Lexus Dealer Quality - A Natural Decline?

[Rabbers]

11 minutes ago, dutchie01 said:

Could be berkshire massachusets usa ?

Could be, I suppose, but I read it as a possible solution to a crossword clue like “A county west of London populated by a synonym for idiots” (which, of course, would not reflect reality).

[Gary H]

On 6/22/2023 at 10:10 AM, Juicedrinker said:

Hi all, unfortunately there is definitely a dramatic downward change with regards to some Lexus Dealerships.

I have to say that Swindon branch where I used to get my IS250 serviced and recall work done are brilliant in everyway and really excelled in both their attitude and the work that they did.

However my personal direct experience of two other dealerships has been really infuriating and costly!

I am currently in the middle of a huge issue regarding an RC300H 2019 that I bought a month ago from a main Lexus dealer.  I will not go into details on the specific branch as I have reported them twice to Lexus HQ for the sales guy clearly misleading me and for them NOT working to or knowing the Lexus servicing schedules; I will not name them as trying to resolve amicably.

As soon as (if) this is all resolved I will explain fully but for now all I will say is that while I have a Lexus I will only ever use Swindon for servicing and repairs, although it is over an hour from where I live they have always been honest and straight with me and really do all they can to act / represent a Premium brand as it should be represented.

I became a loyal / avid Lexus fan over the past 7 years but sadly my current experience has made me think that I will never buy another Lexus in the future or at the very least never buy from a main dealer and only use Swindon for work required.  

 

I’m relieved in a way that I know it’s not ‘just me’ who is witnessing this because for a while, shortly before becoming a member on here, I thought maybe I’m being too harsh with my grumps with the sales team I’ve now been dealing with for 13 months. I know I’ve been asked what dealer I use, but out of respect and decency whilst my long-standing order remains ongoing, I’ve chosen not to say for now. Given my location, that certainly limits the possibilities. All I’ll say is that my dealer has been discussed by at least one other former member in the past (after a bit of searching), but our experiences are very much ‘chalk and cheese’.

Recently in another post I said that that it’s unlikely I’ll be dealing with my particular dealer again after I collect my new car (currently due in September) and would unlikely buy another Lexus after this upcoming one based on this experience alone. It would take something pretty special from them in the remaining time I have to wait (or upon collection) for me to change my mind on that. Given how woefully uncommunicative they have been for over a year since I placed my order, in my heart I think enough damage has already been done. I’ve never, ever felt this way about one particular dealer of any brand I’ve dealt with in the past and it does shock me that Lexus, in my opinion, have very much let themselves down.

What I find particularly sad is that I’m quite a ‘soft’ person and I am beginning to feel as though I’ve been taken advantage of. I don’t particularly like confrontations but it’s had to get to that point over the last month or so just in order to get something...anything...to happen. I can see it all bubbling up when it comes to sorting out the finance with them/getting a trade-in value on my existing car and again on collection day.

[HighlandJohn]

7 hours ago, dutchie01 said:

Could be berkshire massachusets usa ?

 

Don't feel that you need to make excuses for a Numpty....

[Juicedrinker]

On 6/24/2023 at 2:18 PM, dutchie01 said:

Could be berkshire massachusets usa ?

Good morning, not sure if this comment was directed at myself but if so I am in both Berkshire and Oxfordshire in the UK

[RadicalCoupe-Fuji]

Just had my rcf serviced & mot'd on Thursday.  Was fine until during the health check they found the offside rear brake disc to be corroded because the brake pad wasnt fitted very well, not worn out, so it was an mot failure. They ordered a new pair of rear discs & pads but when they showed up the next day the kit had 2 lhs pads, as the pads are directional that wouldn't work so they ordered a new kit which wouldn't be in until Monday, they gave me a free nx courtesy car to use, got the kit & was all done Monday.

Bit annoying that the disc was only no good because presumably a lexus tech fitted the pad badly at some point. £835 on top of the £770 service. 

