Lexus- Not A Good Start

[doog442]

Im getting a bit tetchy over this one. Im not going to name the dealership as im sure the situation will be resolved in some way shape or form! The long and short is that I purchased an IS200 from a Lexus dealer recently .3 years old, highish mileage for year but mint condition.

On collecting the vehicle I was given 3 keys. However the service history and the leather folder etc that comes with it was not forthcoming. I was told that it was locked in admin! In the glovebox was a well thumbed owners manual! I thought that this was a bit shabby to be honest but was assured everything would be sent to me.

At this point I will admit to being a 'mug' having not actually examined the service book having been readily reassured on the test drive that it was one owner FSH etc etc and also having read the pre-owned Lexus guarantee about mileage,service history etc. I was also lulled into a false sense of security by the lobby that looked like a 5 star hotel, the very attractive receptionist and the coffee!!

Nothing came through the post and after a few phone calls I sent a mate around to the garage (I live some way from it) to pick up my documents as arranged. He did- but didnt look at them - and presented them to me a few days later....

Very nice they were..but they are for a completely different car.... :duh:

doubts then crept in when I examined the MOT - its a duplicate issued the day before I picked the car up!

I can only presume my service history has been lost or mislaid and im hoping that they will prove me wrong. I had a chat today with someone fom the dealership who offered a duplicate history if they couldnt find the originals. Now this is the crux of this post. Is a 'duplicate' Lexus service history as acceptable as the original ? I intend to keep the car for a few years and sell it on. How will this effect its value and would you accept it as you would the original? Im presuming its all computerised and im getting worked up over nothing.

I have total trust that something will be sorted and praying they will turn up the original documentation but I do have the option of the 30 day return...that actually sounds very griefy.

Any opinions appreciated

[Rory]

A duplicate service history should be just as acceptable (I too am awaiting one and their response on this issue is slow) however, if the car was serviced anywhere other than lexus, your dealer will not have this info, so hope the last service was done by lexus if any of the others were not

[doog442]

thanks for that...feel better already. They say they supplied it from new and the last service was indeed done by them as I have a printout that was shown to me during the 'lets negotiate a price' process'...

£1200 not inc VAT..ouch

Its the previous 3 services I dont have.

By the way, great forum....great car..have to return it for a knocking noise on the front offside....happens when I turn left over slightly uneven ground. According to the printout they re-tourqued the suspension due to loose ball joints.....do they get 'loose' or is it wear and tear and should i be looking at replacements under warranty

[Monster-Mat]

im sorry but this i have heard before......

id name and shame, they knew the car was for sale they should have ensured the documents were in order.

i also smell something fishy, and wouldnt accept a duplicate history......

who says they cant add/remove what info they want, after all, they managed to get the mot only the day before, why not the history!!

[Rory]

in which case this doesn't give me much hope for mine either, may I ask then, are lexus known for deceiving buyers?

my 60k service is due soon anyway (as i've previously mentioned several times, lol)i'll be having this service done thoroughly and completely, just for piece of mind.

[Ian M]

I think this is a question of “***** up or conspiracy?”. Perhaps I have been lucky, but in my experience ***** up usually turns out to be the reason and in this case it looks like all the paperwork (including the MOT certificate) has simply gone AWOL. I think I’d be inclined to have a pretty robust conversation with the dealership manager and hint that you might want to reject the car unless he can get things sorted sharp-ish. If he doesn’t then without doubt it is time to name and shame. Good luck.

[doog442]

thanks for the replies..im up and down like a yo-yo on this....im guessing that anyone can stamp a book and likewise any car dealer can forge a service history on a computer ...

the galling thing is that i chopped in a top quality motor, that was newer than the IS200 and owned from new by me, with 16k on the clock...

thinking I would get total and utter confidence, honesty and satisfaction from a LEXUS dealer ..not this mess

I will visit the dealer tomorrow, with my magical 3 keys and someone elses service history book and speak with the manager..

keep you posted

[Monster-Mat]

please do.....

you will be pleased to know that some dealers do read these boards, as do Lexus GB

[Bazza]

can you not contact the previous owner ?

[aido]

When I bought my IS from Notts it didn't have some of the stamps on the book even though they were shown on the computer, so the dealer sent the book off to Leeds where the work was done, they filled the stamps and the info in and then sent it me back all fully done :)

Hope it all works out for you anyway mate!

I'm sure there was someone on here in a similar situation to yourself - they bought a Lexus Approved User car and it was missing a service - they played hell and the dealer took the car back and provided them one better :)

[Rory]

I'll be contacting the previous owner for mine towards the end of this week and i'll be putting some choice words to the public about Adsheads car sales in Westhoughton too

[Steve ( West Mids )]

I assume both you guys has the car sold ( and advertised ) with FLSH and an HPI check? Did you see the HPI check? Was previous and current mileage shown on the MOT? if the dealer has said they have serviced the car from new then they will be able to print everything out for you when you visit tomorrow. Get this and look at it thoroughly and see if there any reason for the FSH to be lost. In IMHO if they are unable to do this, reassure you and produce you the duplicate service record book then leave them the keys and walk. If all seems in order then look for a gesture of goodwill ;) on top of the paperwork and new owners manual.

