Hesitation On Acceleration--2012 RX 350
#16
Instructor
iTrader: (1)
I'm glad I'm not crazy. I can't wait for this lease to end. I'd been in the "make a right, add throttle, wait to get hit" situation enough times to know that I have to drive around it. Driving around town I leave the thing in S3 just to get some kind of throttle response. This thing drives like it was designed for Sunday drivers. Every chance it gets, it upshifts to 6th.
#17
Lexus Test Driver
the RX 350 was not designed for a jack rabbit style of driving.. especially when you're on D mode.
it's not exclusive to Lexus, i noticed the same "delayed response" on toyotas as well ( 2009 Toyota Camry to be exact)
my guess is, mark4009 is flooring the accelerator as he makes the lane change.
have you tried smoothly depressing the gas pedal instead?
if you can't adjust to it, stay with S3 instead while in the city.
it's not exclusive to Lexus, i noticed the same "delayed response" on toyotas as well ( 2009 Toyota Camry to be exact)
my guess is, mark4009 is flooring the accelerator as he makes the lane change.
have you tried smoothly depressing the gas pedal instead?
if you can't adjust to it, stay with S3 instead while in the city.
Last edited by markrivers; 09-23-12 at 08:54 PM.
#18
Pole Position
My 2011 Camry SE had this problem on top of a thousand more and guess what the dealer said it was normal and that all sport edition camrys did it. It wasn't normal and I was tired of having my car in at the dealer then in my own garage so I got rid of that car in 14 months after I bought it.
#19
Pole Position
I have not been on this forum for quite some time, but my wife's 2010 RX350 has been in the dealer for a week for a transmission issue that has been going on for a while. The above description is I think what we are experiencing. Usually it happens in a residential area when you are coming up to an intersection--you slow down and as you finish the turn you slowly accelerate. Instead of the car accelerating though, it feels like the transmission slips, the engine revs up and then the transmission goes into gear and the car surges forward. When we first got the car new, I had my wife bring it in to get it checked out, and they could not reproduce the problem and told her that it was normal, and probably just the transmission "learning her driving patterns." Didn't make sense to me!?!? The problem is intermittent though, and started up again about a week ago. This time the dealership took it out with my wife and it did it 3 times. The car has been at the dealership for 1 week and they said there is definately a problem, but that Lexus is researching it, and trying to figure out what it is. Has anybody has this issue fixed?
This is our third RX. The first was the 400h--the hybrid system broke after 3 months and had to be replaced. It must have been a lemon because we could never get decent mileage out of it and we traded it in for a RX350, which was a great car (only annoyance was that it had the piston slap noise), but it was in an accident and was totalled.
Rob
This is our third RX. The first was the 400h--the hybrid system broke after 3 months and had to be replaced. It must have been a lemon because we could never get decent mileage out of it and we traded it in for a RX350, which was a great car (only annoyance was that it had the piston slap noise), but it was in an accident and was totalled.
Rob
#21
My hesitation issues on my '07 RX, and now the '10 RX did not involve potential life or death hazards. The hesitation that I get is when I'm slowing down at an intersection and maybe turning into a driveway of a shopping plaza or such, and then accelerate to advance forward at a slow speed, not a jack rabbit type of acceleration, i.e., looking for a parking space. I've never felt in danger, but I just figured this was a normal reaction on the RX, second gen and third gen.
#22
A drive-by-wire system is significantly safer that cable: a wire cannot stick like cables are so want to do. Redundant, contact free position sensors in the pedal and throttle prevent any abnormal data from causing abnormal behavior. Any fault codes or lack of power to the throttle limits the car to a high idle. All Lexus by-wire throttle have over-amperage motor precautions to detect a sticking throttle and immediately shut the throttle down.
And they also had issue with pedals, a CABLE system, sticking on a plastic cover: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_1...ky-gas-pedals/
That's an issue. Toyota's was a pedal that was too long and idiot guests who run aftermarket, doubled up floormats that catch the pedal.
A small number of 2007 ES350s had shift hesitations. Slight, but noticeable when cold and they wouldn't respond to reprogramming. The problem? A clutch apply pack snap-ring was installed backwards. They bought nearly all of them back to make the customers happy. They identified the problem in under a month and had new transmissions out a few weeks later. Lexus is tops in dealer service and initial quality, not to mention repeat and overall purchases, every year, for stuff like this.
tl;dr - there's probably nothing wrong with your car, but I bet if they can duplicate it, they can reprogram it to better suit your driving.
Last edited by RandomTech; 09-23-12 at 11:37 PM.
#23
I feel that SAME hesitation in my RX350 AWD as well. I can't never get it off smoothly at stop, corner, getting out of parking....and my spouse often asks me "do you know how to drive this car"....duh...it's like putting chilly salts on my wounds. When speed picks up it is so smooth. I have NO PROBLEM on my 450h though.