[Juicedrinker]

Hello all,  I am now in a position to give my view on the standards at the Lexus dealership I bought my RC300H from.

I did not want to give full details before until I had given them the chance to rectify (which they have just completed).

The dealer I used to have my last Lexus serviced at (Swindon) could not get a used model that i required so I had to purchase from another dealer.  At the time I bought I explained I was not happy with the offside rear tyre at all (wont go into the specifics but I have worked in motorsport for many years and had a good reason to not be happy about it.  The sales guy said Lexus technicians would not have approved it during the very recent service if it was not ok so I had to accept that.

Anyhow I was delivered the car and the driver said 'you do know it only has one key?'.  That riled me as it was an expensive purchase and at no point did the sales guy say it was short of a key.  Then after the delivery driver had gone I looked at the service book which had not been shown to me before, I was told 3 services done by Lexus and all as they should be.  The service book didn't match at all and I spoke to a Lexus contact I had who validated that the service book was accurate which meant that they had in fact not completed any major service at all and it was now 4 years old.  Long story short I complained to Lexus HQ and within 30 minutes the dealer principle phoned me to sort things out.  He agreed their service department had failed to do the correct service, he agreed that I was meant to have a second key but he said he couldn't do anything about tyre as passed the service. 

He said I needed to bring it back asap to have the brake fluid etc changed and have the full 4 year, 40,000 mile service done foc plus the second key paired.

This dealer is 2 hours from my home and I said I was not prepared to lose time off work and drive over 2 hours each way in my own time to put right what should of been done in the first place.

In all fairness to him he was brilliant, he arranged for a really nice loan car to be delivered to me and my car collected for the work to be done.  When the service was completed a service person contacted me to advise that lo and behold the rear tyre was close to limit and would need changing in the next month or so and they would do at a special price of £255!  I knew that the other tyre on the axle would need changing in next 8-10k so I said there is no way I'm paying for a brand new tyre when I queried this at the start and was told service said it was fine plus they did not supply me with any of the service paperwork to cross reference.  They said they would speak with dealer principle and ten minutes later phoned back to say they were replacing both the rear tyres free of charge!!!

They have now returned the car to me with all work completed and nothing to pay and collected the loan car.  The driver was a really nice person as well and clearly passionate about Lexus.

So I am extremely happy with what they have done, they acted rapidly, sorted the immediate issues (service and key / pairing) and also replaced the two rear tyres free!

Absolutely brilliant work and I would highly recommend Snows of Southampton to anyone looking for a Lexus and will not hesitate to buy my next Lexus from them.  

 

 

 

 

 

    

[wharfhouse]

4 minutes ago, Juicedrinker said:

Hello all,  I am now in a position to give my view on the standards at the Lexus dealership I bought my RC300H from.

I did not want to give full details before until I had given them the chance to rectify (which they have just completed).

The dealer I used to have my last Lexus serviced at (Swindon) could not get a used model that i required so I had to purchase from another dealer.  At the time I bought I explained I was not happy with the offside rear tyre at all (wont go into the specifics but I have worked in motorsport for many years and had a good reason to not be happy about it.  The sales guy said Lexus technicians would not have approved it during the very recent service if it was not ok so I had to accept that.

Anyhow I was delivered the car and the driver said 'you do know it only has one key?'.  That riled me as it was an expensive purchase and at no point did the sales guy say it was short of a key.  Then after the delivery driver had gone I looked at the service book which had not been shown to me before, I was told 3 services done by Lexus and all as they should be.  The service book didn't match at all and I spoke to a Lexus contact I had who validated that the service book was accurate which meant that they had in fact not completed any major service at all and it was now 4 years old.  Long story short I complained to Lexus HQ and within 30 minutes the dealer principle phoned me to sort things out.  He agreed their service department had failed to do the correct service, he agreed that I was meant to have a second key but he said he couldn't do anything about tyre as passed the service. 

He said I needed to bring it back asap to have the brake fluid etc changed and have the full 4 year, 40,000 mile service done foc plus the second key paired.

