Pheonix

The TSIB regarding the shift flare between 3rd and 4th changes has been revised, August 2nd 2007.

Ingram4868

The more I read about the tranny of this car the more worried I get. I bought this car for my wife so that she would have one of the best built cars available. So now we sit and wonder if our car built in April will grap out and leave her stranded somewhere.

stonecoldl

Thank you, thank you, thank you for this post! I am definitely one of the owners that experiences this problem. I noticed it within minutes of driving my new BLue Onyx UL 350 from the lot. I would go to brake, and the car felt like it wanted to take off on me. I come to CLub Lexus to see if anyone else has expereinced the same, and you cover every question I had. Now it is back to the dealer to get this straightened out. Thanks again. I love the internet.

twister

Are you saying your RPM revs up when you break or is it just a feeling like it will "take off" instead of a traditional abrupt stop? Keep in mind you have 4-wheel power assisted front/rear disc brakes that will feel much different depending on what you are used to driving before. I came off from Altima and it took me a short while to get used to that myself. There is nothing wrong with it if you don't see any RPM jumps. I actually enjoying it very much when you break from 80 mph getting of the free-/highway, very smooth and under-control breaking!!! Of course, if you are suspecting anything you should definitely talk to your service to get a piece of mind. Otherwise, if it ain't broken, don't fix it , cause you can introduce more problems...

stonecoldl

Hey Twister: Thanks for the warning. I was probably not as clear as I should have been, but the car is jumping in RPM's as I come to a stop. Since my post I had my car out at lunch and watched it happen. I literally need to push the brakes harder to keep the car from jumping forward. I hear what you are talking about, and I too enjoy most of the inovative features of my ES, but this is not a normal reaction. Trust me, I hate the idea of having my car undergo the transimission surgury needed to repair the fault, but I am espcially worried about my wife driving the car with my daughter on board, and not handling this little "flare."

ES350Bob

Stone...I noticed mine does the same thing, just started doing it Sunday am when I joined this forum, I even mention it under my post with wind, engine, idle in the title.
I thought it was the automatic idle acting up which i had complained was too high and told was normal by the service manager at the dealer and since then realized you do have to fight it with the brakes in order to stop as it tries to push the car at 1,000 plus rpm, more if you steer it slightly on way to stopping it. I think it's a safety hazard and will state it all over again as too high when and if I get a call from either Lexus or the dealer. Lexus was suposed to call me back 5 days ago and never did, even after I called them again last Friday and still no call and it's Tuesday.
I also notice it revs up the RPM, slips in a higher gear but can't be sure it's this 4th gear under this service bulletin because otherwise the transmission is so smooth and quiet I really cannot tell what gear i am in beyond 1st. must change to a second gear and from then on too smooth to tell otherwise if it's 3rd or 4th gear where the spiking RPM and for lack of better description--slipping feeling happen.

stonecoldl

I plan on taking the Service Bulletin to the dealer with me, thanks to Phoenix.

The more I read this bulletin, does this address a problem with an RPM "flare" during acceleration, or deceleration? My problem is when the car is coming down or when I am braking.

qliu34

any link to the TSB?

Pheonix

That *is* the TSIB.

tmsusa

The Technical Service Information Bulletin that we published last week and revised slightly yesterday was sent to our Lexus dealerships so that they could more accurately address/diagnose specific Lexus ES350 customer concerns related to unusually sharp escalations of engine RPMs occurring between the 3rd and 4th gears in a cold engine.

Thanks to input received from our owners--some via consumer enthusiast online forums like Club Lexus--we have determined that this unusual shifting condition may occur in some vehicles and be unrelated to a previously identified and countermeasured snap ring issue in some 6-spd automatics. It is also important to note that this is not a recall or Special Service Campaign as one poster suggested yesterday in a now closed thread.

The service procedures contained within the TSIB are to be applied to the limited number of 07 ES350s that have been confirmed to have the customer concerns noted and should eliminate that particular shift flare identified by our owners. The TSIB is issued in the interest in maintaining the highest levels of customer satisfaction with Lexus owners. Questions regarding this service bulletin and its potential applicability to a particular vehicle should be directed to any Lexus dealer or to our Lexus Customer Assistance Center at 800-255-3987.

Hope this helps clarify our actions.

Pheonix

What actions? There are no actions to clarify on Toyota's part. The tsib explains what it addresses perfectly. A single, small, specific problem that affects a small amount of cars.







If you're going to post in a manner that comes across like you are explaining the actions of a large company. You need to introduce yourself first!
Just a thought.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Welcome TMSUSA

Thank you for chipping in and sharing information from Lexus Corporate with us.... it's good to know you are listening.


Pheonix, the actions I think he was referring to is releasing the TSB you posted about and Lexus letting us know they are interested in resolving this issue that has impacted some of our members. No need to go after the guy please... he does have an @toyota.com addy so he is at least somewhat legitimate.

LexFather

Thank you so much!!!

psp

That was a very nice way of welcoming a corporate representative to the forum.

tmsusa

Right you are sir . . . however, not all are familiar with the nature of a TSIB from Lexus, and it seemed that with that wonton post put up yesterday by a very authoritative sounding individual declaring that we were recalling all of our 07 ESs made over a two-month period . . . perhaps a few words from an individual who does have the authoritative voice to set things straight was in order.

You are to be thanked for posting the actual TSIB, because as you point out, the wording explains things quite well. And yes, this shift flare anomaly seems to be occurring on a very small number of vehicles, and the symptoms are quite specific. Nonetheless, it's quite aggravating for those that experience it, and so we're only too happy to be able to take advantage of consumer/enthusiast forums like this to "clarify" what exactly we're doing.


A very large company indeed . . . #2 in total sales last month in the U.S. with a luxury marquee that captures the #1 position in customer service satisfaction. So, I take my voice very seriously, and apologize for not doing a self-intro. Never have felt comfortable doing that anyway!

And tmsusa clearly has a long way to go before earning all those colorful symbols adorning your profile. Very impressive! I felt my public profile would serve as the intro of sorts. But in addition to my love of Lexus and everything Toyota, I am a member of the executive management team at TMS in Torrance, CA responsible for anything and everything that falls under the category of "Consumer Generated Media" . . . 20+ years of car work to earn me that nontraditional distinction!

Thank you very much for your work with this very popular and helpful forum.