New car warranty requires "Lexus Certified" mechanics to do routine services?

[wdn]

My son’s Subaru dealer does all that for his 2020 Impreza which is the lowest priced vehicle in their lineup. He drove home with a 2021 Legacy loaner when he took it in for 30,000 mile service.

 

[wdn]

“When maintenance and repairs are paid for by you, these services may be performed by you or by any automotive service provider you choose. Lexus will not deny a warranty claim solely because you used a service provider other than a Lexus dealership for maintenance and repairs. However, any failure or noncompliance caused by improper maintenance or repairs is not covered by this warranty”.

Since Lexus offers a certification program for auto mechanics their first question is going to be do you or your mechanic hold a Lexus certification to maintain and repair Lexus automobiles.

 

[Jetronic]

This is how all extended warranties work here... The first 2 years are legal warranties and as long as the car has been serviced anywhere it's covered. But the next years (3 for hyundai, 5 for Kia) are contractual. Any non-hyundai dealer stamp in the service history, bye bye warranty. At least for big ticket items that are covered in services. And you can wine all you want, the contract you signed says hyundai servicing or you get 2 years warranty.

 

[demarpaint]

I would politely tell the salesperson he/she lost a sale, and buy my car elsewhere. Been there done that on more than one occasion. I was in car sales, the bottom line is this, a salesman needs me to make money, I can spend my money anywhere I see fit.

 

[Spector]

Toyota dealer said that to me so I went out to service and asked if all their techs that do oil changes are certified, answer was no. Went back to sales and let them know they were full of it!

 

[doublebase]

FYI, Putnam Lexus in Redwood City is a great dealership. In Silicon Valley, there are like 10 Lexus dealerships.
Stevens Creek, Serramonte and Pleasenton dealerships are among the top selling dealerships in the country.
Putnam is a family owned dealership. The family also sells Toyotas, Volvos, Chevy GMC, Chrysler Jeep Dodge, Subaru.

They were not pushy. The finance department asked me who would perform routine maintenance; I said I would. She told me the Lexus warranty might not be honored if the services were not performed by a "Certified Lexus" tech. Apparantly the service gets logged into a Lexus database by the tech.
That's all. I know she was trying to sell me a service contract for the 5 year warranty period. Of course I declined...

FYI, during the oil change service, Lexus washes and vacuums the car, rotates tires and does numerous checks. You will get a loaner if the service takes more than an hour or so. Not a bad deal for many owners. All good.

If you’re going to do all of your own work, and you want to prevent a voided warranty, make sure you keep all of your receipts.

I actually knew a GM tech that owned a new Silverado and he paid to have all of his oil changes done at the dealer he worked at. I thought that was NUTS! But he said he’s seen people have their warranty voided by GM because they wouldn’t accept documentation of maintenance unless it was performed by a shop or dealer. Imagine being an excellent ASE master tech and paying to have yourself change the oil at your own dealership on your own truck? That blew my mind.

 

[DuckRyder]

You can self report service on the lexus owners site.

They cannot deny warranty if you DIY correctly, Lexus Certified or not. But you (Hopefully) know that already.

F&I Lady is ling to sell a prepaid service whether you think it is an awesome dealer or not.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I would politely tell the salesperson he/she lost a sale, and buy my car elsewhere. Been there done that on more than one occasion. I was in car sales, the bottom line is this, a salesman needs me to make money, I can spend my money anywhere I see fit.

It was not that big a deal. She and the Putnam team are not pushy. In fact, they were easier than any dealer car purchase I havr ever experienced.
Also, the car I wanted is extremely hard to find. I have been looking for months for this combo.
Try to find a white on red RX450h F Sport. There are zero in Silicon Valley, which is the largest Lexus market in the US.

All good.

 

[SeaJay]

That is on par with "your check is in the mail"

 

[dblshock]

Toyota til just a few years ago had a portal where through the vin you could access all services done to your car; Dealers, Indi or DIY could enter completed service data as well, I used this service myself back in the day, bet it's still around.

 

[cb_13]

If you’re going to do all of your own work, and you want to prevent a voided warranty, make sure you keep all of your receipts.

I actually knew a GM tech that owned a new Silverado and he paid to have all of his oil changes done at the dealer he worked at. I thought that was NUTS! But he said he’s seen people have their warranty voided by GM because they wouldn’t accept documentation of maintenance unless it was performed by a shop or dealer. Imagine being an excellent ASE master tech and paying to have yourself change the oil at your own dealership on your own truck? That blew my mind.

Most of our flat rate techs make more for the billed hours on an LOF than the menu price for the labor. So they're getting paid to do their own service. If they have our prepaid oil change deal(5 LOF's for $100) they probably break even with parts and labor both.

 

[Jetronic]

I would politely tell the salesperson he/she lost a sale, and buy my car elsewhere. Been there done that on more than one occasion. I was in car sales, the bottom line is this, a salesman needs me to make money, I can spend my money anywhere I see fit.

ok, but wherever you spend, you either won't have a hyundai/kia or you get something with 2 years warranty...

 

[Jetronic]

If you’re going to do all of your own work, and you want to prevent a voided warranty, make sure you keep all of your receipts.