This dealer is 2 hours from my home and I said I was not prepared to lose time off work and drive over 2 hours each way in my own time to put right what should of been done in the first place.

In all fairness to him he was brilliant, he arranged for a really nice loan car to be delivered to me and my car collected for the work to be done.  When the service was completed a service person contacted me to advise that lo and behold the rear tyre was close to limit and would need changing in the next month or so and they would do at a special price of £255!  I knew that the other tyre on the axle would need changing in next 8-10k so I said there is no way I'm paying for a brand new tyre when I queried this at the start and was told service said it was fine plus they did not supply me with any of the service paperwork to cross reference.  They said they would speak with dealer principle and ten minutes later phoned back to say they were replacing both the rear tyres free of charge!!!

They have now returned the car to me with all work completed and nothing to pay and collected the loan car.  The driver was a really nice person as well and clearly passionate about Lexus.

So I am extremely happy with what they have done, they acted rapidly, sorted the immediate issues (service and key / pairing) and also replaced the two rear tyres.

Absolutely brilliant work and I would highly recommend Snows of Southampton to anyone looking for a Lexus and will not hesitate to buy my next Lexus from them.  

 

 

 

 

 

    

It's a shame that you had to go through that experience - I have heard good things about Snows and pleased that they stepped up and sorted things out to your satisfaction. You would hope that the dealer principal would now be doing some "retraining" of those who clearly did not deliver the service they should have in the first place.

[DavidCM]

I bought a used 2020RC about 18 months or so ago from Lexus Guildford.At the time of agreeing to purchase,I mentioned that the rear tyres looked a bit worn.On collection,the car had 2 brand new tyres that had not been promised,so pretty pleased.The salesman was good...the right blend of being able to sell,without being too pushy..a fairly rare trait in car sales,or sales generally.

When the service was due,I phoned around the local dealers..Reading,Swindon, Guildford and Southampton.Reading didn't answer the phone and of the others, Southampton was by far the most knowledgeable and switched on so I used them and was very pleased with the service.They also did the LO C discount.

 

[fourbanks]

I find the standards overall have very much declined over the past couple of years, and that's with me having direct contact with Lexus. The trouble is very simple, they can't get the right sort of staff who are passionate about the brand. There are a few very few I have met who do make the grade, but not in sufficient numbers that can make a difference. 

 

Iv'e just recently been on a fact finding mission to find Takumi Masters from all brands of cars and with much regret they're all in the same boat, just a couple of great staff per garage 

 

I think the most iv'e found is around a dozen car staff in the whole of Sussex at Takumi Masters level 

[Juicedrinker]

1 hour ago, DavidCM said:

I bought a used 2020RC about 18 months or so ago from Lexus Guildford.At the time of agreeing to purchase,I mentioned that the rear tyres looked a bit worn.On collection,the car had 2 brand new tyres that had not been promised,so pretty pleased.The salesman was good...the right blend of being able to sell,without being too pushy..a fairly rare trait in car sales,or sales generally.

When the service was due,I phoned around the local dealers..Reading,Swindon, Guildford and Southampton.Reading didn't answer the phone and of the others, Southampton was by far the most knowledgeable and switched on so I used them and was very pleased with the service.They also did the LO C discount.

 

That’s great to hear.  I am pleased for you that Reading Did not answer.  To say I’m disgusted with their service and attitude would be an understatement and I will never ever get my Lexus or Toyota serviced in Reading, I drive over an hour away for both vehicles for each service 

[wharfhouse]

7 hours ago, Juicedrinker said:

That’s great to hear.  I am pleased for you that Reading Did not answer.  To say I’m disgusted with their service and attitude would be an understatement and I will never ever get my Lexus or Toyota serviced in Reading, I drive over an hour away for both vehicles for each service 

Interesting - I bought my 2 year old IS 300h from Lexus Reading and I've been using them for the last 8 years for all servicing, MoTs and even tyres along with a couple of repairs and one body repair. I haven't had any reason to complain - in fact they have gone above and beyond a number of times. My wife bought a new Toyota from Toyota Reading (same company located next door) and again used for all her servicing needs and no problems with them for the past 4 years also. I've had poor service in the past (not from Lexus) and for a BMW went through many dealers before I found a good one so I don't put up with any BS. 

