amdaxiom

So I figured I would start my own thread instead of piggybacking off of the others. My 2008 GS450H just passed 100K miles on June 20th. I took a picture of it just to commemorate the day. Unfortunately two weeks later I get the dreaded Check Hybrid System light. I called up my dealer and brought it in right away hoping I might get some warranty assistance if the battery is bad. That was on July 2nd.

Today (July 5th) I did get the dreaded call from the dealer saying that it's 7500 to change out the battery including labor. I did ask the service advisor to help open a case with Corporate Lexus to see if they can assist even though the car is out of warranty. My normal service advisor was out on vacation and I'm thinking maybe I should have waited for him to come back since the other guy doesn't know me.

From the forums I have seen multiple cases of Lexus Corporate helping out fellow GS450H users that have gone over mileage with offers to either foot half the bill or pay for the entire bill. So I also called the corporate service number at 1-800-255-3987 and opened up a case with them. In two days I should have a case manager go over everything and let me know if they are going to help or not.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed, this is the worst time to have such an expense as I am preparing for a wedding so I am hoping Lexus pulls through. That will be a huge load off my shoulders.

I'll post updates to this thread

craig1020

Hello

I have a 2008 Lexus LS 600 HL. Ive had it for about 4 weeks now and it has ran very well during this time. Today I went to my tire shop to replace a damage spare tire. We did that and I went to crank the car and it would not crank. It said on the instrument panel to check the hybrid system. Couple of things to note here. When we removed the tire out of the trunk we knocked off one of the covers over that orange receptacle. We disconnected that wondering what it may be we found out that it is related to the hybrid system being orange. We put it back in and all seemed alright. Would it be possible that removing that receptacle would discharge the hybrid battery? I called Lexus and they asked for me to tow it on in to their dealership. They said that that plug has to do with what is called the inverter of the hybrid system.

Next thing we did was to disconnect the battery in the trunk for about a minute of so. We reconnected that and let the system reboot and it did it all looked good and when I went to crank it the same message came up. Also it said that the left front park brake on the front could not be disengaged like it was hanging up. Anyway it left me stranded over the events of the day. A new hybrid battery was installed in march of 2015 so I would nt really think that it would be a defective hybrid battery but anything could happen i guess. Would anyone have any ideas and or input if there is a simple fix here or do you know if that had any effect in taking that receptacle plug in out. I thing that this may be where Lexus checks the hybrid system that they plug into it. But it is like plugging a 2 prong plug int an electrical outlet. Been an excellent car so far but if hybrids are this sensitive and finicky Im not sure i would want to be a part of this. I have a 94 LS 400 that has been really bulletproof so that is what I am accustomed to in automotive technology. Any input will be greatly appreciated to get this lexus rolling once again. Thank you for listening.

Craig

my email is craig1020@msn.com

amdaxiom

Not sure about the orange thing you are talking about but I remember seeing an orange plastic cover in my trunk where the hybrid batteries are. It looked more like a safety cover then anything with any electronics. Don't see why that would cause an issue with the hybrid system though if it came off. I'm just curious how many miles you have on the LS and how many miles have been put on the car since 2015? Also was it a Lexus battery or a third party battery?

amdaxiom

So I got my car back yesterday and I did change out the 12V battery as requested by the dealer. Luckily that was only 510$, I've seen some members being charged more than 600 for it, and some as low as 450. In any case, the reset the error codes and the hybrid system was definitely in some learning mode. I noticed the battery stayed at one bar for the longest time and the engine would not shut off. It seemed like the battery was trickle charging - even braking the blue charge indicator barely dipped to show it was charging. It finally went up to the second bar after maybe 15 minutes of driving so I decided to just continue driving just to see how far the battery would charge. The entire time the engine was on charging the battery so it felt really sluggish and the electric motors would not engage from start so take-off's had a lag as the transmission kicked in.

Eventually after maybe 30 minutes of driving the battery charged to basically full blue - it never got into the green. But even when full blue the engine stayed on as if it was charging the battery and I could never feel the electric motor kicking in at stops.

I decided that maybe it was done taking a charge and stopped to get a boba. After the car was off for 10 minutes the car drove fine with the now charged to the blue battery. It felt the same as it used to and no Check Hybrid System light came on.

As I left Lexus yesterday I talked with my regular service advisor who was out on vacation unfortunately when all this happened. He told me to make sure that Lexus Corporate contacts him so that he could push to get the batteries covered as he saw the car came in with only 100,371 miles. I unfortunately had someone I didn't know working on the case since he was out on vacation last week so I'll re-contact Lexus Corporate to make sure they are talking with him instead of the advisor that does not know me.

