Thoughts on eBay OEM service kit?

[DnG]

Hi, I've started planning the first service since I got the car and I was both, looking at both Lexus bs services and buying the kit and doing it myself (of course I'll get the spark plugs changed at my mechanic).

Lexus are charging between £350 - £500 to just do checks that anyone with a functioning pair of eyes can do and I don't see the point of that price tag.

So I found this kit: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/165404901620

What do you guys think? It all seems OEM but I'm always cautious when I see those kinds of oil bottle, looks fake for some reason lol, but then again I don't know how the original Toyota oil bottle is supposed to look like...

[Linas.P]

Most likely to be counterfeit - honestly, eBay is probably worst place of them all to get common service items, basically those who counterfeit parts won't risk faking some obscure part which may or may not be bought, so they go for large volume items that are guaranteed to need frequent replacement.

Almost all plugs on eBay are counterfeit, the one in picture look rough even from low quality picture provided, so hope for them being genuine is very low. Filters... at least in the picture look genuine. I mean you know - I can't 100% say they are fake, but on eBay the risk of fake spark plugs alone would be little too high for my liking. 

"genuine" Toyota oil to be honest is average quality at best and when it comes to oil I would focus on replacing it more frequently (ideally twice a year every 6,000 miles) than getting best oil possible and keeping longer. Logic is quite simple here - when engine was designed and car was made 15+ years ago, even best oil was worse than cheapest oil sold today. So as long as you put fully synthetic oil it should be fine. I am not 100% sure, but I believe standard Toyota oil is part-synthetic (or at best hydrocracked), so getting literally any synthetic oil will be improvement. 

I would say - it is fine to go for aftermarket parts, some aftermarket parts far exceed quality of genuine Toyota parts some are worse quality e.g. Bosch oil filter looks literally luxurious compared to Toyota genuine one... is it overbuilt for the task... maybe, but for £8 I rather have overbuilt Bosch than go for OEM Toyota for £17 which is also quite obviously worse quality. But the worst deal of all is to go for counterfeit "OEM", because then you end-up paying OEM prices and getting the absolutelly worst possible quality part. 

If you want to go for genuine parts then LPD has  decently priced kits:

https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/product/lexus-is250-phase-2-service-kit/

Sure it is ~£30 more like for like (major service pack has same items as the one on eBay for £208), but it will be 100% genuine. 

What I would do...

20 litters can of fully synthetic 5W30 - you can get that for £40-50. Brand doesn't really matter. If you really want to treat yourself Mobil1 extra long life is quite good, Castrol Edge (Magnatec I don't like, it turns very dark within 100 miles, it does have additives, maybe that is why, but also it is hydrocracked and not true fully synthetic) - Opie Oils is good place. Otherwise just any fully-synthetic that has all the required certification. I happy put Mannol fully synthetic and have done so for 100k miles now (on different cars) no issues. This one is one eBay. 

Bosch oil filter from autodoc (the one that has fused rubber reinforcement) - £8.

Cheapest cabin air filter that has activated charcoal (activated charcoal only last maybe 2 months at most anyway) often that costs like £3 - autodoc.

Air filter rarely needs replacing, perhaps once every 3 services (even Lexus does not replace them in their fancy £500 oil change), I would get genuine Toyota as they seem to be the best for the price and you can get it from autodoc as well - ~£16.

Spark plugs - LPD... and they can go for another 80k miles, it is £94, but it is genuine. Alternatively, if making larger order from amayama they are only £6, so £36 for 6, but it is not worth ordering just spark plugs, because with delivery it works out ~£108 (yeah... deliver more then the plugs). That said LPD also sticks probably £5 for delivery.

If getting from amayama, then at the same time I would also order 5x washers for foreseeable future and new drain plug screw - that is £6 for all 6. 

