Boswell

An American view: and slightly bizarre - how to steal a Cat:

Apologies - first reg. Apr'09, I purchased in June'13.

My experience with my RX 400H (June'13 first reg.) is on the previous page. The car has been with a Lexus main dealer for 5 weeks, who have confirmed both cats. as upstream in the engine. and all the scum got was 2 feet of antique exhaust. However it's taken 5 weeks for the replacement section and associated fittings to be ordered and fitted. Unfortunately, my independent garage who I've used for 3 years, and trust, gave me an incorrect diagnosis. Lexus main dealer were seriously helpful, with impeccable comms and I got my car back today. Incidentally, they gave me a 15min health-check video, which amongst other faults, found a leaking rad. which in time could have caused an overheating engine. Leaking rads apparently not uncommon on the 400H. Claim on my insurance? Not sure yet, still thinking it through. Back to my independent for future servicing? Not sure, either, as I can't keep increasing my mortgage. Anyone else with the same problem, you might want to toss up advantages and disadvantages of a courtesy car from your insurance or Lexus customer liaison. Regarding insurance, if you have comprehensive cover, then your car has been vandalised, and can't be driven legally - they should therefore cover you.

I thought I might hang a laminated information sticker, addressed to the crooks, hanging outside each front door when I'm parked in a vulnerable area.....but which language? Albanian? Serb? What's more interesting, what do you do when you catch them red-handed? Keep a lasso handy in the car? Whip it around their legs? Citizen's arrest? Auto-pepper spray?

That makes a lot of sense, Herbie, and in retrospect maybe I should have settled for a custom exhaust. My main consideration was having the correct parts fitted (and the main dealer estimate has a load of items) and having a car to drive. I can't afford a hire car, and I can't afford the time to go chasing around finding an outfit to custom-make a repaired section. Maybe the attached images answer the question?

My experience of having what I thought was my catalytic converter removed from my Lexus RX 400H (first reg. April ’09) might be useful to anyone with the same model. The exhaust section was removed around mid-day, about 3 weeks ago, in Chelsea, London (next to the Marsden Hospital). I booked the car in with my independent garage, who I’ve used for 4 years, and trusted 100%. Verdict was the cat had been removed (clear photographs of exhaust section), long delay in ordering Lexus parts, but alternative sources were an option. No problem with my insurance covering the damage, as it was considered vandalism, but would only cover a hire car if we used either their independent repairer network or a Lexus main dealer, which cut out my independent garage who couldn’t offer a courtesy car (except for service visits). I talked to my Lexus main dealer who said it was unlikely the cat had been removed, as on my model of 400H, the cat was inaccessible to a casual theft. Lexus Assistance covered getting the car to the main dealer, who confirmed that the cat was still intact, and the crooks had just secured a worthless section of the exhaust. They mentioned they had 28 owners ahead of me waiting for a replacement cat, and delay was likely to be at least 6-8 weeks to supply, although I only needed the hacked-out exhaust section. Including labour and VAT estimate was just under a grand. Not having a car was no-go for me, and hiring a car for 6-8 weeks, without a firm date for repair wasn’t appealing. Some tips: report the theft immediately to police (can be done online with the Met), as insurance will need an incident reference. My insurance cover excess was reduced to £100 if claim was made within 48 hours of the damage/theft. My comp. insurance cover was cheap and cheerful, but it did cover car hire if the car wasn’t driveable; might be worth checking when you renew? Consider Lexus Assistance cover (basically top AA cover) – it’s cheap as chips (well, 100 quid/year), and covers you and a partner on any car, gets you to a garage (or home) when your Lexus converts to a tractor and illegal to drive, and provides a loan car. Whether you have an independent garage or not, might be worth having a 2nd opinion from a Lexus main dealer, particularly as in my case, my independent garage gave the incorrect diagnosis (puzzled by that). I realise I might suffer from loaded future renewal premiums, but for no-fault claims I'm optimistic. I’m not technically minded, so some jargon above is probably dodgy. Happy to be corrected on anything.....

