Thread: Toyota V8 going BANG??

Originally Posted by VladTepes

At the end of the day, The engines only blew up because the oil consumption issue was not addressed in time by the owner, in most cases i'm sure they knew it was using oil but continued to drive it without checking the level, theres only 1 person to blame really. The owners manual states to check the oil daily I know no-one does but its there in black+white so the owners dont technically have a leg to stand on if the vehicle runs out of oil. Toyota is nice enough to replace their $12,000 engine for free.
And yeah the problem was fixed, and owners only needed to contact and consult with their dealer, carry out the tests required to confirm the rate of usage, and its done.
It was also proven that Toyota Genuine oil helped the situation on some vehicles.!

Firstly, let me preface my comments. Up until a few years ago I spent the last 30 years working in various dealership Service Departments in Australia & Europe as a service manager/advisor and/or warranty clerk. This includes franchises for Holden, Honda, Fiat, Lancia, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mercedes Benz, Porsche, Chrysler, Ssangyong, Daihatsu and TOYOTA.

IMHO Toyota treat their dealers like cr*p. If there is one thing out of place with the claim/repair procedure they can refuse to pay the whole repair job. Then, even if they do pay the claim they can take the money back later during the yearly warranty audit! Of course it is the big ticket items (like a V8 engine replacement) that they look at first during an audit.

All the poor dealer wants is to make sure he is going to get paid before he undertakes a $10K or more repair.

On the other hand, all service department staff are paid huge incentives, normally on a retail dollar per invoice basis or retail gross profit. Warranty repairs are paid for by the manufacturer at a much lower rate. This is why they (the service advisor or manager) will always try to convert a warranty type repair into a retail repair.

So no wonder it is such an uphill battle for the average punter to get a large warranty claim recognised by the dealer.

On the subject of oil pricing, oil has the highest gross profit margin of all sales (Labour, Parts, Sublet Repairs and Oils) in any service department. I have seen industry benchmarks and it is not uncommon to see P.O.L. (petrol, oils and lubricants) running at 200% gross profit or more. Dealer principals push their Service Managers to achieve these benchmarks as a minimum KPI (Key Performance Indicator) just to keep their jobs!!


These are just my own thoughts (donning flameproof suit) from years of observation.


Wozz L Gummich

Originally Posted by woorarra

but unless its a defender or something similar, you would be crazy to drive one around here purely for reliability issues and parts availability, I have two mates that own landrovers here in town, one has been trucked back too perth twice now and he has taken land rover to court and the other mates has been taken back too perth once, there is a reason that toyotas and nissans dominate the market here thats because they are reliable and parts are available, .

I had to have our Td5 Defender trucked to Perth from Newman as no one would even look at it! And it took 3 weeks because the truckers couldn't be bothered as it had a camper attached.
I've gone to the darkside because of that incident and know others who have or intend doing the same thing.
Of course any vehicle can breakdown we know that, but at least with jap crap there's a chance it can be fixed without a tow of possibly thousands of kays to the big smoke to be diagnosed and repaired.
Barbagallo in Perth told me yesterday that they have now entered into an "alliance" with repairers in Geraldton, Karratha, Pt Hedland and Broome for service and warranty work.
Strangely enough these seem to be the same people who did it previously before LRA went mad and did away with them!
Alan.

New franchise manager at Land Rover has had to undo the decisions made previously and is creating authorised service centres which can do warranty work.

Toyota's get towed if they break down in the bush,most country ''dealers'' aren't dealerships but service centers and haven't got the equipement to clear or reset faults.If the vehicle goes into self protect mode it gets a ride to a major dealer.Unfortunately many so called ''tradesman'' stick to what they know and can't use thier brain to solve problems so it can be hard to get help when you need it and trust me many jap owners have been stuck too. Pat

Originally Posted by PAT303

So why is it causing trouble?,do you flog it to death or don't service it.It's been my experience that it's either one of the two. Pat

Yea to that Pat..spot on.

Originally Posted by wozzlegummich

A

On the other hand, all service department staff are paid huge incentives,

I never was!

Originally Posted by BigJon

I never was!

No, but you looked after me very well when I needed help and that fact has never been forgotten.
I just hope that I can one day repay the favour.