[scudney]

Personally there are certain things I wouldn't buy off the bay and that includes spark plugs and oil amongst others 

[Linas.P]

26 minutes ago, scudney said:

Personally there are certain things I wouldn't buy off the bay and that includes spark plugs and oil amongst others 

Big brands oil... certainly. Also probably Toyota oil. Something like Mannol - it is not worth enough to fake it, question is more whenever it is good idea to use Mannol or not, but I have already outlined my opinion in that regard.

[johnatg]

Sceptics! Nothing wrong with that kit, except that you can get equivalent components cheaper, as Linas says.

You will need to buy an oil filter housing wrench - don't try to remove it any other way.

Changing the plugs isn't that hard - get hold of a workshop manual (available on line) and follow the instructions. I posted on here a step-by-step guide some years ago.

Be aware that if you come to trade the car in at a Lexus dealer, they won't like that you don't have official Lexus service record and will offer a pittance (ah  - I see 2007 so probably not a problem really) . But don't let that stop you - doing your own service means you know it has been done properly or at least to the best of your abilities. My cars (almost) never see a garage except for MoTs and recalls.

[DnG]

8 hours ago, Linas.P said:

What I would do...

20 litters can of fully synthetic 5W30 - you can get that for £40-50. Brand doesn't really matter. If you really want to treat yourself Mobil1 extra long life is quite good, Castrol Edge (Magnatec I don't like, it turns very dark within 100 miles, it does have additives, maybe that is why, but also it is hydrocracked and not true fully synthetic) - opieoils is good place. Otherwise just any fully-synthetic that has all the required certification. I happy put Mannol fully synthetic and have done so for 100k miles now (on different cars) no issues. This one is one ebay. 

Bosch oil filter from autodoc (the one that has fused rubber reinforcement) - £8.

Cheapest cabin air filter that has activated charcoal (activated charcoal only last maybe 2 months at most anyway) often that costs like £3 - autodoc.

Air filter rarely needs replacing, perhaps once every 3 services (even Lexus does not replace them in their fancy £500 oil change), I would get genuine Toyota as they seem to be the best for the price and you can get it from autodoc as well - ~£16.

Spark plugs - LPD... and they can go for another 80k miles, it is £94, but it is genuine. Alternatively, if making larger order from amayama they are only £6, so £36 for 6, but it is not worth ordering just spark plugs, because with delivery it works out ~£108 (yeah... deliver more then the plugs). That said LPD also sticks probably £5 for delivery.

If getting from amayama, then at the same time I would also order 5x washers for foreseeable future and new drain plug screw - that is £6 for all 6. 

That's what I usually do for my BMW and my dad's car, just thought that Toyota has some special sauce in the parts that the car is picky about or they have way better quality parts for servicing.

 

51 minutes ago, johnatg said:

Sceptics! Nothing wrong with that kit, except that you can get equivalent components cheaper, as Linas says.

You will need to buy an oil filter housing wrench - don't try to remove it any other way.

Changing the plugs isn't that hard - get hold of a workshop manual (available on line) and follow the instructions. I posted on here a step-by-step guide some years ago.

Be aware that if you come to trade the car in at a Lexus dealer, they won't like that you don't have official Lexus service record and will offer a pittance (ah  - I see 2007 so probably not a problem really) . But don't let that stop you - doing your own service means you know it has been done properly or at least to the best of your abilities. My cars (almost) never see a garage except for MoTs and recalls.

I personally had bad experiences with eBay, it's mostly chinese stuff from Aliexpress that they resell in UK. I found the exact same parts on Aliexpress with the same OEM looking boxes for waaay cheaper so yeah...

As for the oil filter housing wrench, I am looking into buying one, I have a mate who has a strap that he tightens around the filter housing and they seem cheap online.

Everyone seems to say that changing the sparkplugs is tricky and time consuming that that mechanics charge quite a lot for the job but if you say it's not that hard I'll give it a shot, after I get a longer socket.

