The dealer charges a whooping $86 for labor on the installation of the filters which is a total shock.
It’s just a min job. Or even less than a minute for each.
See, the cabin filter is for $45 and the engine filter is for $29. That’s $74. They wanted $160 for everything including labor. Well, tax included too.
FWIW, you don’t need a dealer. They specialize in high labor & parts rates and don’t have any special “magic” just because they’re a dealer. Ask around for a locally owned independent shop with a good reputation. You’ll often get much better advice / advising, and better rates on parts and labor.
2 man hours? Really? I’m just a backyard mechanic and I can that in under an hour.
I see no way I could do all that in an hour in my driveway. Remember the ABS would need bleeding too, and a manufacturer’s scan tool is probably required for that. I’d guess an hour would only be enough for a pro bleeding both circuits with the assistance of a lift. No time for the tire rotation or the filters. Maybe one of the pro’s here will chime in.
$700 to replace spark plugs?
Makes me long for the good old days of the flathead engines and Champion J-8 spark plugs.
The procedure to bleed a brake line with ABS is the same as vehicle without ABS.
Bleeding Anti Lock Brakes | Brakes-shop.com
I purge the brake fluid in our vehicles about every 50-100 thousand miles. I own a life (Quick Jack). The hardest part is setting up the jack. I can do a complete brake bleed in all 4 corners in under an hour. Replacing the air-filter and cabin air-filter - maybe 15 minutes. Tire rotation - zero minutes since I already have the wheels off doing the brake bleed.
Personally, based on too many bad experiences, I do everything I can to STAY AWAY FROM DEALERS!
Hello.
So today my gut feeling told me to check on the engine and cabin filter just to make sure Lexus actually looked at them and to my surprise they were overly dirty despite Lexus telling me they were fine and never needed to be replaced.
My dad changed them out today.
Now I’m wondering if my spark plugs were ever changed ?
Find a local, independent mechanic with a good rep and you won’t likely find yourself asking such questions.
Like engine oil, air filters can look dirty but not need to be replaced. It’s best to just go by recommended mileage, while taking into account certain variables regarding how “dirty” your air is. (E.g. if you live on a dirt road, they’ll likely get ugly faster).
According to the check list reviewed by the service writer the filters seemed to be acceptable. The filters I replace every 30,000 miles aren’t very dirty. Maybe the tech checked the filters, maybe he didn’t. This happens when mechanics are expected to perform inspection for free.
I have seen lube techs recommend new engine and cabin filters one month after they were replaced on a previous visit, they failed to inspect the filters. Those lube techs attended trade school to become grease monkeys, career mistake?
The filters were found clogged and my dad said there was no way they checked them.
I should have taken a picture of them and posted here for all to see.
I live in an immaculate village. So clean that you’d walk bare feet everywhere 
My favorite way to walk barefoot is in the mud. Or the sand. 
My experience is that dealers love to change those two filters, easy to do, good profit.
I’m wondering if it is because I told them I would change the filter myself, so they marked that as being done?
I have to respond. It was called the germ of lazyness. Infected by walking barefoot the little buggers drill into your foot and you never know it. I forget the year but it was a big campaign to get southerners to wear shoes by the Public Health Service. When tested, very many were infected and it caused a general malaise. Now down around Naples they are getting those flat worms. Hard to kill and burn your skin. Wear shoes son.
I just change my filters every 20,000 miles. I stock a spare filter and usually just order two at a time to have on hand. Sometimes they are dirty and sometimes not. We did have an Oder in the car last time and don’t know if it was the cabin filter or not but pretty gross if I remember.
I do appreciate the concern. And I am in “the south,” (where that was once a thing) though toward the northern part of the south (central VA). But the big hookworm epidemic was over a century ago - early 20th C. And there’s mostly indoor plumbing / toilets / sewer / septic around here by now. (Yes, even in “the south”). So if I’m out barefoot in the mud it’s not full of human feces, and thus not full of hookworms.
Good post though. I got a laugh out of it.
Sorry, meant nothing against the south. I like the south. I think it was mainly climate. The campaign I think was around 1930 but I’d have to look it up. My wife likes to go bare foot but that’s another battle. Ive been in every southern state except Arkansas and can attest to indoor plumbing. Grits though I just can’t get used to but I wish we had Waffle House around here.
Since you were to replace the filters yourself, there was no reason for the tech to empty the glove box and check the filter.
On the inspection program there is a button to “Pass all categories” if the vehicle needs no additional work. I always go back and clear inspection items that were not inspected or do not apply to avoid being called to the office over this type of thing. People shouldn’t take these free inspections so seriously. This is not proof that all mechanics are liars.
Louisa County says HI !
I’ll really upset a lot of people, I had Chronic venous insufficiency or similar and had 18 procedures in my legs to correct it, anyway cause of it, my feet are damaged and it hurts to wear shoes (being on my feet on concrete floor 10-12 hours a day didn’t help) to the point when customers were not around I took my shoes off, sometimes even with them (customers) around… Yes it hurt less to walk on pavement to get info off or to move a car in the summer time then to walk with my shoes on… I also in my home shop have done a lot of fabricating and welding not wearing shoes… lol …Once I retired and could stay off my feet, it took about a year for all the swelling to go down… So I don’t wear shoes unless walking outside anymore…