Unfortunately, I think it does come down to the people delivering the service and their attitude and how willing they are to listen and resolve issues as and when they arise and not to treat customers as a problem or with contempt. 

[Juicedrinker]

That’s good they were fine with you, it is weird how things vary and seems to depend on who you get on the day. Unfortunately for me with Reading it started when I went with my partner to look at an IS250 they had for sale, my partner said that the way the receptionist was and how she spoke to us (looked down) forget it and spend your money elsewhere which is what I did.

As an example the last (and only time in late 2022) I went there for a service as couldn’t get to Swindon (they are closed on Saturdays!).  Needed a minor service they identified a small leak on Air conditioning condenser (ok), new nsf calliper required (ok as I was expecting / hoping that due to something not feeling right occasionally although two independents couldn’t see anything wrong).  They also said I needed new front pads (30% left) and discs (heavily ridged) and new rear pads (25% left) I had new Lexus discs / pads less than 20,000 miles before and am known for being gentle on brakes / making them last a long time even on sports cars I’ve had in past.  I challenged this as it is a thing that most if not all  Reading dealers often say you need new pads and or discs when you don't, my friends with Aston’s, Range Rovers and Audis have experienced this also. 

the service person said well it’s clear you think know more than a Lexus technician, I didn’t bother answering that but what he didn’t know is that in my workplace every couple of months we get our cars up on the ramps and a Motorsport mechanic friend of mine checks underneath, pads, discs, tyres  and a quick look for any potential leaks on suspension etc as a favour. 
the price for discs and pads seemed high and I wanted to get car checked over by another dealer, so I just had calliper done at c£410 and said leave the rest.  I contacted Swindon branch and chatted to them and they were amazed the discs and pads needed doing as on prior service figures had 70-80% left on them, but they ordered in a set of pads and front discs, air condenser and a new calliper as I didn’t want one new one one side and the original on the other (I had full history of everything done to the car and it was still on the original callipers amazingly)!

the upshot was that Swindon did the other sided calliper for £120 less than Reading, condenser £100 less and what a surprise they said why did I want my pads and discs replaced as they had a long time to go in fact my pads at front were c70% left on them and the slight ridges were negligible and my braking on the test centre rig was fully balanced and fully compliant.

I showed them the info that Reading had given me on the service report sheets regarding the pad depths and they said they must of been looking at another car or should have gone to Specsavers 😂

 

 

 

 

 

[wharfhouse]

9 minutes ago, Juicedrinker said:

That’s good they were fine with you, it is weird how things vary and seems to depend on who you get on the day. Unfortunately for me with Reading it started when I went with my partner to look at an IS250 they had for sale, my partner said that the way the receptionist was and how she spoke to us (looked down) forget it and spend your money elsewhere which is what I did.

As an example the last (and only time in late 2022) I went there for a service as couldn’t get to Swindon (they are closed on Saturdays!).  Needed a minor service they identified a small leak on Air conditioning condenser (ok), new nsf calliper required (ok as I was expecting / hoping that due to something not feeling right occasionally although two independents couldn’t see anything wrong).  They also said I needed new front pads (30% left) and discs (heavily ridged) and new rear pads (25% left) I had new Lexus discs / pads less than 20,000 miles before and am known for being gentle on brakes / making them last a long time even on sports cars I’ve had in past.  I challenged this as it is a thing that most if not all  Reading dealers often say you need new pads and or discs when you don't, my friends with Aston’s, Range Rovers and Audis have experienced this also. 

