2007 Toyota Camry LE Leaky Struts and horrible service at SERVCO Toyota in Honolulu

[TYHI]

Loved our first Toyota Corolla we bought back in '76 and the first Toyota Camry (2004). We bought a 2007 Camry brand new and now with only 15,000 miles, the Goodyear mechanic says our front struts are leaking and it appears to be a defect. Instead of trying to charge us big bucks to replace it, he suggested we take it back to SERVCO Toyota in Honolulu to have them replaced. He was so sure it would be replaced as a defective product, the manager refused to provide a estimate because he said Toyota would replace it. Wow...an honest mechanic.

Unfortunately, our SERVCO experience was not so great. We were stonewalled and told that it was normal for the struts to go out at 15,000 miles and since our warranty expired in Dec 09, it would not be replaced as a defect. Wow...I guess Toyota's quality must really be in the tanks if struts they put on their cars only last 15,000 miles!!! Too bad I can't trust Toyota's legendary quality or service anymore. If this is the new Toyota, it may be time for it to be bought out by FIAT or TATA Motors. Surely they can't be as bad as this new Toyota.

After this my son is not going to be willing to pay the Toyota premium to buy the Sienna to replace his dying 97 Dodge Grand Caravan. Too bad cause he love the looks of the new Sienna much more than the Honda Odyssey.

Anyone else have this problem with struts or Toyota service?

[gdanaher]

The struts shouldn't be leaking but if the 3/36 expired last December, dealers on the mainland wouldn't be replacing it for free either. Maybe the early failure is related to the roads you are driving on. I know some of the roads on Oahu are great and some, well, aren't.

[TYHI]

I drive in Mililani and our roads are pretty smooth...no pot holes and H-1 is pretty decent too. But to have struts leaking with only 15,000 miles seems pretty absurd to me. But worst was the service department manager's apathetic attitude...wow! I thought Toyota hired better managers than that. I've always had great service with my Toyota's but now customer service seems to have fallen off a very steep cliff.

BTW, my son's Caravan is still on its first struts and it has well over 160,000 miles (yes he gets them inspected to make sure his shocks and struts are still in working order). I guess that's one for MOPAR and -1 for Toyota parts, whatever they are called.

Wonder what else will go out on this Camry now that the warranty period has expired? Guess I tossed the dice being a loyal Toyota owner and buying a new car trusting Toyota quality and came up wanting.

Fortunately for me its just one bad experience and I have many more cars to buy; but I will no longer trust the Toyota name or quality. Unfortunately for Toyota, neither will my children nor my friends will trust Toyota after the service I received from what use to be a very good dealership.

[TweakRacer]

On a similar note, Longo Toyota (the biggest Toyota dealership) and Toyota Corporate both stonewalled me for a steering clunking issue. They claim that it's because of my TRD springs being "worn out" and not being installed by a dealership. Really? 20K-some-mile car ~2 years old? That's it for me and Toyota. Their Kentucky made cars are crap, compared to the 1995 Japanese made one I had last.

[profuse007]

15k miles is premature. the toyota dealer is giving you a hard time, thats all. I would try another way.

[gdanaher]

You can send an email to Toyota national but they will likely say something about it being out of warranty, and that you could have purchased an extended warranty but didn't.....Struts shouldn't fail so quickly, but then the question is---did they fail? Have you seen them actually leaking oil? Maybe the honest mechanic wasn't all that honest? Clean up those struts with a good spray cleaner, and see what is really happening there.

Hey, being in Hawaii, is this car Japan build or USA built??

[ebumdude]

Originally Posted by TYHI

I drive in Mililani and our roads are pretty smooth...no pot holes and H-1 is pretty decent too. But to have struts leaking with only 15,000 miles seems pretty absurd to me. But worst was the service department manager's apathetic attitude...wow! I thought Toyota hired better managers than that. I've always had great service with my Toyota's but now customer service seems to have fallen off a very steep cliff.

BTW, my son's Caravan is still on its first struts and it has well over 160,000 miles (yes he gets them inspected to make sure his shocks and struts are still in working order). I guess that's one for MOPAR and -1 for Toyota parts, whatever they are called.

Wonder what else will go out on this Camry now that the warranty period has expired? Guess I tossed the dice being a loyal Toyota owner and buying a new car trusting Toyota quality and came up wanting.

Fortunately for me its just one bad experience and I have many more cars to buy; but I will no longer trust the Toyota name or quality. Unfortunately for Toyota, neither will my children nor my friends will trust Toyota after the service I received from what use to be a very good dealership.

That dealership sucks. That is where I bought my Camry when I was stationed there.

Originally Posted by gdanaher

You can send an email to Toyota national but they will likely say something about it being out of warranty, and that you could have purchased an extended warranty but didn't.....Struts shouldn't fail so quickly, but then the question is---did they fail? Have you seen them actually leaking oil? Maybe the honest mechanic wasn't all that honest? Clean up those struts with a good spray cleaner, and see what is really happening there.

Hey, being in Hawaii, is this car Japan build or USA built??

I bought mine from the same dealer there in Hawaii. My Cam is a Japan build.

[MJZ]

Go to another Toyota dealer.

That one strut is defective, not saying these struts are actually good (I rode with Toyota Mechanics from my favorite dealership who told me flat out that all the Camry struts are pure shit and they all leak)

Anyway, replacing one strut should not cost that much. Buy a replacement (about $75) and replacement should not take much longer than a hour or two of labor.

[gdanaher]

Originally Posted by MJZ

Go to another Toyota dealer.

He really can't. Servco owns the island. Aren't monopolies just grand?

[DOHCammer]

You need to get a hold of Toyota corporate and tell them of your displeasure. I would not throw away all your good Toyota experiences for one bad one. More than likely they will be able to offer some assistance in your repair. This is a known problem with Camrys and I believe they will make it right. The service manager at that dealership needs some retraining for sure. He has the authority to cover repairs outside the warranty period up to a certain amount and I know if you came to my dealership, my service manager would have surely covered that repair for you. Also, for future reference, you have a much better chance for assistance outside the warranty if you regularly service your vehicle at the dealership. Owner loyalty is one criteria that both the factory and the dealership look at in these decisions for assistance.

[808YOTA]

Howzit TYHI!

Question which servco did you take it to?

I have been to pretty much every Servco on the island as my mom and uncle used to work for Servco.

I can honestly tell you once your warranty is up they will always give you a hard time.

If you want straight up honest service staff the best Servco to visit is Winward Toyota.


Shane