DaveLarson

My iPod usually plays just fine in my ES350, but once a week or so it freezes up. I have to reboot the iPod and then all is good for another week or so. I have two iPods; this happens to each of them. The iPods do not freeze up when tied into my home stereo system. Usually there is an iPhone in the car, using the blue-tooth connection; no hardwired connection for the iPhone in the center console.

Have others experienced this problem, and discovered a solution?

And, in case someone wonders, I am using an Apple connection cable, not a cheap knock-off cable.

dchar

Depending how old your iPods are determines how compatible they are with your car. My iPod 5th gen occasionally has similar freezing problems, in addition to causing problems on my 2015 GS infotainment system. Not sure what causes the iPod to freeze, but I just assume the iPod is old and reset the it when it freezes. Just in case you aren't aware of how to reset an iPod... To reset your iPod, follow these steps: Slide the Hold switch to the locked position and then back again. Press and hold the Play/Pause and Menu buttons together until you see the Apple/iPod logo (about six to eight seconds).

The problems it caused in my car was causing everything to freeze making the infotainment unusable. I had to do a hard reset of the system by holding down the power button/volume ****. I brought it up to my dealer and even provided them data, but the response was that the iPod is too old and isn't "compatible" with the car.

DaveLarson

Thanks, you might be on to something. I do have two 160 GB classic iPods. And, I have had years of occasional experience in rebooting an iPod so no problem on that front.

My main problem here is that the iPods worked perfectly in the car for 19 months; the freeze-up problems just started two months ago. And, I have never had a problem with the main nav/information system; just with my iPod.

The car is going into Lexus this afternoon; will be interesting what they have to say (if anything).

mcomer

Best use of a non-phone music device is to USB cable it. We have our iPod buried under the
sunglasses etc in the console wired with a "12 Radio Shack (remember them?) cable. Couple
major advantages over Bluetoothing, 1) charges the device whenever the car is on. 2) Enables
voice recognition "Play Stevie Ray Vaughn"... 3) Doesn't interfere with the Bluetooth connected
phone(s). As with all devices, cycle them off periodically, your freezing is proof.

chileboy

This has always happened to me in my 2013 ES350 with my Gen 7 iPod (or whatever the last one manufactured was) - a number of us discussed it here in another thread many months ago. My dealer messed with it and reported it as a bug, and every time I go in for service I ask if there is a software update, but they keep telling me there isn't.

Apparently, it wasn't fixed in the 2014 model, at least.

After much experimenting, I've discovered you can minimize the problem by 1) not connecting the iPod until after the car is started; and 2) pause the music, switch to FM (or another source) and disconnect the iPod before you turn off the car.

So there's something about about starting / turning off the car with the iPod connected that seems to exacerbate the problem.

None of the iPod Classic models have Bluetooth, so this is a USB-cabled issue. Are you saying you leave your iPod attached "forever" and you never have an issue?

idg

I am surprised that this is still happening. My USB connected iPod classic used to freeze every now and then (probably every 2 months) in my 2010 ls460. I attributed it to the old iPod and didn't make much of it. Recently, got a gen 6 iPod touch and this one was freezing much more frequently, probably once a week or so. Did a search and found a Lexus Advisory (I think Nov 2010) that addresses the issue and recommends a new audio ECU replacement. The dealer was clueless about it, but after showing them the Lexus document and following their discussion with Lexus Corp., they agreed to follow the procedure if I pony up the labor charge (my car is out of warranty). Thus far, no more freezes, but only time will tell. Since this was a Nov 2010 Lexus Advisory, I assume that Lexus was fully aware of the issue and had fixed it for good.

chileboy

^ Wow, interesting. Obviously, my ES being a 2013, you'd think they would have fixed it. And I'm a bit annoyed that there was an advisory from 2010 and my dealer is clueless. How can I locate that document?

I'm wondering though if they'll claim it's unrelated as the documented problem is from an earlier Gen.

idg

This is the document: http://www.revbase.com/BBBMotor/TSb/...dPdf?id=167576

chileboy

Thank you! I suspect the dealer will dismiss it as not applicable though, because it specifically states the models "earlier than...." that are affected - and that doesn't include mine. But maybe it will give them a clue.

idg

My advice to anyone is to log in the issue with the dealer. Since I never brought it to their attention before my warranty expired (I always thought it was the iPod), they would have charged me the full amount for the repair. Even with the document in hand they tried to diagnose the problem (but of course they couldn't due to its intermittent nature) and wanted to send me my merry way. Fortunately, the main tech called corporate to get some background and was told to fix it. Corporate paid for the part and I was asked to pay the labor.

PMA

Hello all,

I just joined this forum after a search related to my iPod losing connection with my 2014 ES 350. I've seen some other posts that indicated a FW update on the audio system may be the resolution for this but in speaking to my local dealer when my car was in for service recently, my audio system FW is up to date. In their own research, they suspect this is specific to the iPod Classic and possible incompatibility due to it being "older technology". I've also seen the other theory that it may be due to the HD having to spin up and the delay caused by that, possibly indicating the iPod may be starting to fail. I also read this service bulletin and it appears to focus on much older models.

Has anyone actually been successful in getting this resolved in any way? My wife's RX 350, also a 2014 model, is having the same issue so any tips would be appreciated.

Cheers,
Paul