albatros83

This.

I also have the startup noise issue, but haven't been able to get the dealer to reproduce it. Both of the issues seem to flare up more often after a decent interval between oil changes (say 1500 miles+), and I just did an oil change about 2 weeks ago. I also used high quality synthetic, so it might take even longer for the problems to show up this time :/

Hopefully when they issue the recall for the valve springs I can get them to fix the cam gear issue as well, or at least look at it myself while they have the intake off.

BinaryJay

Are any of you 250 owners disappointed that the 250 isn't on the recall list? It seems the 250 is just as prone or moreso to these kinds of symptoms as the 350. I have an 06 GS300 that also suffers from these problems but it is not included in the list. I know for a fact there is even already a TSB for my car that came out in 2008 which proscribes replacing the valve springs.

It's funny because my car was at the dealer to diagnose these very problems (got misfires etc.) just the week before this news broke. They checked everything and couldn't find any fault with the usual suspects and gave the car back to me with nothing done and they are waiting for a response from lexus technical assistance. I am not sure how this recall news will affect their response about it, I'm hoping that even though my car isn't "recalled" that they will still do that TSB for me. I'm still under powertrain warranty, but that won't last forever and I certainly don't want to be looking at this problem out of warranty.

I know for sure that if they don't do anything with my valve springs under warranty and somewhere down the road something bad happens related to them, with all the documentation they have on this problem with my car I am certainly not going to take that lying down.

Anyhow, I guess it's too early to get upset since I just don't know what the response will be yet so I'm going to hold out hope that Lexus extends their goodwill to me.

ajfinoak

Lexus Corporate had been saying that the top engine cleaning fixes the idle issue on the 250. I can say, at least in my case, it did not resolve it. They now tell me it is "normal" and "within factory specifications" and they will not do anything further. I imagine they will maintain that position until enough customers complain and they realize that it will hurt them $$$ by losing repeat customers like myself (as well as new ones). Frankly, it doesn't matter to me that BMW or Audi owners may have this issue or others. I should not have to deal with this on a Lexus with 20K miles. That is why I bought a Lexus. I also have a 10 year old Acura iwith a lot more miles that runs a lot smoother.

lexy250

iTrader: (4)

I totally agree with Javy. Over exaggerated reports that are making toyota look worse than it really is. Tons of **** constantly gets recalled and we rarely see it in the public without digging. I honestly have done 2 things to my car, pads cause I hated the squeaking and fuel rails as a preventative. As we progress in technology, we are getting more and more people crying and complaining about every single thing that doesn't work to their standards. Until the problem presents itself directly, I could give 2 ****s about stressing on this.

MBTC

I agree. I look at the vehicles I've owned in the past, and the three GM models I've owned (all in the 1980s) : S10 Blazer, S10 pickup, Buick Somerset.. They all had mechanical problems that exceed those mentioned here by a longshot, but that was in the 80's when people relied on newspaper and TV for news. We had modem-based BBS systems of course but only hardcore geeks owned computers (or would admit to owning them back then.. I certainly hid mine because I valued my social life .
People were no where near as news-connected, and word did not spread as virally back then as it does now. This means that a modern automaker will do well to bring issues to the forefront BEFORE the media gets a hold of it, which they will quickly with the likes of forums like this, youtube and such.

With regard to running crappy, the S10 pickup was the worst of the bunch, started idling / running rough at about 15k miles. I'll never know about the Blazer, it was in an accident after I owned it only a few months, and was never the same after the accident so I dumped it. The Somerset was a reasonably reliable car up until maybe 70k miles or so. It started exhibiting symptoms that sound exactly like either the valve spring or carbon buildup symptoms we see in this thread, stalling, running rough, engine doesn't want to fire up sometimes, etc. When it finally was fixed, it always turned out to be "the computer chip gone bad" as they used to tell me back then, which tells me a lot of this stuff can be addressed through software revisions. Guess what controls the fuel/air mixture anyway?

If we have seen a trend in car quality reduction over the years at all, it is due to 2 things:

1) Increasing reliance on software.
2) Industry tendancy to offshore software engineering to third world countries that are in a position to bid lower on software development and circuit design at the expense of quality.

So yes, I said it... poorly designed and/or tested SOFTWARE, not hardware, is a bigger contributor to the recalls you see these days. That and the fact that the average consumer has a much louder voice due to new media outlets made possible via the Internet.

huch

Well I for one am glad to hear of the possibility of valve spring replacement since a few of them broke in my 07 IS350. It happened about 10 months ago while I was on the highway coasting (~2000rpm). The check engine light came and I immediately felt a loss in power, like it felt like a 100hp drop when I tried to hit the gas. The codes scanned threw back a P304. Initially they thought it was fuel injectors but they came back soaked after replacement. It took them 4 weeks to repair my car but that was because they said the parts weren't in stock and back ordered. The repair involved replacing all the valve springs for the 4th cylinder only (so 4 valve springs), they didn't replace all of them. So hopefully if they do issue a recall for this and they do replace ALL the valve springs then forsure, I'm going to do it. I certainly don't want to be stuck on a highway again and have to get towed 180km to my dealership. Ever since the repair, the car has been smooth but I always wonder from time to time when the other non-replaced valve springs are going to give in.