Yeah my car is a 2007 and a bit modified, so I doubt Lexus would want it back lol. I mainly wanted to do the servicing at a garage because of the stamp in the service book. Car wasn't treated right before I got it so I'm trying to bring it back to life (I opened a thread here about the whole process) so I wanted to have FSH while it's in my possesion so when it comes time to upgrade I can sell it quicker and for a decent amount.

[HPS13]

9 hours ago, Linas.P said:

Most likely to be counterfeit

May I suggest that a moderator remove this post as there are is no evidence to support this claim and nonsense remarks like this can potentially harm a business. 

The seller P4H, who is referenced by the OP, has a 99.9% positive feedback score with over 19,000 sales. I have personally used them and they provided a good service with genuine parts. 

[rich1068]

It's Linas being Linas.

[ColinBarber]

22 minutes ago, HPS13 said:

May I suggest that a moderator remove this post as there are is no evidence to support this claim and nonsense remarks like this can potentially harm a business. 

The seller P4H, who is referenced by the OP, has a 99.9% positive feedback score with over 19,000 sales. I have personally used them and they provided a good service with genuine parts. 

I'd say the post in general is a good warning - there are a lot of fake parts being sold on eBay. However, I don't believe Linas has any experience with the specific seller in question and therefore people should disregard this comment. Please remember that Opinions, advice and all other information expressed by participants in discussions are those of the author. Members who rely on such information do so at their own risk.

There are equally a lot of genuine sellers on eBay, including Toyota UK themselves. Personally I've used e-hybrid a number of times and always received genuine parts.

[T man 545645]

I used to buy service kits for my mechanic from eBay (stopped doing this many years ago as Japex Automotive now look after the car). 

I also used to buy genuine discs and pads from eBay. 

The seller was usually a main dealer with an eBay store.

I checked the reviews and never had an issue. The parts were all genuine lexus.

I still buy oil from eBay for topup purposes. currently got some Castrol Magnatec which was a good price delivered. 

I once bought some PIAA wipers from eBay after buying direct from the PIAA site for many years (this eBay seller was a bit cheaper) - then was paranoid they were fake. Don't think they were but its annoying when you can't be sure. 

These days its a minefield on amazon and eBay - trying to buy simple things like regular little batteries you can't be sure whats real and whats not. Always check the reviews and the length of time seller has been around. 

 

[Linas.P]

2 hours ago, DnG said:

That's what I usually do for my BMW and my dad's car, just thought that Toyota has some special sauce in the parts that the car is picky about or they have way better quality parts for servicing

They are when it comes to sensors. Try putting non-genuine or aftermarket o2/labda and the car will not be happy, it may work for few months, but eventually you will need to get genuine Denso.

I guess sparkplugs can be included in that list - only ever Denso iridium and nothing else should be used. There are other bits like ball joints and wheel bearings, where you can go aftermarket, but Toyota stuff "special sauce" is that they just last 10 times the mileage for only 3 times the price. Sometimes there is no option... for example I had A/C low side pressure sensor issue and Lexus just would not sell the sensor - you want the sensor, get whole low side pipe for something like £700+VAT, ended-up buying just a sensor which I am probably 90% confident was fake for £11. But considering "alternative" I thought... I could do it 10 times and still be better off. As far as I know that sensor was in the car for 5+ years without issues. So there are certainly parts that you should use genuine, some others that you don't have to. 

But some generic parts like filters and oils - there are actually better quality aftermarket stuff. Also brakepads and discs - aftermarket often better if you know what to buy.

@HPS13 Hugh et al. - this is forum, anything said here is ALWAYS only opinion, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Perhaps saying you disagree with me on this one was enough?

Let me rephrase it - don't buy service items on eBay unless you personally know the business selling them is genuine and can be trusted. Good enough?

@T man 545645 - lets not confuse genuine business, like main dealer, which may also have eBay store (say LPD which is Lexus Swindon) with "eBay seller"... aka somebody that doesn't exist anywhere but eBay and seems to sell all sort of stuff... some of which happens to be Denso iridium plugs for half the price of what they usually cost. 