I actually knew a GM tech that owned a new Silverado and he paid to have all of his oil changes done at the dealer he worked at. I thought that was NUTS! But he said he’s seen people have their warranty voided by GM because they wouldn’t accept documentation of maintenance unless it was performed by a shop or dealer. Imagine being an excellent ASE master tech and paying to have yourself change the oil at your own dealership on your own truck? That blew my mind.

usually techs that buy a new car in 2021, will have their service book stamped for the next 10 years on that day... and if they don't do it then, they stamp it before their last day.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

This thread is a perfect example of how the message gets lost and people take it to mean whatever they want it to mean.

Factory warranties are not required to cover claims over workmanship outside the dealer network.
Factory extended warranties are not required to adhere to M&M.

 

[demarpaint]

ok, but wherever you spend, you either won't have a hyundai/kia or you get something with 2 years warranty...

Odds are very high that I won't be owning a Hyundai or Kia, but if I did I'd have a workaround in place. Otherwise my money would get spent somewhere else.

 

[MolaKule]

They were not pushy. The finance department asked me who would perform routine maintenance; I said I would. She told me the Lexus warranty might not be honored if the services were not performed by a "Certified Lexus" tech. Apparantly the service gets logged into a Lexus database by the tech.
That's all. I know she was trying to sell me a service contract for the 5 year warranty period. Of course I declined...

The point is not if they were pushy or not; if you read the Warranty language it does not seem to support what you were told.

"Might not be" and "Apparently" are not words found in Warranty language.

 

[cb_13]

talking to a fella the other day, they took his wife's lexus back to the local Toyota Dealer where they had purchased it used.
Dealer had installed a new Toyota Battery Pre- Purchase. that battery had died, they Jumped the car, and brought it in to get a new one put in.
he inquired about pro-rating the old battery, as it was still within the stated warranty period.
"Since it was installed in a Non-Toyota Vehicle" was their reason as to why they couldn't honor the battery warranty...

last I checked, Doesn't Toyota own Lexus?

Usually over the counter parts have a warranty that is good only to the original purchaser. Since the dealership put the battery in and no longer own the car the warranty would now be gone. Same if you bought my truck and I'd just put a new battery in it. The warranty would be good for 3 years for me as the purchaser of the battery but not to the next owner.

This may not be true in your particular case as warranty specifics vary but is the most common way I've seen them.

 

[JeffKeryk]

The point is not if they were pushy or not; if you read the Warranty language it does not seem to support what you were told.

"Might not be" and "Apparently" are not words found in Warranty language.

I appreciate your post.
I certainly agree with you pushy has nothing the warranty question.

FYI, my "pushy" responses refer to posts suggesting I go to another dealership. Pushy does not bother me, especially on a $60K plus purchase for a vehicle that is very hard to find. I fully understand the car buying game; I have no problem offering a smile and a pleasant "No thank you".

I don't for a moment believe Lexus would deny me just for doing my own oil changes. I was hoping there was a BITOG member who had experience selling Lexi.
All good and thanks to all who replied.

 

[ryster]

It was not that big a deal. She and the Putnam team are not pushy. In fact, they were easier than any dealer car purchase I havr ever experienced.
Also, the car I wanted is extremely hard to find. I have been looking for months for this combo.
Try to find a white on red RX450h F Sport. There are zero in Silicon Valley, which is the largest Lexus market in the US.

All good.

Lexus dealers have a reputation for having the best customer service. The dealer should easily be able to find any white on red RX450h F Sports currently on the ground in the US, and easily arrange a dealer trade for the closest available one. If I am going to spend $60K for a vehicle, the dealer is going to earn the sale. I am not going to spend large amounts of free time scouring dealer inventory to find one. It should take the sales rep you are working with very little time to query the Lexus system and find such a vehicle.

I found this in just a few minutes:

New 2021 LEXUS RX 450h For Sale at Lexus San Diego | Stock #: 92077

New 2021 LEXUS RX 450h from Lexus San Diego in San Diego, CA, 92111. Call (888) 632-5276 for more information.

www.lexussandiego.com

This one is even closer to Silicon Valley:

New Lexus Cars, SUVs in Stock | Lexus Monterey Peninsula

With new Lexus vehicles in stock, Lexus Monterey Peninsula has what you're searching for. See our extensive inventory online now!

www.lexusmontereypeninsula.com

 

[The Critic]

Lexus dealers have a reputation for having the best customer service. The dealer should easily be able to find any white on red RX450h F Sports currently on the ground in the US, and easily arrange a dealer trade for the closest available one. If I am going to spend $60K for a vehicle, the dealer is going to earn the sale. I am not going to spend large amounts of free time scouring dealer inventory to find one. It should take the sales rep you are working with very little time to query the Lexus system and find such a vehicle.

I found this in just a few minutes:

New 2021 LEXUS RX 450h For Sale at Lexus San Diego | Stock #: 92077

New 2021 LEXUS RX 450h from Lexus San Diego in San Diego, CA, 92111. Call (888) 632-5276 for more information.

www.lexussandiego.com

This one is even closer to Silicon Valley:

New Lexus Cars, SUVs in Stock | Lexus Monterey Peninsula

With new Lexus vehicles in stock, Lexus Monterey Peninsula has what you're searching for. See our extensive inventory online now!

www.lexusmontereypeninsula.com

Those are different markets. Lexus pricing tends to vary significantly from market-to-market due to regional incentives and the competitiveness of the region.