Thanks PoD - trouble is, if there is some protective device, I don't want to poke it to where I can't retrieve it, and it may block something. I'd probably need to take out another mortgage to repair a Lexus tank..... Not sure if this is serious or not: http://goo.gl/XKMD3X This might work:

Slightly unusual question: I need bog standard unleaded fuel for a portable aircraft tank (to feed a Rotax 912). The idea of carting jerry cans to my local garage for refilling is not appealing (even if they agree to let me do it) - they're heavy, and the car interior will stink with even minor spills. One easy workaround would be to fill my Lexus tank, drive to the airfield, and siphon the fuel into a storage tank in the aircraft hangar. Question - can one siphon fuel from the Lexus tank, or is there some anti-theft device to prevent me doing this? Thanks.

Replies on this thread were really useful. I went to a not-so-local Toyota dealer for the 60k service - around £430, inc. iridium plugs. A Lexus main dealer had said £300 of their quoted £750 service cost was to cover plugs and labour and they would discount the cost if I didn't want the plugs changed. Barking.

Even more confused having talked to two Toyota garages. One quoted full service at £424 inc. plugs & VAT; another said (with first me having to send them the items on the service list from above) they didn't want to get involved (they explained changing plugs meant removing inlet manifold, which could trigger sensors they weren't familiar with - at least that was honest - their labour charge £112/hr, which must be near Lexus). On second thoughts... Does joining LOC get a discount with a Lexus main dealer garage? They appear to offer that, but can't quite pin it down on their blurb....and Legoland doesn't appeal at the moment...

Thanks, PoD Isn't spark plug change inc. in the £745 service? If not, then apparently £300 less. That's a fairly modest list. How different is it from the abbreviated Essential list, I wonder? No hybrid-related checks at all? Dan - thanks for the Toyota tip - I'll give my local a call.

Having been quoted the £25-95/month plan by one main dealer as covering 'Full', not 'Essential' services and 2 MOTs, another main dealer has just said that it only covers Essential services and not the elusive spark plugs. Neither main dealer knew about the Lexus Fixed Price Repair Plan. I'm sure an expert will be along soon to clarify....

Thanks, Jason, that's useful. Talking to the original garage this afternoon, made a bit more sense. The National Service Plan at £25-95/month seems reasonable value, as it offers 2 'complete' services (rather than 'essential) and 2 MOTs, which would cover 60k and 70k services, they would be 'allowed' to be entered in the log book (unlike Essential services) and would inc. spark plugs. What is still a mystery is the Fixed Price Repair Plan. Is it actually a monthly plan? Does it really cover everything including hybrid batter? Is the cost mentioned anywhere? Here's an extract from the current Lexus UK website: Even a Lexus will require the occasional repair to replace worn parts. For this reason we have created a Fixed Price Repair Plan to ensure that your costs are kept to an absolute minimum. Offering exceptional value and price transparency, there are no hidden additions. Even in the event of a repair taking a little longer than expected, you will still only pay the agreed fixed amount. As you would expect at a Lexus Centre, your vehicle will be repaired using genuine Lexus parts, so that its exceptional quality and reliability remain uncompromised. The Lexus Fixed Price repair commitment covers components that naturally wear out as the miles pass. Intended for models aged 5 years and above, the Fixed Price promise has been introduced to offer exceptional value for money on older models where wear and tear repairs are likely to be more common. This includes front and rear brake pads, batteries for both diesel and petrol models, front wiper blades and parts needed following MOT inspections.

I'd really appreciate advice on getting our 60k service done on a RX 400H, 5 years old - I've been through previous posts, but can't find anything recent. Local Lexus main agents quoted £745, or £445 with no spark plugs (surely an odd option if they're required?). Lexus UK website talks about a Fixed Price Promise and a Fixed Price Repair Plan, but I can't understand what they refer to. Lexus UK didn't seem to know either, and referred me to main dealer. Lexus website details an Essential Care Major Service at £345, and underneath mentions the 24-month Service plan @ £25-95. Lexus UK couldn't give me any info on the difference between the Essential Care Major Service and the 'Full' Major Service (£745) but didn't think it inc. plugs. Local independent garage (known and trust them for 30 years) quoted £349 inc. plugs for a Full Service following the Lexus Full Service specs. I'm aware of the special nature of the hybrid system which could be a problem for local garage (now or in the future), plus, I would have thought, electronic analysis specific to Lexus(?). I don't know whether LOC would benefit in this case.