[Rory]

I was only told of a partial service history unfortunately, and the car was previously owned and maintained by VOSA prior to being sold to the previous owner and then me, Lexus have confirmed that it was serviced by them last at 40k and the guys I bought say they serviced it at 50k, they say they are in the process of chasing it up, I will be chasing it up again tomorrow

[doog442]

Just thought I would give you an update:

I took the car back today and was presented with the 'missing' service history book. This was when I lost it a bit (and if you have sussed out who I am Lexy dealer I apologise to the young lady on the front desk)

The services had been retrospectively stamped back until new and was clearly a duplicate. What gave it away was the dealer stamps all bore the new dealers address...yet i dont think the dealer has been there for more than a year.This naturally made me even more concerned. It was so obvious that this had been filled out recently.

When I questioned the service book being back dated/ and when was this done and was this the orgininal? I didnt get a straight answer. I still dont have a straight answer to that one! I just wanted to know ' was it a duplicate and if so why didnt you tell me there was no book from the start'?

After arguing the toss for ages about the stamps in the book and getting nowhere I was offered another vehicle..this offer is still open to me but I dont have confidence in a process that will source a car from anywhere in the UK.

I have been assured by Lexus that this vehicle has a service history. I have TODAY been given printouts that show it has been the subject of 3 services (albeit two were 20,000 miles and 16 months apart) and Im aware that it has had a recent and thorough service. Hence i expect I will keep the vehicle.

I have contacted the previous owner. He told me he never got the book stamped after all but assured me the vehicle went in for servicing.He even said he was questioned about the lack of a service book when he returned it, but he told Lexus 'look on your computer'.

The crazy thing is that if Lexus had said to me 'The previous owner didnt get his book stamped, here are computer printouts that prove the history and we will supply a duplicate book' I would have accepted it.' My guess is that no book and the gap between the 2 services of 20k / 16 mths would have decreased their bargaining power on the part ex!

I just wish they had been 'up front' from the start.

[Rory]

seems like its all about money to lexus in this case

[doog442]

re the stamps, it was 'so bleeding obvious ' they were new stamps as it says 2007 on every one apparently..as pointed out by the missus and there was me comparing handwriting samples

[Rory]

lol

[aido]

Being honest I'd take them up on the other car.

Why?

Because you're obviously thinking like this now - so you're going to have this problem when you come to sell it on.

You buy from Lexus because it's supposed to be pukka.

You could have bought this car from elsewhere for less I reckon - they've messed you around, so I'd return the favour!

[Monster-Mat]

go with what aido says, or ask for 1k off the price as you will have to take the hit when you come to sell it, plus the incident is all over the owners club now, and were all biting at the bit to find out who the dealer is....and oh no, what if the papers found out, or you spoke to LGB

[chandru]

indeed. tell em u want a newer car with lower mileage with proof of FLSH for same price :)

[Steve ( West Mids )]

Agree with above posts. Let them source the new vehicle with FLSH same or better spec. and subject to ypur inspection. Maybe then they will be honest with the next buyer.

[doog442]

aido

I paid 10k for a 2004 reg IS200 SE with 45k on the clock from a Lexus dealer. Ive been looking for months and still cannot find anything from Lexus that matches that price ..found a few privates that match it

my worry is that if i reject the car (dodgy stamps and all) I will end up bargaining over something similar and paying extra...

oh well..Ive a few weeks to decide.. its a no quibble return policy apparently

[doog442]

Quick update: WHAT IS A LEXUS APPROVED SERVICE HISTORY?

Being doing some digging about the vehicle.

According to the dealership in question, missing a full 20,000 mile service (by 10,000 miles !!)is not an issue and according to them still meets the requirements as set down by Lexus GB !!

Is this a first? Lexus can turn a missing service (full) into a vehicle with a 'Lexus Approved' Service History. Apparently so. A 'Lexus approved service history' doesnt mean a full service history. How convenient-especially when not disclosed to the customer.

I will be following this point up with Lexus GB on monday as I was specifically told FLSH- and dont forget this was the service history conveniently mis-placed until a week after I had purchased the vehicle.

I have done the following:

1. Asked them to source me another vehicle as per 30 day no quibble policy (*** only knows what they will turn up and I really do get the feeling I will be shafted on this one.)

2. Enquired about a full refund

Could be the shortest Lexus ownership in history.

[Rob]

go on..... tell us which deler it is so others may be aware for future

[Steve ( West Mids )]

I can see people not buying Lexus Approve cars when they read the last bit of this :(

Lexus Approved Service History

All Approved Pre-Owned Lexus vehicles must have a service history that is approved by the Lexus Centre retailing the car. All Lexus Centre services will be completed by a Lexus qualified technician and have all the applicable stamps and signatures. Services for qualifying vehicles must be within 1,000 miles either side of the scheduled service mileage limit or within 2 months either side of the specified time period. Vehicles with an incomplete or non Lexus Centre service history can only qualify as an Approved Pre-Owned Lexus once the retailing Lexus Centre completes the most recent major service. The Centre must then update the service record book to then provide to you.

But if they have quoted FLSH then it's gotta be FLSH end of.