the service person said well it’s clear you think know more than a Lexus technician, I didn’t bother answering that but what he didn’t know is that in my workplace every couple of months we get our cars up on the ramps and a Motorsport mechanic friend of mine checks underneath, pads, discs, tyres  and a quick look for any potential leaks on suspension etc as a favour. 
the price for discs and pads seemed high and I wanted to get car checked over by another dealer, so I just had calliper done at c£410 and said leave the rest.  I contacted Swindon branch and chatted to them and they were amazed the discs and pads needed doing as on prior service figures had 70-80% left on them, but they ordered in a set of pads and front discs, air condenser and a new calliper as I didn’t want one new one one side and the original on the other (I had full history of everything done to the car and it was still on the original callipers amazingly)!

the upshot was that Swindon did the other sided calliper for £120 less than Reading, condenser £100 less and what a surprise they said why did I want my pads and discs replaced as they had a long time to go in fact my pads at front were c70% left on them and the slight ridges were negligible and my braking on the test centre rig was fully balanced and fully compliant.

I showed them the info that Reading had given me on the service report sheets regarding the pad depths and they said they must of been looking at another car or should have gone to Specsavers 😂

 

 

 

 

 

Yes as you say it's surprising when you see such differing reviews from the same place. I had the opposite experience when I asked Lexus Reading to check/replace some things and they came back and said no reason to change them when I'd already said I was happy for them to be replaced. They also listened to me over another issue including offering a tech to go out with me to listen to the noise I was reporting and then sorted the issues without a problem. Like you though I've had similar experiences in other dealerships (not Lexus) where I was told things needing replacing when clearly they didn't. It's a shame the whole car industry (and associated industries) seems to have such inconsistent practices leaving customers always on their guard and feeling that they are about to get ripped off. 

[Juicedrinker]

You are absolutely right with what you have said there about the inconsistent practices - its ridiculous.  Also because of this it seems you have to question, check everything that they say and provide evidence to support your case which is so irritating.  My partners 4 year old Yaris Hybrid had its service and I had told them that there was a fault with the front parking sensors in that they get triggered at very random points when driving by a leaf blowing past, exhaust vapour from a car a mile away, spec of dust drifting across (ok a bit of an exageration :)) but makes my partner edgy when the car suddenly warns of an obstruction ahead that isn't there.  They are ridiculously sensitive and trigger for no reason at all.  They said no fault found and all ok, I went outside with her to drive off and as soon as I started the car was warning me of proximity danger at front, I was still stationery and the object in front was the dealership building but it was at least 8m away.  I went back inside they sent the service person out and he said oh yes that's not right but don't know what it could be and we haven't got any available appointments today so bring her back in future and we will keep her for a day / look at it again. When I got home I did some research myself through my work system and found that Toyota were very aware of this issue on the 2018 Yaris models and had implemented a free 'chip' change / fix completely rectified this but were not doing it as a recall and only if the customer complained about the issue and insisted it to be done.  Toyota however had rectified it for 2019 models onwards.  I PDF'd the information and emailed the dealer and they said they knew nothing about it at all but would order the chip and replace free of charge.  Its a bit mad that its the customer who has to do the work to identify the fault to get it sorted especially with a company such as Toyota who seem to recall cars for the pretty much everything.   

[wharfhouse]

11 minutes ago, Juicedrinker said:

You are absolutely right with what you have said there about the inconsistent practices - its ridiculous.  Also because of this it seems you have to question, check everything that they say and provide evidence to support your case which is so irritating.  My partners 4 year old Yaris Hybrid had its service and I had told them that there was a fault with the front parking sensors in that they get triggered at very random points when driving by a leaf blowing past, exhaust vapour from a car a mile away, spec of dust drifting across (ok a bit of an exageration :)) but makes my partner edgy when the car suddenly warns of an obstruction ahead that isn't there.  They are ridiculously sensitive and trigger for no reason at all.  They said no fault found and all ok, I went outside with her to drive off and as soon as I started the car was warning me of proximity danger at front, I was still stationery and the object in front was the dealership building but it was at least 8m away.  I went back inside they sent the service person out and he said oh yes that's not right but don't know what it could be and we haven't got any available appointments today so bring her back in future and we will keep her for a day / look at it again. When I got home I did some research myself through my work system and found that Toyota were very aware of this issue on the 2018 Yaris models and had implemented a free 'chip' change / fix completely rectified this but were not doing it as a recall and only if the customer complained about the issue and insisted it to be done.  Toyota however had rectified it for 2019 models onwards.  I PDF'd the information and emailed the dealer and they said they knew nothing about it at all but would order the chip and replace free of charge.  Its a bit mad that its the customer who has to do the work to identify the fault to get it sorted especially with a company such as Toyota who seem to recall cars for the pretty much everything.   

