jeffofla

How did you get the car in March when it didn't go on sale until April 25? Or was that the manufacture date?

redman

Getting nervous on the "Gulf Coast"!

Mine too (Tungsten Pearl/Light Grey - P/Plus, NAV, etc.) was built on 03/06. I bought it on May 18th from Lexus of New Orleans. We now have a little over 2,000 miles on it. And, I don't know if I've just imagined it or what; but, a couple of times since we began driving it, I've seemed to notice a slight difference or hesitation in the transmission as the car was slowing down (from like over 50 mph, down to about 30 or so)?

But, so far: "WE DO LOVE OUR ES350!"

Be Well, The Redman

Macklin

You are not imagining it. Mine has done this from day one. And someone else has mentioned it on here too. I know one of the Lexus service techs, boating buddy, who said he had noticed it in other ES's as well. He said he would talk with Lexus about it. I need to send him an email to see what they said about it.

Anybody else noticed this condition while decelerating? I really notice mine at around 35 mph. The manuals mentions something about an engine brake. Wonder if this is it?

amf1932

I think that the slight feeling of the downshift is pretty normal. It doesn't bother me one lil bit.
I love this transmission compared to all my suffering that I had to deal with on my '03ES transmission.

wizhill

For those of you who have followed my previous posts, you know that my car is at my dealer, facing resolution of my failed transmission.

I spoke with the dealer and they confirmed I was going to need a new transmission (which, of course, we already knew). I mentioned that there were people who had gotten a replacement car instead of just a new transmission, and the service manager told me that was an option if I wanted to go that route. (One other person who purchased from this dealer opted to have the car bought back from Lexus, and chose NOT to replace it with another Lexus. They just sold the car back outright and walked away. Too bad for them.)

I thought about it, and I opted just to get a new transmission. They’re going to give me the platinum warranty (which extends the 4 year warranty to 7 years), plus some other compensation. Had I asked them to buy the car back and give me a new one, it would have created a lot of work for me. My financing was not done through Lexus, so I would have to simultaneously pay off my current loan AND get a new loan to buy my replacement car. I would also have to deal with re-registration, changing insurance, etc., and I just didn’t want the hassle of any of it. PLUS, my windshield noise issue has been fixed, so I’d have to get it re-fixed on my replacement car. I’d rather have the warranty upgraded. Now I know I won’t pay a dime for any service for as long as I own the car.

So, it’s going to take a week to get the new transmission and get it installed. I guess that’s the end of the story. Hopefully this issue won’t affect too many more of us.

amf1932

I think you made a wise decision......I would have done the same thing as you.

walkagain

I have around 2400 miles on my 2007 ES350. A few days ago , I started noticing a rumbling or vibration when I accelerate slowly. When it hits around 1500 RPM I feel a vibration on the steering wheel and a rumbling sounds. It sounds like it's stuck on a gear or something.

Also, since then it randomly jumps to 2500 rpms. I'm a paraplegic and use hand controls. This is particularly NOT safe for someone like me. I bought the car in the beginning of May so I'm pretty sure I'm a victim of this POS transmission.

I'm pissed.

I bought my car at Mission Viejo Lexus. Anyone else in the same boat as with the same dealership? Can you give me advice on the best way to get the dealership to make this right for me?

b-rad

wanderer99

Walkagain, welcome to the forum. Sorry to see that your first post is about the trans issue.

You should call your dealer tomorrow first thing and see what they can do for you. To date it seems that the US dealers have been very good with their customers. I don't think anyone is happy about this right now, but the dealers seem to be doing their best for people to try to ensure satisfaction. I'm actually really impressed by the stories to date from posters on the board - if this was a regular Toyota, Honda or just about any other manufacturer I'm sure things would be much, much less satisfactory.

Did your trans every show signs of slipping before the problem really surfaced?

Any lurkers from CA had an issue as yet, and if so how did it get resolved?? I've got a feeling I might be a test case sooner or later for CA.

walkagain

wand thanks for your reply.

Yes, I noticed something during the first month but it seemed like it resolved itself. A bunch of lights flashed so I turned off the car and it went away. I chalked it up to being a new car.

It might just be me but I think it's getting worse everyday.
My first concern is safety. With the hand control I'm essentially always driving with one hand.

I don't know if they will give me a new car with 2400 miles but I really hope they do.

amf1932

Fear not.....I'm sure that Lexus will make you happy. They stand behind their cars 100%. I've been a Lexus owner since 1990, and this is one of the reasons I've been a returning customer.

wanderer99

I don't think mileage is an issue with Lexus right now. They want happy customers, and if you want a new car I think you'll get one. Presuming your trans is dead that is.

Has anyone here gone to the dealer with slippage, problems, etc, and not had the VSC and other lights lit? If you did and your trans needed repair, was the option of a new car, warranty extension and compensation available to you as well?

I'd hope this is available to everyone with trans problems. Otherwise it may make more sense to let the thing completely die before you go in. From the descriptions here, once you get problems the trans dies pretty fast.

tstead

My ES350 is about 2 weeks old and has around 800 miles on it. A few days after I got the car, I put my car in reverse and as soon as the shifter went into the "R" position, I heard a noticeable bang, not very loud, but it was there and the car shook a tad. I put it back in Park and into reverse again with the same symptom. I pulled out of my garage, put it back in park, and then back into reverse. That time, there was no noise, no bang, no shaking, nothing but a smooth shift.

My wife noticed the same thing once while driving the car. I have noticed it a couple times since then.

I am going to take the car to my dealer tomorrow and they are going to look at it. My concern is that since this is a very intermittant problem there is a chance that they can't recreate the issue. Does anyone have any suggestions? Has anyone else experienced this?

I have had absolutely no other problems with the car (except for the sunglass holder in the overhead console which doesn't want to open sometimes) and I have expereinced no transmission-related issues while actually driving the car. No lights come on when the car shifts into reverse noisily. In fact, I haven't seen any lights.

tstead

[QUOTE=tstead]My ES350 is about 2 weeks old and has around 800 miles on it. A few days after I got the car, I put my car in reverse and as soon as the shifter went into the "R" position, I heard a noticeable bang, not very loud, but it was there and the car shook a tad. I put it back in Park and into reverse again with the same symptom. I pulled out of my garage, put it back in park, and then back into reverse. That time, there was no noise, no bang, no shaking, nothing but a smooth shift.

O.K. I have figured out how I can recreate this.

1. Start my car.
2. Put foot on brake and shift into Reverse but do not take my foot off the brake.
3. Put the car back in park, still keep my foot on the brake
4. Now, shift back into reverse and *bang* everytime.

If I move backwards before I put the car back into park in step 3 then the bang is not there if I put the car back into reverse (step 4). Also, as long as I keep my foot on the brake and don't move the car, I can shift from park to reverse back to park several times and I hear the bang each and every time I move the shifter into the reverse position UNTIL I actually take my foot off the brake and move the car.

Anyone else experience this?

Tim

walkagain

TSTEAD,

I have the same problem with the sunglass holder. It's seems to be related to size of the sunglasses. It works fine when the compartment is empty.

I called to make an appointment. At first they said there was no availability until Saturday. Then I started describing the problem with the transmission and they said come in tomorrow morning.
....sounded like they knew what it was right away.

amf1932

[QUOTE=tstead]This banging can occur if the engine RPM is too high, such as a cold engine. Does this also happen when your engine has reached the normal operating temperature? The tachometer should be below about 800 RPM when you do this test.