only give a three-year warranty from new. Especially when a Toyota using largely similar components does have five years......