They will get back to me by Thursday, 7/7/2016 so I'll know by tomorrow whether or not Lexus is going to foot any of the bill.

vipul64

Worst car ever, Ripping people off Hybrid battery died as soon as warranty and they will charge you $7000 to replace it with one year warranty. Please stop buying Lexus.

vipul64

Lets do class action law suit. Any lawyer in this discussion?

amdaxiom

Update 7/7th - Good news for me!

So I got a call from Lexus Corporate today. I was a little worried because the representative kind of made it seem like Lexus wasn't going to cover anything, they are not obligated to, it's 8 months out of warranty, etc. Also when asked about service history ever since the warranty expired it's been at a shop closer to me and I just let her know all the service was done. She could see the records up to 50K from Newport Lexus and the recall and the battery I had replaced. But not much after 50K. She said it's not a problem, you can have the car serviced wherever you like so I was relieved at that.

Now for the good news - Lexus Corporate is going to cover half the cost of the parts to fix the car! Being out of warranty by 8 months and a few hundred miles I was relieved when she told me that. Technically Lexus doesn't owe me anything. I wasn't concerned about being over 350 miles because I was sure that would not be a problem but the 8 months extra could have been a problem. I did misquote the replacement battery - to change out the battery is a little over 6K if the old core is okay, a little under 7500 is the core is damaged. There's no reason why the core would be damaged so I'll assume it's 6K. With Lexus' help we're looking at under $3500 to get a new battery installed by the dealer. Seems like a good deal to me. Granted they are only a 1 year warranty but I'm pretty sure I'll get at least 5 years out of the second battery. The first lasted 8 years and 8 months.

I was contemplating as a backup Greentecauto with their 3 year, unlimited mileage batteries. They seemed to be the best alternative for a replacement battery. Although not the cheapest, they have a shop within 60 miles of me where I could get warranty service if needed.

I was a little concerned about the Prius repair shops that test cells and replace bad ones. One of the shops did mention to me they had problems trying to replace cells in a GS450H and it kept coming back to the shop. So he kind of was iffy about fixing mine. I did not call any others but was going to give another shop a call if Lexus was not going to cover any of the replacement battery.

The good thing is my Lexus service advisor is bummed about how much I am out of pocket so he's going to give me a discount saving me another few hundred dollars. So even though it's an expense, I think I'll have a great car for the next 5 years. I love driving the GS450H. The responsiveness with the electric motor off the line is nice and the huge burst of power when you need it is also nice. It's hard adjusting to other cars because of how slow they feel.

All in all the Lexus experience has been wonderful. Everyone I talked to at Lexus Corporate so far have been helfpul, friendly and very professional. And my service advisor at Newport Lexus has been there for me even though I haven't brought the car in the shop for almost 50K. He still remembered me and was there to help as much as he could. Definitely a positive experience for me.

amdaxiom

So to finish up my story - I got the car back yesterday, paid a little over 3200 and with the initial 150$ diagnostic fee the repairs came out to under 3400. All in all a happy Lexus Customer.

If Lexus Corporate were unwilling to pay for half the parts cost I would have probably gotten my battery changed out with Greentecauto instead. It would have been more than 3400 for the installation but I would have had a 3 year warranty. However, I trust the new Lexus battery and feel that I can easily get another 5 years out of it (I got 8 years and 8 months out of the first) so given the small price differential between the two I prefer saving a little and getting the new Lexus battery from the dealership.

vap3

i wonder if any canadians got goodwill discounts from lexus canada? seems that the americans are always getting the deals :P

starker

I also have a 2008 450H. Really enjoy the car. I received the dreaded the hybrid warning light at 99,200 miles. The battery replacement was fully covered by LEXUS. My only concern is the manaul indicates that Lexus expects the battery to last much loner than the 100K mileage warranty. I would be curious to see the average lifespan of the hybrid batteries

dayjob3

I just bought one with 109k miles. Car drives very good. Feels strong and powerful.

samsonn25

176k on my 2007 model.

The check hybrid system has come on twice at about 165k then again recenttly. The first time it went away after I shut off engine and started it again. Last week it was on for 3 days but I could see it was charging and discharging correctly and the car ran fine. I have 7 out of 8 green power bars and still do since I got the car at 147k.

samsonn25

DoctorPrius.com $550 for 3 month warranty and $1600 for Full cover unlimited miles warranty

Detours

As far as I can see the Lexus 400 RX H is a PZEV vehicle and if you live in a CARB state the Hybrid battery is covered up to 150,000. Check CA Environmental Protection Agency website