Yes, maybe like you I am someone who will do their own independent research and then know where I stand (which I apply to many other aspects of my life) and so often I don't have so much push back as they know I won't take any BS. If I have an issue, once I've given the people in an organisation a chance to sort it out, if they don't then I generally escalate it to someone who can, no matter how high up I have to go. However, I know many people will not take a stand and organisations take advantage of that, pushing them from pillar to post to delay making any decision.

[Phil xxkr]

4 hours ago, Juicedrinker said:

You are absolutely right with what you have said there about the inconsistent practices - its ridiculous.  Also because of this it seems you have to question, check everything that they say and provide evidence to support your case which is so irritating.  My partners 4 year old Yaris Hybrid had its service and I had told them that there was a fault with the front parking sensors in that they get triggered at very random points when driving by a leaf blowing past, exhaust vapour from a car a mile away, spec of dust drifting across (ok a bit of an exageration :)) but makes my partner edgy when the car suddenly warns of an obstruction ahead that isn't there.  They are ridiculously sensitive and trigger for no reason at all.  They said no fault found and all ok, I went outside with her to drive off and as soon as I started the car was warning me of proximity danger at front, I was still stationery and the object in front was the dealership building but it was at least 8m away.  I went back inside they sent the service person out and he said oh yes that's not right but don't know what it could be and we haven't got any available appointments today so bring her back in future and we will keep her for a day / look at it again. When I got home I did some research myself through my work system and found that Toyota were very aware of this issue on the 2018 Yaris models and had implemented a free 'chip' change / fix completely rectified this but were not doing it as a recall and only if the customer complained about the issue and insisted it to be done.  Toyota however had rectified it for 2019 models onwards.  I PDF'd the information and emailed the dealer and they said they knew nothing about it at all but would order the chip and replace free of charge.  Its a bit mad that its the customer who has to do the work to identify the fault to get it sorted especially with a company such as Toyota who seem to recall cars for the pretty much everything.   

The problem is Charles we blithely go along thinking all people are as intelligent as we Lexus owners are but it's simply not true. Just imagine the average person then realise that 50% are more stupid than that. 😱

[Mr Vlad]

I've praised highly Lexus Stockport quite a few times. However I had to phone the service manager (I have his number) to ask him to remove my car from their records and cancel the Major service and MOT because the car had been written off. 

I was rather taken aback by his total lack of interest of commiserations. Maybe he was having a bad day but crikey how he was there was no excuse for it. Shame.

[Rabbers]

This thread illustrates how the general standard of service provided by the same dealer can be condemned by some customers and praised by others.  Some dealerships are mentioned several times and at length, but I doubt if there are any dealerships anywhere that have at one time or another and to a greater or lesser extent not been the object of diverging customer opinions.

 Unless they don’t acknowledge the existence of a customer dissatisfaction issue in the first place it seems to me that the people running dealerships are faced with two behavioural alternatives.  They can either (a) try harder to justify what they charge for their services and do their best to be seen to be doing so, or (b) simply accept that there is no prospect of pleasing most customers all of the time and that there is consequently little to be gained by trying.

Whether one likes it or not, it is implicit in the thinking of the latter type of dealer that the reason people - especially first-time customers - buy a Lexus is because it is a good car and not because they like the dealer or are able to judge the quality and honesty of the services offered.