#24
Instructor
iTrader: (1)
I feel that SAME hesitation in my RX350 AWD as well. I can't never get it off smoothly at stop, corner, getting out of parking....and my spouse often asks me "do you know how to drive this car"....duh...it's like putting chilly salts on my wounds. When speed picks up it is so smooth. I have NO PROBLEM on my 450h though.
I really think the problem is with the tune in the 6spd automatic. It is programmed to downshift as smoothly as possible AND aim for the highest gear to keep NVH down and MPG up, so you may be in 4th gear at 15 mph. If, all of the sudden, you go from 15% throttle to 75% throttle, the torque converter will completely release and the engine will SLOWLY wind up to 4500rpm to smoothly shift into 2nd. According to Toyota, reducing shift shock is more important than getting rear ended. That is the lag that I experience.
Last edited by GrandSedanFan; 09-24-12 at 07:33 AM.
#25
Driver School Candidate
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The issue is still there, just happened not as frequently. And yes I was also told by the dealer two years ago that my car was “learning my driving patterns”. Did anybody refer to the similar problem for RX Hybrid 450H?
#26
In a couple of years of driving the Lexus I have never had the occasion to step on the gas pedal from a stop position. Having said that I am not saying there is no problem in this area. The fact that it can not be duplicated by the dealer says that the problem is intermittent, maybe random. Problems like this are very difficult to solve. Keep at it.
#27
I could believe almost any excuse that makes SOME sense (including operator error), but they could offer nothing other than "we couldn't duplicate the issue", and “it’s working as designed at this time”. Even if we (the operator) did do something that caused this result, we need to know the circumstances under which the operator CAN cause unexpected acceleration. It’s a truly serious situation that really can happen, but you’re right. This is another case of an issue that qualifies as "not documented" simply because they choose to pretend it didn’t happen.
What if they’re wrong? Would you let your wife drive a car with that history? Or put your kids/grandkids in the car? It's not OK simply because they say there is nothing wrong. All that means is that they don't have a valid explanation. The official Lexus response was “there is nothing wrong with this car". What’s worse is that they’re going to sell that car to some unexpecting buyer without disclosing the POSSIBILITY there might indeed be an issue.
I'm sorry to have hijacked the thread for my rant, but basically being called naive, stupid, or an "idiot guest" as suggested by RandomTech, for experiencing something no one wants to admit, is something I find very offensive. I love my 2 Lexus vehicles, and I greatly appreciate the help provided by our dealer, but simply denying an issue doesn’t mean it ain’t so!
Last edited by User 41924; 09-24-12 at 09:44 AM.
#28
This doesn't mean a thing, if it actually happened to you! And it DID happen to us whether they can duplicate or not. They (or you) can choose to deny it, believe we're trying to scam someone, or simply think we're too stupid to know the difference, but the simple fact is that it DID happen. No, they couldn't duplicate the issue, and it only happened once in 24K miles on our 2010 RX, so I completely understand that they couldn't duplicate the issue, and I’m not at all surprised. But it DID happen. Not a stuck mat, not accidentally stepping on the accelerator instead of the brake, and nothing else that has been mentioned as a possible cause of unintended acceleration. Even though we were literally coasting into a parking spot when the car suddenly accelerated by itself to the point we had to slam on the brakes to avoid crashing into a building, there is STILL no “documented case of the drive-by-wire system failing in any way resulting in acceleration. None. None whatsoever”. Even though I can tell you without qualification, it did happen.
I could believe almost any excuse that makes SOME sense (including operator error), but they could offer nothing other than "we couldn't duplicate the issue", and “it’s working as designed at this time”. Even if we (the operator) did do something that had this result, we need to know the circumstances under which the operator CAN cause unexpected acceleration. It’s a truly serious situation that really can happen, but you’re right. This is another case of an issue that qualifies as "not documented" simply because they choose to pretend it didn’t happen.
What if they’re wrong? Would you let your wife drive a car with that history? Or put your kids/grandkids in the car? It's not OK simply because they say there is nothing wrong. All that means is that they don't have a valid explanation. The official Lexus response was “there is nothing wrong with this car. What’s worse is that they’re going to sell that car to some unexpecting buyer without disclosing the POSSIBILITY there might indeed be an issue.
I'm sorry to have hijacked the thread for my rant, but basically being called naive or stupid for experiencing something no one wants to admit, is something I find offensive. I love my 2 Lexus vehicles, and I greatly appreciate the help provided by our dealer, but simply denying an issue doesn’t mean it ain’t so!
I could believe almost any excuse that makes SOME sense (including operator error), but they could offer nothing other than "we couldn't duplicate the issue", and “it’s working as designed at this time”. Even if we (the operator) did do something that had this result, we need to know the circumstances under which the operator CAN cause unexpected acceleration. It’s a truly serious situation that really can happen, but you’re right. This is another case of an issue that qualifies as "not documented" simply because they choose to pretend it didn’t happen.
