Jmlee44

New and very proud owner of a 2008 ES 350. I just bought it used as a trade-in at a local dealer, it has a hundred four thousand miles on it. I just want to check and see if a specific behavior the transmission has is normal. It feels a little bit like a manual transmission, when you let off the gas it tends to hold the gear and the engine decelerates the car. On light downgrades the car will decelerate unless you're very gently touching the gas pedal. You can also occasionally feel it down shift as you're slowing down.

if I put it in manual mode and control the gears, I don't notice this is much. I'm used to cars pretty much coasting or freewheeling when you let off the gas in an automatic transmission, unless you actually downshifted it to a lower gear intentionally. Is this just normal behavior for this car? Guess im a little anxious as ive only had it a couple days.

oldgrump

The ES350 does use engine braking quite often when going down hills. It's normal. It's addressed in your Owner's Manual.....at least it was in the 2011 Owner's Manual.

drfranklin

good thread...I'm looking to purchase a Lexus "beater" for an upcoming long commute - test drove a one-owner, 2008 ES with 106K yesterday (see here) - thorough maintenance records - the test drive was great with the exception of what was described by the OP - the throttle response was awful (really had to press the pedal to engage and move the dang car) - the ES also seemed to decelerate when letting off the gas pedal - I have a '09 CR-V - horrific highway car but the throttle response is amazing and almost telepathic

Jmlee44

I'm one of those people who switches cars fairly frequently, albeit used cars but still. I agree with you - the ES feels heavier than it needs to, which in many cases is down to the throttle mapping by the computer since it is throttle by wire anyway. In the newer models they have a "Sport" mode which I honestly believe just adds more throttle for a given amount of accelerator pedal pressure than in say normal mode, and an "Eco" mode which probably gives less. If someone had a tune for these earlier Lexus cars, I'm sure it would be pretty lively since the motor is strong when you step into it a bit.

Coming from the perspective of a few 4 cylinder sedans...the later model cars with electronic throttle appear to be tuned to have a good strong "off the line" feel even when you don't press the gas very far. It feels peppy and maybe "zippy" in city traffic. It isn't until you try to merge onto the highway or accelerate from a stop up a fairly steep hill that you realize the computer was faking you out with non-linear throttle input when the little engine that could runs out of steam at half throttle...pushing more doesn't really net any major gains. Here we have the opposite. This car feels groggy all the time, until you mash the throttle and have to fight the steering wheel to keep it going the same direction!!

Best "sedan" in recent memory for general driving feel with regard to the engine and an automatic transmission. I had a 95 Maxima with over 200k on it. The throttle response was outstanding, crisp from a takeoff...and if you stood on it, it rewarded you. Everyone that drove my car commented on how powerful it "felt". In reality, it was about a 210hp v6. Nothing stellar, but obviously the torque and HP curves were well matched to the transmission and the weight of the car. If someone borrowed my Lexus, I doubt they would even mention it feeling "quick" - most people don't push the pedal that far.

TLDR; it needs a tune. Wonder if one exists....?

drfranklin

to Jmlee: I test drove a 2011 ES with 129K this afternoon - it's throttle response was MUCH better than the '08 I test drove earlier in the week - additionally, the '11 had no perceivable deceleration - I wonder if Lexus made any throttle revisions in 2010 (for the ES mid-model change)?

Jmlee44

They may have... im pretty sure the 2010+ is tuned for regular unleaded and is actually rated at a couple FEWER horsepower than the earlier models that require premium. Wouldnt surprise me if some computer updates were applied to compensate and improve driver feel. As it is Lexus is moving towards a sportier brand in these later model years...the earlier ones were all about quiet and smooth. My girlfriend has an 04 rx with the 3.3 ...honestly the power delivery feels very similar to my ES. At full throttle you notice the extra power of thre 3.5, but in daily use...no discernable difference...

I still wonder if theres a tune for the 08

codejd

My 2008 decelerates exactly as you described. At first I thought it felt strange but have come to realize it is normal as today I test drove a 2017 while my airbag & sticky melting dash issues were being addressed and it too acted exactly as you described.