[fourbanks]

The bottom line is they don't enjoy their work, and it's as simple as that 

[Bluemarlin]

4 hours ago, Rabbers said:

This thread illustrates how the general standard of service provided by the same dealer can be condemned by some customers and praised by others.  Some dealerships are mentioned several times and at length, but I doubt if there are any dealerships anywhere that have at one time or another and to a greater or lesser extent not been the object of diverging customer opinions.

I think it also bears out my view of people in general, in that few can be categorised in a wholly general sense. Often people will say that such and such person is like x, when my experience has been that they're the opposite. We might all have a base level, but often how we behave is a reaction to either our environment at the time, or the person we're engaging with. I know that I can behave differently with work colleagues, friends or family members, for example.

In the same way, a service employee can feel in either a superior or inferior position to the customer, or helpful or unhelpful, depending on the nature/behaviour of the customer, and so will act accordingly.

Like I say, whlst we all have a base level, how people treat us will be as much about how we treat/approach them as it about their own nature or inclinations.

[Gary H]

12 hours ago, Rabbers said:

This thread illustrates how the general standard of service provided by the same dealer can be condemned by some customers and praised by others.  Some dealerships are mentioned several times and at length, but I doubt if there are any dealerships anywhere that have at one time or another and to a greater or lesser extent not been the object of diverging customer opinions.

Indeed. One of the reasons why I have yet to say what dealer I have ongoing issues with is because we do have a former prominent member of this forum, who I’ve seen from the search function, has mentioned my dealer (quite positively it seems) on a number of occasions.

Unfortunately, my experiences with this particular dealer, on the sales side anyway, is the mirror opposite. The general opinions of them on online reviews are also positive and it’s only the likes of Trustpilot where they start, at least in part, to align more towards my own experience. I strongly suspect if I shared the same positive experiences others have had with them, I wouldn't be here. 

[Rabbers]

20 hours ago, Bluemarlin said:

… often how we behave is a reaction to either our environment at the time, or the person we're engaging with….

In the same way, a service employee can feel in either a superior or inferior position to the customer, or helpful or unhelpful, depending on the nature/behaviour of the customer, and so will act accordingly.

… how people treat us will be as much about how we treat/approach them as it about their own nature or inclinations.

All true, Bill.  And admirably put.

Personal interactions between buyers and sellers have undergone so much change in recent years -  indeed generations - as to have made phrases such as “the customer is always right” or “the customer is king” almost laughable.  And yet, although few prospective or actual customers would feel comfortable with an excess of obsequiousness on the part of someone selling them a car or providing a service connected to a car, the majority would certainly be upset upon getting the impression they are being done a favour rather than the other way round.  In other words, although courtesy and respect can and should be shown by both parties in a transaction, it is the role of the seller to persuade and satisfy a buyer within the bounds of reason even when this might necessitate the suppression of personal dislike.  This, I feel, is a professional duty where the seller or provider of a service is the representative of a premium marque such as Lexus, whose reputation and image in a highly competitive business requires constant protection.

[Mincey]

I took Betsy in for her 3 year service at Lexus Leicester yesterday. I was greeted by my name and not "good morning Sir" which I found astounding. It has been 10 months since I was there last. If it was a BMW, Mercedes or Audi, I wouldn't be surprised to be on first name terms with the staff what with having to take the car back every five minutes for repairs. 

No upselling, coffee and biscuits on offer, Betsy cleaned inside and out, no issues whatsoever. Happy customer.

[Rabbers]

1 hour ago, Mincey said:

 .... coffee and biscuits on offer, Betsy cleaned inside and out ...

I can't believe you actually let someone lay hands on your Betsy 😲 !!??  In return for coffee and biscuits 😳 !!!???  What is the world coming to 🥹!!!!????

[Mincey]

1 hour ago, Rabbers said:

I can't believe you actually let someone lay hands on your Betsy 😲 !!??  In return for coffee and biscuits 😳 !!!???  What is the world coming to 🥹!!!!????

I was weak. They did promise to take very good care of her though.