BobBass

I was all set to get an '08 ES350 but read about these problems throughout the 3.5L Toyota line. I ended up getting a RX400h. No hesitation on it with the CVT and hybrid system.

Marqevans

Does it down shift quicker if you just tap the gear shift to the left and drop it into 4th gear?

hypervish

Those of you experiencing the hesitation, have you driven a DBW car before? DBW does have lag and it isn't exclusive to T/L, it's just how the system works.

dctex99

I drove a dbw Ford Edge; you would never know it had that; it drove like any Ford ever made, thankks to a better system than Lexus! Lexus is low voltage; Ford is much higher; makes it more normal; but too late for Toyota/Lexus to change.
I bet they have one they are experimenting with and will quietly introduce in a couple of years!!!

mark4009

I'm experiencing a 2-3 second lag in my 350 RX. Surely that's not how the system is supposed to operate.

hypervish

Google it. It's just how DBW works in many cars, again like I said, it's not exclusive to T/L. Many auto makers are having this issue, and most have not yet found a solution.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Drive+by+wire+lag

mark4009

Agreed that the problem has manifested beyond the Lexus/Toyota brand. However, I find nothing that suggests a 2-3 second delay is normal.

RxPrincess

I own a 2011 RX350 and the hesitation issue did not show up at first but I have had this experience around 8 times now. This is dangerous! So what is the fix? Anyone know? I cannot see leaving my car with the dealer if it is not a consistent issue. What to do?

mark4009

Under what circumstances does it occur? What has the dealer told you about the problem?

titch

I leased my RX350 at the beginning of June. Shortly after, I noticed an occasional issue when coasting to a yield and then accelerating. The vehicle didn’t always shift smoothly and there was a delay in acceleration. I thought maybe this is just how the vehicle drives. Then one day I was backing out of my driveway and proceeded to coast around the corner, which is on a hill. When I accelerated, the engine revved, but I had no acceleration for approximately 3 seconds. I then felt the vehicle find its gear and it surged forward. My husband was in the driveway when this occurred and actually thought I was in neutral because of the sound of the engine revving. A few days later, I was coasting down a hill and when I went to accelerate, the engine revved, but the vehicle did not respond for approximately 3 seconds. When it did finally respond, it surged forward. This has happened on several occasions since, mostly on residential streets, making a turn or driving fairly slowly in thick traffic. I no longer feel safe driving this vehicle. I brought the vehicle into Lexus and explained what was occurring. After having my vehicle for a few hours, the service tech called me and explained that my vehicle is driving normally and that they could not reproduce the problem, so there is no problem.

In the past couple of weeks, I have done some internet research on the problem I am experiencing. I have read many posts on this forum about the exact same problem I am experiencing. Clearly, I am not the only person who has experienced this issue and I firmly believe that Lexus is well aware of the issue, in fact, some people on-line have been told the exact same thing, “we can’t reproduce the problem, so there is no problem”.

There is a clear problem with my vehicle, but it happens very intermittently. I could keep bringing it back in and the technicians may or may not be able to reproduce the issue I have experienced. Either way, I know that there is a problem with my vehicle. I have lost confidence in the vehicle and no longer wish to drive it.

I can't get out of my lease and I don't want to continue putting money into this vehicle. I had intended on buying it out at the end of my lease, but will not be doing that now.

If so many people have experienced this and complained about it, why does Lexus not do anything about it and address it? I thought Lexus was better than this.

Anyone have any thoughts, comments, suggestions?

cossie1600

are you sure the car isn't trying to hunt gears? I have had issued where car is cruising in 6th gear. when I try to gun it. sometimes there is a delay due to the car having to drop multiple gears?

titch

Hunting for gears or not, the vehicle doesn't always respond, which is dangerous. And I don't think it is hunting for gears, the engne revs, but there is just no acceleration. It sounds like it's in neutral. And I'm certainly not gunning it. This also happens when slowly coasting at a yield sign, then accelerating.

cossie1600

If you have a 13, try putting it in sport mode and see if the more aggressive shift points will help it. I am not saying there is no problem, I am just trying to help you guys narrow down the issue. Right now it could be many things..

floridaman

I owned a 2012 RX350 and had a problem with the transmission surging while accelerating. Took it to the Lexux dealer and they reset the shifting pattern but it never resolved the problem. I now own the 2013 RX350 and it does the exact same thing. Since two cars have the identical behavior I have chalked it up as a normal characteristic on the car. With that being said I have never owned a car that surges during the shifting process. I am writing this as I am waiting for the Lexus service department to fix a minor problem. I just spoke to my service advisor who has been here for many years and she verified that the surge is normal on the RX350. While I don't agree that this should happen I don't believe there is anything any Lexus dealer can do to resolve the issue. The dealer I am at is Wilde Clarke Lexus of Sarasota and they are one of the top rated dealers in the US. Can't say enough good things about them.

Task

I think this is a Toyota thing. I have a 2006 4Runner and it does this same thing from time to time. We have just gotten used to it over the past 6 years. Not saying that a $50k+ car should be doing this, but it does seem to be something that is associated to Toyota vehicles.