GS430X6

As some of you may remember I had stated I would wait for the 2008 models to come out to see if the wind noise issue was resolved before buying a BMW. I’m sad to say on the two I test drove (a 2008 460 and a 460L) the wind noise was just a bad as on the 2007. Even the salesman was very disappointed because the issue at hand has not been corrected and that sales have been below standard for the LS.

He also made the comment that several people during test drives have remarked the wind noise or overall sound/noise in the cockpit was not to Lexus standard. When I told him I was a 15 year loyal owner of at least 7 Lexus cars he was very sad to hear I was considering A BMW 750.

To my surprise he called me a few hours later saying he talk to a Lexus rep and told me to hold off a few months. Not sure what he was implying but that’s what he said.

To be honest I really want a Lexus because of the obvious reasons, they are/were #1 in my book but I just can’t drive a car that sounds like a wind tunnel when driving over 60 MPH. At this point I’m not sure what to do. My GS is two years old and I’ve never owned a car longer. Please lord, give Lexus the power to fix this problem, I really don’t want a bimmer sitting in my garage.

Thanks for allowing me to vent.

Gojirra99

We don't have any 2008 models up here yet, but I've test driven four different 2007 models, twice each for LWB & SWB versions.

While I have to admit my first 2 test drives, both with the SWB versions, are too long ago, at the time when the wind noise issue was not repeated mentioned here yet, I didn't focus on it but on other things during the test drives, so I can't really make a fair comment, all I can say is wind noise is not something that gets my attention at all during my test drive, i.e. it didn't stick out so much to grab my attention.

But my two latter test drives of the LWB LS460L, I paid special attention to the wind noise since by that time, I've read a lot about it here already, & it's the LWB version that I would be interested in.
I had all the windows shut properly as well as the stereo off, I can honestly say that I did not notice any unusual wind noise, except at about 60-70 mph, I can hear some slight turbulence, but nothing I would consider abnormal/excessive at all, compared to other cars I've driven in it's class.

Those are all 2007 models I drove, & now I'm hearing that even the 2008 models have noise like in a wind tunnel ? Frankly I'm getting a bit confused ?

jblackbelt

just an fyi i had an '06 7 and whenever i left the sunroof shade open there was a very bad wind noise. i have not heard the one in the LS but the one on the 7 was very bad to the point where I always either had the shade closed or the sunroof open. Just an fyi

mmorozov

Maybe in a few month Lexus will release a TSIB for a new body design that doesn't have the turbulence issues It'll be like getting a new car!!!

encore888

Hopefully that dealer rumor means that a permanent fix is in the pipeline. Don't know what the salesman talked about low sales, as the new LS is breaking sales records and doing very well nationally.

Maurice

Potential Buyers: Do yourselves a favor and test drive the actual car you are considering. Had I done this, I would not have leased my '07 LS460 SW, which has wind noise even after the current "fix".

I too have owned Lexi LS models for over 15 years and have been a happy camper. I am responsible for many friends and family driving Lexus cars. Luckily for two friends that experiened my wind noise, they skipped the LS460.

Nospinzone

To my surprise he called me a few hours later saying he talk to a Lexus rep and told me to hold off a few months.

That's a standard car salesman trick to take you out of the market. Get the LS460 or go for the BMW 750, but don't let that statement influence your descision.

daryll40

My SWB car, bot last week but built back in April 2007, so far is quieter than my old 2004 LS430.

mmorozov

Nah, the dealers don't know crap. They sold me my LS by promising that a fix for the nav lock-out is going to be available in 1 month. All they want is sales. They couldn't care less if the car drives like a go-cart in the wind tunnel. You are on your own.

dentav

Our 2007 460L built late in 2007 has NO loud wind noise at all 60 to 80 is very quiet, so I have no idea why some do and some do not....I do not think it is the ability of some folks to hear or others being "overly sensitive"...must be some varation in car's manufacturing/assembly.

Nospinzone

I've been trying to figure this out as well. Could it be there are multiple assembly lines and one or some are producing the wind noise cars? Or could certain parts like the door insulation be made by different suppliers and one is a better quality/specification than the other?

It really is puzzling. I bet Lexus knows exactly what the problem is and it would be nice if they would just tell their customers.

daryll40

Based on their track record, they would tell and fix if they knew. I would bet that they'll get to the bottom of this and fix culprit cars...but I do feel the pain of those who bot these expensive cars and have to live with the noise and the uncertainty of if and when the problem will be fixed.

dsc07

Or could it be that some owners are just pickier than others?

To be honest, I did hear some wind noise coming from the front windows (not the high-pitched noise cause by the side mirrors). I never noticed this in my '04 430. Fortunately, I sold it to a friend and we took a ride last weekend along the same highway that I drive to work on every day. Got up to 80 mph. Listening intently from the passenger seat, I could indeed hear the same type of wind noise as on the 460, it was just much softer... or was it? The most striking thing that I realized was that my conversation with my friend was much lounder than conversations in the 460. In the 460, I can hold a perfectly clear conversation with the passenger while speaking in a very low tone. In the 430, you have to speak in a normal volume. I always thought the 430 was a quiet car, and it is, but the 460 really is that much quieter. It got even quieter after the laminated window TSIB was installed.

So Lexus is really correct when they say that you notice the wind noise more because the cabin is that much more quiet. It's true. I would make the following analogy: When you're at home watching TV or puttering around the house, you may notice that your next door neighbor has his stero on, but it isn't really bothersome. But if you're reading a book in silence or in bed trying to sleep, it drives you up the wall.

Lexus has almost put themselves in a lose-lose situation here by building such a car with such a quiet cabin. They have come to realize that by making the car so quiet, it demands that outside noises be minimized as well, so they are coming out with various TSIBs to try and address that, but from my experience, about the only way they're going to be able to "eliminate" the wind noise enough to make some people happy, is to make the cabin noisier, or introduce a noice cancellation feature like you find in Bose headphones. Of course, both of those solutions are just making the cabin noisier in order to mask other noise.

To call this a design flaw or a return/arbitration type problem is, in my opinion, not only inaccurate, but an injustice. This is a great car, albeit with some first model year issues, but superior to anything else in it's price range.

My 2 cents.
460 SWB, 25,000 miles (Delivered Dec 26)

rajwany

[QUOTE=dsc07;2992821]Or could it be that some owners are just pickier than others?



do u work for lexus or a dealership. seems like you r trying really hard to defend them. did you read the latest consumer report news, where they gave toyota camry v6 bad reviews because of the tranmission problem. when a company grows too fast quality is always the first to go. toyota is no exception. this toyota problem is just the tip of the iceberg.

iam positive so many people on this board cannot be wrong about their complain, they paid for a reliable car and they should get one.

TRDFantasy

I think this is a complex issue. I don't think this is entirely the fault of Lexus. I do agree that some people might just be pickier than others. I also agree that Lexus made the cabin so quiet that even minor wind noise is amplified or seems to be a distraction (compared to other cars) simply because of such a quiet cabin. I've sat in several LS460 and LS460L models (I have yet to drive them) and it was the most quiet car interior I have ever experienced.

I've driven many cars where I do not notice any wind noise, but that is because the engines are loud and noisy. I've also driven cars that are very quiet and refined and interestingly enough wind noise is easily noticeable in those cars.