My 2008 Rx 350 my mechanic says the timing belt seal is shot- that It's a mfg issue and $5,000 to repair. Any one else aware of this?

Asked by CVSSC Oct 09, 2016 at 12:26 PM about the 2008 Lexus RX 350 AWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair


2008 Lexus RX 350 timing belt seal

1 Answer

400

The 2008 Lexus RX 350s don't have timing belts -- they have chains. The change from timing belts to chains began with the 2007 Lexus RX350s. I had a used car dealership try to sell me a 2009 RX350 and it was close to 100k miles and I wanted to know how much that maintenance cost and what all was done to negotiate that into the price. They told me several times they would replace the timing belt and do all these other things at that 100k mile mark and charge me a reduced rate of $500-600. I went to the Lexus dealership to get prices on maintenance so I could understand how it fared to other luxury SUVs and happened to ask about the services and how often they are done and what's done at the 100k service and how much the dealership charged (which is always high compared to a reputable mechanic) and they verified the chains are NOT on the models starting with the 2007 edition, major services are every 30k miles and they charge around $700 (not the $1500 the used car dealership told me to expect if I took it there versus Lexus) and the others are oil changes every 10k miles or 12 months ($130) if I recall correctly on the oil change mileage - it's either 7500 or 10k but thinking the latter be the used car place told me 7500 and they would also do that for me but they recommended I do it at every 5k (which I also remember wasn't true and felt completely pissed off and betrayed in that I typically don't trust people and especially not a used car salesman because of all the crap they have tried to pull on me because they assume I'm a female and therefore less knowledgeable about cars and try to exploit that). I has told that man about my experiences thus far and how awful and frustrating it had been and how I thoroughly research these things and felt that given I had told him this he wouldn't be stupid enough to try that on me but I was wrong. I trusted him and was lied to. Just like I'm going to find another salesman at a dealership, I would recommend you find a trustworthy mechanic. The timing belts are so expensive to work on in any capacity and any mechanic trying to tell you they're going to work on anything to do with a timing belt on your Lexus is blatantly lying to you and pocketing that money.

19 people found this helpful.

Your Answer:

RX

Looking for a Used RX in your area?

CarGurus has 808 nationwide RX listings starting at $4,995.

Postal Code:

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    tenspeed
    Reputation
    8,400
  • #2
    Papaobewon
    Reputation
    5,650
  • #3
    Nicolaos Vlachos
    Reputation
    5,180
View All

Find great deals from top-rated dealers

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Lexus RX Hybrid
11 Great Deals out of 499 listings starting at $3,995
Used Lexus GX
4 Great Deals out of 49 listings starting at $16,495
Used Toyota Highlander
26 Great Deals out of 777 listings starting at $6,500
Used Acura MDX
29 Great Deals out of 808 listings starting at $3,495
Used Toyota RAV4
100 Great Deals out of 2,715 listings starting at $2,500
Used Lexus ES
13 Great Deals out of 187 listings starting at $3,990
Used Toyota 4Runner
19 Great Deals out of 300 listings starting at $10,800
Used Acura RDX
34 Great Deals out of 953 listings starting at $4,999
Used Lexus IS
18 Great Deals out of 316 listings starting at $6,500
Used Lexus LX
31 listings starting at $9,450
Used Lexus LS
3 Great Deals out of 30 listings starting at $9,995
Used Honda CR-V
88 Great Deals out of 4,524 listings starting at $440
Used Toyota Camry
60 Great Deals out of 1,072 listings starting at $3,995

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.