Not so sure about "genuine" discs and pads on eBay either, certainly had fake brembo pads (and not from eBay, but considering how much stir-up my above comment caused I rather not mention the source). But all what I said above should apply - don't buy unless you personally know and trust the business you buying from. 

I am not going to start another topic... about how reviews and feedback can be bought and how they often don't mean much.

[HPS13]

50 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

this is forum, anything said here is ALWAYS only opinion, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Perhaps saying you disagree with me on this one was enough?

Let me rephrase it - don't buy service items on ebay unless you personally know the business selling them is genuine and can be trusted. Good enough?

When you start slandering a specific business by saying 'most likely to be counterfeit', that is not acceptable. 

As mentioned, P4H are an established business with over 19,000 sales and 99.9 % positive feedback. If their products were indeed, as you say, 'likely to be counterfeit' wouldn't that have been discovered by now? 

Perhaps you should only voice your opinion of specific eBay sellers if you have direct experience of them? As you mention, forums are full of opinions, some are logical, some are not . . . 

 

[DnG]

Ok can we please come back to the topic at hand? I really don't care about an eBay seller which probably makes more than enough money as it is so 3 words on a forum section that doesn't even get a ton of traffic, won't hurt it, and just to top it off, Linas said "most likely" which is expressing a probability not a statement of (100%) fact.

So, back to the topic. I made up a list of service items on Autodoc which came up to £171.33 with postage and Autodoc's "safe order" fee.

• Blue Print oil sump drain plug + seal ring
• Champion oil filter with 3 o-rings
• x6 denso iridium TT (CNG/LPG) Spark plugs
• Ridex activated carbon filter
• Febi Bilstein air filter
• 5L Castrol Magnatec C3 Synthetic oil
• x2 1L Castrol Magnatec C3 Syntethic oil

And to be honest, compared to the eBay listing, I'm only saving about £8.50 - £9 but at least I have the option to choose which parts I want. Are there any other places I could get these parts from but cheaper? I tried EuroCarPart but they only seem to have the £70 K&N air filter for the car and when I saw that, I switched off.

[Linas.P]

17 minutes ago, DnG said:

Ok can we please come back to the topic at hand? I really don't care about an eBay seller which probably makes more than enough money as it is so 3 words on a forum section that doesn't even get a ton of traffic, won't hurt it, and just to top it off, Linas said "most likely" which is expressing a probability not a statement of (100%) fact.

So, back to the topic. I made up a list of service items on Autodoc which came up to £171.33 with postage and Autodoc's "safe order" fee.

• Blue Print oil sump drain plug + seal ring
• Champion oil filter with 3 o-rings
• x6 denso iridium TT (CNG/LPG) Spark plugs
• Ridex activated carbon filter
• Febi Bilstein air filter
• 5L Castrol Magnatec C3 Synthetic oil
• x2 1L Castrol Magnatec C3 Syntethic oil

And to be honest, compared to the eBay listing, I'm only saving about £8.50 - £9 but at least I have the option to choose which parts I want. Are there any other places I could get these parts from but cheaper? I tried EuroCarPart but they only seem to have the £70 K&N air filter for the car and when I saw that, I switched off.

All great, just change the C3 oil to A5, or A1. Also I would not take Magnatec, already explained why. It is good oil, I just don't like how it turns grey and almost looks like sparkly stuff because of additives.

[T man 545645]

you can get 7 litres of a5 magnatec for £43 quid on ebay:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393363266809

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393363267443?itmmeta=01JD2FTTRQC7XGA93R1885Y076&hash=item5b96471f73:g:F8gAAOSwy-9gsQWo

 

 

[DnG]

33 minutes ago, T man 545645 said:

you can get 7 litres of a5 magnatec for £43 quid on ebay:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393363266809

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393363267443?itmmeta=01JD2FTTRQC7XGA93R1885Y076&hash=item5b96471f73:g:F8gAAOSwy-9gsQWo

Thanks. that just saved me around £15 😄

Any recommendation on a set of drilled/grooved rear discs? I have drilled/grooved ones on the front and I want to match the rears and while I'm changing the parking brake shoes and pads anyway, I might as well change the discs.

