A month ago I purchased a used CPO 2023 ES 350. Had just under 17k miles on it. During the test drive I remember playing with the drive mode switch and it didn't seem to work as I expected, but I just assumed it was user error and since it was a CPO I didn't pay it much mind and was focused on the big things. I absolutely love the car, but two issues have arisen, one which is just a minor annoyance, the other is turning out to be a bigger deal than i thought....

Issue: Drive Mode Switch Not Working

• When I turn the Drive Mode switch to sport mode, it will go into sport mode maybe 10% of the time
• When I turn the Drive Mode switch to eco mode, it has rarely worked
• Pressing the button on the side to return the status to Normal does nothing and never has - when in Sport mode it never reverts it back to Normal

Before I bought the car I reviewed the service records and the owner that bought it new (she was based in Miami, I'm in PA) mentioned this issue during an early scheduled maintenance. It was noted in the service record and just said the owner requests looking into it, but there was no resolution noted. So seems to me this was an issue from day one with the car when new. My guess is she just didn't care. Frankly, I will likely never use the switch as I prefer to just keep it in Normal mode. But of course after paying a lot for a car I want everything to work.

So I bring it to the dealer a couple of weeks ago for them to look at it. Guy comes out and gets in, as I expected he would not believe me and think it was user error, but agreed that it was not working like it should. Took a week to get the part shipped. Brought it back yesterday first thing AM and they issued me a loaner car and said they will have to remove the dash to replace the switch so it will be a while and they would call me. Around 4PM I get a call - they replaced the switch but the issue remains. Said they are going to need it for at least another day. No idea what is causing it.

I'll leave it to them, but anyone run into this before? I couldn't find anything about it on the 'net. I'm assuming it is a computer/software issue but I'm no mechanic. I'll be sure to update this thread when I hear back from the dealer. I have a bad feeling this one is going to be a while...

BTW, the other, minor issue I have with the car? After driving it constantly for the first week I was out to dinner with my daughter. She gets out of the car and tells me to look down - on the ground is a lit up logo coming from the door sill that shows a "LEXUS of North Miami" logo in pink lol. Puddle lights. I'll change those myself soon.

 

Interesting. I have no idea what connects to what anymore, but if they put a new switch in (I assume but just double check, that they installed an actual OEM replacement) and it still won’t work correctly, that the problem lies further down the line, into whatever module or computer it links to. It may be hard to track down but they need to fix it for you, because even if you don’t use that switch often, what it may be linked to that isn’t working right might cause you other problems down the line.

As for the puddle light, pink? Wow, Miami tacky!

 

Yeah no word yet so I suspect it's gonna be a difficult job for them to track down what the root cause is. I will make sure when they call but I assume it was an OEM switch they replaced it with since they're a Lexus dealership and service center.

 

UPDATE: got the call - it is fixed. They replaced the ECM (computer). I looked up the part and it's going for ~$1100 alone, not counting the drive mode switch and labor. Glad I bought CPO! Gonna pick it up first thing tomorrow morning. They insisted they test drove it and all good. Fingers crossed.

 

I wanted to say ECU or wire harness.