Car advice

[Cary Kollins]

my only car advice is sympathy. my mini cooper blew the fug up on the way to the draft party and it ended up costing me well over $1000 for a bunch of bullshit stuff, but in the end it was worth it to me to pay the actual dealer to do it and not have to hassle with getting it towed somewhere else (and they gave me $50,000 loaner car to drive around for the weekend, which was awesome.)

you're wife's not in an MBA at wake is she? i have a buddy in that program right now

yeah she is! Shoot me his name and I'll ask if she knows him.

[CelibatePimp]

Go Deacs! I got my PhD from Wake. I was actually the graduate body prez my penultimate year at Wake. Had a couple joint socials with the MBA and JD folk. I doubt she was there then.

[PhillyB]

Go Deacs! I got my PhD from Wake. I was actually the graduate body prez my penultimate year at Wake. Had a couple joint socials with the MBA and JD folk. I doubt she was there then.

what was your phd in?

(sorry to hijack your thread CK)

[Floppin]

Replacing brake pads is stupid easy on almost all car models. There's literally no reason that people shouldn't learn to do it themselves. The level of technical ability required is similar to an oil change.

[CelibatePimp]

what was your phd in?

(sorry to hijack your thread CK)

One of the life science disciplines.

[Kevin Greene]

Keep in mind that the dealer is quoting you premium pricing on the work that needs to be done. I drive a Lexus IS350 and just had my rear breaks done and replaced one of the rotors. Total was $116 and without the rotor it would have been about $75. 

Not sure about the air conditioning but I imagine a reputable mechanic in your area could cut that in half as well. If you insist on getting the work done at a dealership, check your local Toyota dealership because that is what a Lexus is after all and they may be cheaper. . 

Just something to think about.  

 

$75 for a rear brake job on a Lexus? Scary, what kind of a $9 an hour monkey did the work whereas they bought parts, installed them and made a profit?

Also, you'd never replace only one rotor and have the brake system within the manufacturer's specifications for disc wear side to side.

 

 

[Kevin Greene]

So the air conditioning in my car (2002 Lexus IS 300 sport cross) stopped blowing cold air two days ago. I took it to the Lexus dealership yesterday, and they gave the me the diagnosis and quote this morning. 

 

Basically the air conditioning unit is fugged and for everything that needs to be replaced it'll be $2,300. Plus my back brakes need replacement badly and that's another $308.

The car is paid for, but at this point I wonder if I should look into trading it in for a new vehicle, which I had been thinking about for a little while now.

 

Any one been through a similar situation? I've had this car going on eight years and it still drives fantastic at almost 150k miles.

That's a lot of dough. So did the compressor fail and contaminate the entire A/C system requiring all the components be replaced?

 

[Mayor Qumiby]

I had an 02 is300 best car I ever had, was going strong with 280k miles. Then I sold it for something bigger.The 2jz motor is one of the best ever built. There are times I regret selling it.

Take it somewhere other than the Lexus dealership for a quote. You're over paying for parts and labor there ( worked at Hendrick Lexus on Independence for a few years about  7 years ago, even the mechanics say they overcharge .) If you're gonna get your work there request Jeff Granzen or Jason Dodds as your service advisor, stay away from Josh Mohr.

[Cary Kollins]

That's a lot of dough. So did the compressor fail and contaminate the entire A/C system requiring all the components be replaced?

 

yeah official diagnosis is "A/C compressor failure, contaminated system, expansion valve and receiver drier"

[Mvp2014]

 

yeah official diagnosis is "A/C compressor failure, contaminated system, expansion valve and receiver drier"

bro i think you can get that fixed for $1000 or less.  My friend just replaced his compressor for $600.  Brakes should be >$100 unless the rotors are gone

[Cary Kollins]

I'm gonna roll with no AC for a while until I can't stand it anymore.

[Mvp2014]

get a fan like bus drivers have and clamp it to your e-brake :)

[Bronn]

...or be so cool that you don't need no got damn AC

 

I'd echo the sentiment of DIYing the brakes...

Also, the compressor might not be so hard either, depending on the space under the hood. My advice on most situations like this are to hit up YouTube and see if anyone has been kind enough to upload a video of themselves doing the same work you'll need to do.

 

At the very least, as others have mentioned, shop around. The $2300 sounds like a ripoff.

[Cary Kollins]

Yeah I got out of there with just a diagnostic fee, an inspection and a car wash. Plus got to drive around a 2015 RX350 for less than 24 hours which was fun.