What if they’re wrong? Would you let your wife drive a car with that history? Or put your kids/grandkids in the car? It's not OK simply because they say there is nothing wrong. All that means is that they don't have a valid explanation. The official Lexus response was “there is nothing wrong with this car. What’s worse is that they’re going to sell that car to some unexpecting buyer without disclosing the POSSIBILITY there might indeed be an issue.
I'm sorry to have hijacked the thread for my rant, but basically being called naive or stupid for experiencing something no one wants to admit, is something I find offensive. I love my 2 Lexus vehicles, and I greatly appreciate the help provided by our dealer, but simply denying an issue doesn’t mean it ain’t so!
#29
First of all let me tell you that all dealerships are not the same. If the second dealership gives you the same BS then you go to plan B. I would write a letter to the president of Lexus in North America. When I wrote my letter he was in CA. I would send the letter to him certified. I would also tell him that you are a loyal Lexus customer and you are very unhappy. You want to leave Lexus altogether. I purchased a certified Lexus from a dealer (Westside Lexus in Houston) some time back. The dealer told me that the put new tires on the car. After looking at the tires, two were not new. After I complained to the dealer, they just said I did not need these two new tires. Since I was pissed off, I wrote the president of Lexus a certifed letter telling him how pissed of I was. He called me the day he received the letter. He told me to go to any tire dealer that I wanted and puchase 2 new tires to match the other 2 new tires and bring the bill to Westside with no questions asked. The owner of Northside Lexus called me too and apologized. I purchased two new tires paid by Westside Lexus and the service manager gave me two golf shirts and a free oil change. It pays to go to the top. jarm
#30
Driver School Candidate
This doesn't mean a thing, if it actually happened to you! And it DID happen to us whether they can duplicate or not. They (or you) can choose to deny it, believe we're trying to scam someone, or simply think we're too stupid to know the difference, but the simple fact is that it DID happen. No, they couldn't duplicate the issue, and it only happened once in 24K miles on our 2010 RX, so I completely understand that they couldn't duplicate the issue, and I’m not at all surprised. But it DID happen. Not a stuck mat, not accidentally stepping on the accelerator instead of the brake, and nothing else that has been mentioned as a possible cause of unintended acceleration. Even though we were literally coasting into a parking spot when the car suddenly accelerated by itself to the point we had to slam on the brakes to avoid crashing into a building, there is STILL no “documented case of the drive-by-wire system failing in any way resulting in acceleration. None. None whatsoever”. Even though I can tell you without qualification, it did happen.
I could believe almost any excuse that makes SOME sense (including operator error), but they could offer nothing other than "we couldn't duplicate the issue", and “it’s working as designed at this time”. Even if we (the operator) did do something that had this result, we need to know the circumstances under which the operator CAN cause unexpected acceleration. It’s a truly serious situation that really can happen, but you’re right. This is another case of an issue that qualifies as "not documented" simply because they choose to pretend it didn’t happen.
What if they’re wrong? Would you let your wife drive a car with that history? Or put your kids/grandkids in the car? It's not OK simply because they say there is nothing wrong. All that means is that they don't have a valid explanation. The official Lexus response was “there is nothing wrong with this car. What’s worse is that they’re going to sell that car to some unexpecting buyer without disclosing the POSSIBILITY there might indeed be an issue.
I'm sorry to have hijacked the thread for my rant, but basically being called naive or stupid for experiencing something no one wants to admit, is something I find offensive. I love my 2 Lexus vehicles, and I greatly appreciate the help provided by our dealer, but simply denying an issue doesn’t mean it ain’t so!
I could believe almost any excuse that makes SOME sense (including operator error), but they could offer nothing other than "we couldn't duplicate the issue", and “it’s working as designed at this time”. Even if we (the operator) did do something that had this result, we need to know the circumstances under which the operator CAN cause unexpected acceleration. It’s a truly serious situation that really can happen, but you’re right. This is another case of an issue that qualifies as "not documented" simply because they choose to pretend it didn’t happen.
What if they’re wrong? Would you let your wife drive a car with that history? Or put your kids/grandkids in the car? It's not OK simply because they say there is nothing wrong. All that means is that they don't have a valid explanation. The official Lexus response was “there is nothing wrong with this car. What’s worse is that they’re going to sell that car to some unexpecting buyer without disclosing the POSSIBILITY there might indeed be an issue.
I'm sorry to have hijacked the thread for my rant, but basically being called naive or stupid for experiencing something no one wants to admit, is something I find offensive. I love my 2 Lexus vehicles, and I greatly appreciate the help provided by our dealer, but simply denying an issue doesn’t mean it ain’t so!
The suggestion above that may wife or I drive the car in a "jack-rabbit" style is inaccurate. We aren't teenagers nor do we substitute our car for for testosterone. We want the thing to last to its last breathe and are anything but aggressive in getting off the line or ahead of anyone else on the road.