$1149$ Oil change price

To my shock, my car recently was towed from KC to St. Louis for issues related to the car not starting consistently. It keep getting worse and finally throwing a code I shipped it to Holman Lotus. Since it was already there I decided to have the oil flushed. So I asked my service advisor to give me a price quote. To my shock I thought she had put an extra 1 in front of the 1149. I reminded her that this was a Toyota engine not Ferrari, but she clearly stated that she was correct and they charge 300hr.

Has anyone else experienced this price for an oil change?? How would it take 3 hours to perform an oil change? Considering I live in KC and the dealership is 3hrs away I have no intention to take it back there for the yearly scheduled service with 300hr. Will it effect my warranty if I do my oil changes myself.

 

[drjazzsk]

Maybe a high quality independent mechanic would make more sense than a Toyota dealer? The engine isn't anything that requires a "Toyota expert" and I'd rather have the underfloor trays, etc, removed and installed by someone who cares, not a junior mechanic at a Toyota dealership.

I would agree as well. Issue is finding an Indy mechanic where I live. I still have plenty of time. I’d much rather have someone that’s worked on it if possible. Just looking at all possibilities

 

[LA Kimball]

I live in the St. Louis area and called Holman today to see what they charge for am oil change since I am approaching 1000 miles. I was quoted a price of $529 which is still high but better than the initial prices they were offering. They mentioned they recently updated their pricing. They never touched my Aston Martin Vantage because if their high prices and I got burned once by then when they did my Exige S240 oil cooler recall and I requested an oil change at that same time which cost me $1100. They still need to get realistic but they also have a large clientele of Rolls Royce, Bentley, and Lambo owners who don't even care what it costs. Lotus is different.... It is a Toyota engine after all and does not even have a dry sump.

 

[Eagle7]

I live in the St. Louis area and called Holman today to see what they charge for am oil change since I am approaching 1000 miles. I was quoted a price of $529 which is still high but better than the initial prices they were offering. They mentioned they recently updated their pricing. They never touched my Aston Martin Vantage because if their high prices and I got burned once by then when they did my Exige S240 oil cooler recall and I requested an oil change at that same time which cost me $1100. They still need to get realistic but they also have a large clientele of Rolls Royce, Bentley, and Lambo owners who don't even care what it costs. Lotus is different.... It is a Toyota engine after all and does not even have a dry sump.

Just do it yourself. It's not that hard, and even with buying a few tools (the oil filter removal adapter), you can still do it for under $100. There's videos on the forum that show how to do it.

 

[Billan]

My local dealer (Velocity Lotus Honolulu) charged 1,089 for the 1k mile service which I assumed included more than an oil change, but it did not. I called them out on it, but they're the only dealer on island so I guess you're stuck paying whatever they charge. I can't see how they can justify that cost though. I'll be doing it myself from here on out.

 

[Eagle7]

My local dealer (Velocity Lotus Honolulu) charged 1,089 for the 1k mile service which I assumed included more than an oil change, but it did not. I called them out on it, but they're the only dealer on island so I guess you're stuck paying whatever they charge. I can't see how they can justify that cost though. I'll be doing it myself from here on out.

That is obscene! You can do it yourself for less than $100.

 

[scv]

Less than $50..........

 

[cyanmauve]

My local dealer (Velocity Lotus Honolulu) charged 1,089 for the 1k mile service which I assumed included more than an oil change, but it did not. I called them out on it, but they're the only dealer on island so I guess you're stuck paying whatever they charge. I can't see how they can justify that cost though. I'll be doing it myself from here on out.

Call Lotus USA customer service and let them know. Email your receipt.

The only way this stops is if the parent corp knows about this sort of stuff.

 

[Eagle7]

To my shock, my car recently was towed from KC to St. Louis for issues related to the car not starting consistently. It keep getting worse and finally throwing a code I shipped it to Holman Lotus. Since it was already there I decided to have the oil flushed. So I asked my service advisor to give me a price quote. To my shock I thought she had put an extra 1 in front of the 1149. I reminded her that this was a Toyota engine not Ferrari, but she clearly stated that she was correct and they charge 300hr.

Has anyone else experienced this price for an oil change?? How would it take 3 hours to perform an oil change? Considering I live in KC and the dealership is 3hrs away I have no intention to take it back there for the yearly scheduled service with 300hr. Will it effect my warranty if I do my oil changes myself.

$300 an hour?? To change oil and a filter?? Man alive, I might have to come out of retirement and start doing oil changes. I'll give everybody a break; I'll do it in 2 hours at half the price.

No it won't void your warranty if you do your own oil changes. Just keep your receipts to document what you used, and when. There's videos on the forum how to do it.

 

[Beachbum]

My local dealer (Velocity Lotus Honolulu) charged 1,089 for the 1k mile service which I assumed included more than an oil change, but it did not. I called them out on it, but they're the only dealer on island so I guess you're stuck paying whatever they charge. I can't see how they can justify that cost though. I'll be doing it myself from here on out.

I'm in Hawaii in October, I might pop over and have a look at a US Emira
Didnt even realise a dealership would be there, thought it would be too small a market

 

[cyanmauve]

Hear me out.

Having done the oil change myself, I can see a dealership charging $500. I think this would still be excessive, but probably what I would expect given that there is disassembly required to change the oil.

My price-value-gut says $350-400 would be “fair”, but real world I would expect a dealership to charge $500 “because Lotus”.

$1000 is silly.

 

[harleyujoe]

Hear me out.

Having done the oil change myself, I can see a dealership charging $500. I think this would still be excessive, but probably what I would expect given that there is disassembly required to change the oil.

My price-value-gut says $350-400 would be “fair”, but real world I would expect a dealership to charge $500 “because Lotus”.

$1000 is silly.

350 was my quote from dealer

 

[chirowolf]

I purchased my original Evora from St. Louis Motor Cars (now Holman) Overall I had a bad to poor experiences with them. Back in 2012 they charged $400 for an oil change. Had a couple warranty repairs and the car came back with additional problems and the repair was usually not done correctly. After the first year I just gave up and did my own work.
I always had the impression that Lotus was the "redheaded stepchild" of the dealership, and they really did not want to work on them.
I can do the oil change in about 45 minutes for $60 (I do have a lift in my garage).
There are some excellent YouTube videos walking anyone interested through the procedure.