I found these on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362148657587 but I've never heard of the brand "Rotor Discs"

[johnatg]

This is the sort of oil filter wrench you need. As I said, don't try and use anything else. Also, when refitting the filter you need to torque it to no more than !8ft.lbs - if overtightened they are very hard to get off again.

Car Oil Filter Wrench ×1 Removal Tool For Toyota Corrola Prius Rav4 Lexus ES350 | eBay

[J Henderson]

30 minutes ago, DnG said:

I found these on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362148657587 but I've never heard of the brand "Rotor Discs"

Never heard of them either, and I don't know what the setup on your car is, but be aware those are the smaller solid discs. Not vented ones.

[J Henderson]

15 hours ago, Linas.P said:

I am not 100% sure, but I believe standard Toyota oil is part-synthetic (or at best hydrocracked), so getting literally any synthetic oil will be improvement.

I think there's two types of Toyota oil available - Fuel Economy and Premium Fuel Economy, which is more expensive and presumably fully-synthetic.

[Linas.P]

44 minutes ago, DnG said:

Thanks. that just saved me around £15 😄

Any recommendation on a set of drilled/grooved rear discs? I have drilled/grooved ones on the front and I want to match the rears and while I'm changing the parking brake shoes and pads anyway, I might as well change the discs.

I found these on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362148657587 but I've never heard of the brand "Rotor Discs"

Recommendation - don't get drilled grooved discs... they just make more noise and are easier to warp. I know it looks cool, but apart of looks they are objectively worse than simply solid/vented.

5 minutes ago, J Henderson said:

I think there's two types of Toyota oil available - Fuel Economy and Premium Fuel Economy, which is more expensive and presumably fully-synthetic.

You are most likely correct, however the result is the same as just getting any fully-synthetic oil. Toyota does not make it's own oil, so inevitably they are just repackaging it from some supplier and putting their margin on top. Obviously that is cynical view, alternative view - they buy in bulk, make saving and transfer that saving to you... Somehow I doubt Toyota does any charity... maybe it does for it's own dealers, but by the time it is resold to end consumer, the price probably is the same as any other fully synthetic oil. 

[true blue]

Hi I have been servicing my IS250 for the last 10 years I use blue print filters and have never had any problems I would not take a chance on E bay spark plugs as I am also a MX 5 owner and we have had club members who fitted these and the centre electrode detached and caused mayhem they were later proven not to be genuine.I always use Shell fully synthetic I know it is not the cheapest but I have worked at Stanlow and I think their quality is excellent Finally as previously stated do NOT attempt to remove the filter housing with any tools other than the recommended tool IT WILL BE very TIGHT and I have been asked to assist in the past after an abortive attempt and the housing or sump can be damaged

[GS300h2014]

I'd like to add my sentiments on paper oil filter selection & on the removal tool. 

The car care nut guy has a video commenting on OEM vs 3rd party paper oil filters. He argues very strongly to go with genuine Lexus/Toyota ones as the dimensional fit & the tension in the pressure release spring are critical to proper operation. Why risk going non OEM for such a cheap vital component?

If somebody else did the last oil filter change, it could well be on very tight, possible needing a breaker bar or impulse driver to remove. This happened to me with a Toyota Auris which had been previously serviced by a Toyota dealer workshop. In this case you will likely need to use the proper Toyota/Lexus steel removal tool (09228-06502) however it costs circa £28. This doesn't have any flutes & is thus easy to use.

[Spark plug]

I don't buy online,  I don't trust it. I buy all my parts from my local motor factor.