The thing that bugs me about this headlight condensation thing is it harldy used to happen before. Like I mentioned before, plastic headlights is nothing new. All my Acura and even my old Honda Civic never had this problem ever. I keep hearing about it is happening to other band of cars as well now, so this shows me that quality control accross the board is going down hill with all the manufaturers. It is not that this is normal or all my old cars would have had that problem too. It seems like companies are starting to cut costs. Even Lexus is cutting cost. My 04 RX330 definately is not as well build as my old Legend. I've taken apart half my rear hatches panels and I can see how cheaply made they are. The paint on my 04 RX is extremely soft and chips very easy compared to paint of just 10 years ago. I've taken apart my entire SC400s interior and I still can see some of the cheaper plastics used. This is the trend everyone is probably doing now, and unfortunately it shows up in the little things first like leaking headlights.

 

YL06GS: Can you update us on how your condensaton problem is going. Is it still there?

I have some things to add to what I have already said. I spoke with a technician at Lexus who explained that these HID headlights are very similar in design to standard Halogen in that the whole system is not sealed. It is designed with a vent to allow exchange of air and for the escape of trapped humidity/moisture.

So since the system is not closed it is very reasonable to expect some condensation under certain conditions. Remember that these cars spend about 4 weeks on a ship while in transit to the US and they are exposed to high humidity on the sea. And in S. California you have had a lot of rain lately so maybe the conditions are right for this condensation.

I guess that it is also possible that there is a design problem with the vents - not being adequate to let the moisture out fast enough. Or maybe there is something wrong with your lights where the vents aren't working.

In my 04 RX330 I had moisture in the lens when I first took delivery and I planned to have it looked at for warranty purposes when I went in for my 1000 mile check. But when I reached 1k mi there was no more moisture and I have not seen any since. I have sprayed the lights with a hose and can't get any water inside so I think in my case it was condensation not a leak.

Maybe in your situation you do have a problem - I don't know. But I tend to believe the Lexus Tech in what I was told. And I believe in Lexus Engineering - that is why I buy their product. Not that they are infallible. And everything that I have looked into suggests that it is reasonable to think that this condensation could be normal. I'm hoping to learn from what you do so please keep us informed about what you find out.

 

I will keep everyone on CL updated. The car goes back to the dealership for rear spoiler next week and I am going to ask the service dept.

 

Whether or not this is 'normal' (in other words they intentionally designed these to be non-sealed for some reason or another) on the Gen 3 GS, I honestly don't know. But I can promise you that the Gen 2, and almost every other car on the market is intentionally sealed, and is specifically not supposed to have condensation. I had condenstation in my GS when I first bought it a little over 2 years ago. Was that normal and just the laws of physics? If so then why, after they replaced the headlights, have I never ONCE seen any condensation return?

Why doesn't our 4Runner have condensation?

I mean, if Lexus said "even though 95% of the cars on the road don't ever have condensation on the outside of their headlights, ours do because they needed to be vented and thus not sealed for reliability purposes"... well then even though it still wouldn't be a very good design decision on their part, it would only then be 'normal'.

 

Good questions. I don't know but I would like to find more out. As I stated earlier my RX330 had some condensation in the lens when we first took delivery but this doesn't seem to have shown up again. Or maybe it comes and goes and I just have not noticed. If anyone on CL has a "hot-line" to one of the Lexus Engineers it would be great to get more specifics on all of this.

I guess that we could be talking about a variety of situations so we need to be careful. If someone has a water leak (from rain or carwash) then there isn't much to discuss. I couldn't argue that this was normal or good. We may be talking about this as if it is one problem but may be very varied. It could be a "marginal" design that typically works but under certain circumstances (weather conditions) gets aggrevated. That would tend to suggest a redesign and warranty work.

I wonder how many of these cases show up at vehicle delivery and then dissipate. Again I just offer as a something to chew on, the fact that these cars sit on a ship for several weeks could explain why many of them hit the port and the dealer lots with condensation and then maybe it dissipates. Maybe this explains what happened to my RX330.

It would be great to get access to one of the Lexus Engineers or Factory Techs. There may be an internal bulletin or something that explains this better.

 

i think everybody needs to step back... and take a deeeeep breath...

come on guys.. the one thing i love about this forum is the kindness we treat eachother with... lets not get all roqdy about this problem and come together to either figure out what's going on and if there is a way to fix the problem...

i personally think that lexus has made the headlight housings like this purposefully... it has already been said here but i remember reading something about the lamp being used as the heat source to dry up the condensation... if i remember correctly, the heat created by the HID can cause some sort of problem inside the actual housing so the housing is vented so that the heat is allowed to vent out.... once condensation is built up inside the housing, the HID is used to dry up the condensation...

the "experiment" you did with the 5 min dry up period using the HID was actually a success, the HID that aimed at the condensation was actually dried up in 5 minutes.. of course there were some sections that were still wet but if you leave the HID on for a little longer, im pretty sure that condensation would dry too... but the important matter is.. the condensation that was built up infront of the HID was quickly dried by the HID itself...

but if the condensation is really bothering you.. take it back and ask them specifically why the condensation builds up... and ask if there is a way to stop the build up...

and some of the DIYers on here can think of something to seal up the vented areas... if the condensation really bothers you... i know for my car, the condensation build up is quickly dried after i turn on my HID for a little bit...

but lets seriously cool down everybody...

 

If they are supposed to develop condinsation I think they left out something. When it drys it will leave a residue. Over time it will have a layer and look cloudy. I had this happen to my first q45 retro they condensation would dry up after a day in the sun but over the span of a yeat the inside of the lens looked like crap.

 

the water leaves marks when it dries. it also corrodes the connections after a while. my es300 has both of these probs, only in the drivers headlight.

 

Does the ACURA RL have this problem?

 

My 2003 had some condensation in the Fog Lights, but there was actually a sidenote in the manual, saying that condensation is normal. No car will be perfect, not at any price.

 

this is obviously very upsetting, it just reminds me of the mercedes benz brake light problem on more like 1/4 every model benz i see out there, not very attractive

 

i have sad it before, and i will say it again. STOP, period. did i make myself 100% clear?

this is to everyone who has engaged in any personal attack in the slightest way. i do not want to see that. if you think you are offended, tell any of the moderators (davegs4, 1sicklex, me, neo, etc...). not by responding with something as offensive thinking that it's the solution to winning. if i have to say it, it will be your one way ticket to leaving the forum.

again this is to everyone

 

That last post seemed to halt discussions a bit, though it is early in the AM for most.

I've had 6 Lexus vehicles since 97 including a '00 GS400 and I've never experienced this problem. I do recognize it as an issue that should be corrected, but don't expect it to be resolved too quickly unless they've caught it already in production.

The best we can do is to report it to the dealerships, let them attempt to correct it at least twice, and then call customer service and register a complaint. Remember that the dealership and Lexus customer service will do the best they can based on the information they have, so treat them with courtesy while continuing to be persistent.

This action from enough owners will encourage Lexus to produce replacement parts. Everyone who has registered their complaint will then be contacted to bring their vehicle in for the replacement.

 

Bought the great new red 2006 GS 300 last Sunday.
Monday: Bad rattle in dash
Tuesday: Backlights on steering wheel controls stopped working
Wednesday: Neighbor called to say lights came on in the car. Tried to turn them off with "Smartkey"?? no dice. Had to manually shut off lights and lock car
Thursday: Condensation in headlamps
Friday: Car no longer auto locks.

This car is a piece of garbage!!!

 

What will saterday bring? Maybe some lemon juice?