350PsDMeuP

iTrader: (1)

i love this forum and i love my lexi, at least LEXUS is being proactive about the situation, a lot of other companies are not, so stop the violence people............

quick123

iTrader: (2)

I think you may be the first person on here that has actually really had an issue with this...good to hear it didn't damage the engine completely

Deros

iTrader: (1)

Lexus is still the best of the rest. The cars are built well and the after sale customer service is outstanding.

I have own a Saturn L300 that started falling apart after 5 years and I had routine maintenance done as schedule (I purchase the care plan). I would talk about what "falling apart" means but that would take me hours to write. I also had a GMC Envoy, that had to be bought back under the lemon law because of faulty and dangerous electrical system. (The car would move to my wife setting while I was driving, multiple times after they said they fix it). Even my Nissan Maxima, the one that replaced my Saturn, was built well but had poor customer service or concern. There was a piece of rubber sticking out of the side view mirror. There fix was to rip it out. i.e the tech pull on it until it rip off. I had to talk to the general manager for them to fix it right.

Own a GX470 for 4 years with no issue. The clunking problem that has been reported, seems not to be in my car. However, I may bring it up before the warranty ends just to get it fix. (Yes I am gaming the system even though I don't hear or feel it) Every time, even for routine service, I can get a loaner vehicle, not a rental. What American car dealer would do that? GMC and Saturn didn't even provide a rental under warranty service.

Bottomline: Lexus will have problems, not as much as the more economical priced vehicles, but problems never the less. No car, to include the expensive exotics, will have no problems. However, it is what they do to fix it and how they treat you when they do. That is what I paid for and expect from a luxury car dealer.

P.S. that floor mat BS. People need stop putting $20 WalMart specials on top of the Lexus provide floor mats. At the very least, they need to remove the provided floor mats and then put the $20 WalMart specials.

my $.02.

Deros

huch

Yeah I hear ya....but believe me when I say, had I kept on driving, the chances of engine damage would have increased with time. The reason being when the tech pulled the head off and looked inside, the valve spring was just hanging and the valve was free to fall into the cylinder. I don't even want to think about what would have happened had the valve fallen in and made contact with the piston. Thats why I'm saying if they do issue a recall to get ALL of them replaced, I'm going to do it. Whose to say the valve springs that are in the remaining cylinders aren't from the same batch that were in the 4th cylinder.

hmmm...

Don't get me wrong tho, I love my car and ever since they replaced those valve springs I haven't had any issues at all.

patrick323

iTrader: (1)

Without reading all 7 pages. I agree with the poster about this being my first and last lexus.

I had my navigation screen go bad at 99,000. Thank god it was not a hundred miles later...about 4 grand.

I had a catalytic converter go bad at 101,000. With a LOT of *****ing to the "higher ups" I got a portion of it covered as "good will."

I had a water pump go out slightly after (this wasnt a big deal I guess..considering I did it myself and that i suppose a water pump goes out after a while).

The voice recognition never recognizes a darn word I say (street/city names even when clear and I have no speech disorder).

Lots of little problems . Lots of big problems . I've had my car in 6-7 times for either major recalls, or issues that despite being covered by warranty (or not sometimes) just shouldnt go wrong with such a vehicle.

It's just not what I expected from lexus.

This recent news of mass recall....even if not affecting me...is really making me second guess the reliability and reputation of these vehicles

I still love the car but I think maybe there are other equally as nice rides without so many issues.

Fizzboy7

I know of no other luxury car that does not have some problems by 100,000 miles. Check any forum and you'll read about people complaining everywhere. Things wear out and age. Not even my mom's Acura MDX has been completely bulletproof after 55k miles. In the grand spectrum of things, I still think the IS is very reliable.

Phiber

Please tell me what other cars in the same class as an IS350 do not have as many issues? Because if you are talking about a 335 or S4, you have no idea...

SC3coupe

iTrader: (4)

OK guys, sell your Lexus and get your $30,000 (or probably less) due to depreciation, then what are you going to buy, is there something really more reliable and problem free out there? Put the brand here because I want to know too People complain about the number of recalls, most of these recalls are not 100% necessary but only Lexus being cautious and don't want incidents, they are just trying to keep things safer for us.

There are alot more technology and parts in these cars comparing to a Corolla or Scion. There are more things to go wrong.. In general the more expensive the car is the more expensive it is to maintain / cost of ownership. Buy a Toyota Corolla base model with roll windows and no central lock, nothing ever goes wrong with them..

patrick323

iTrader: (1)

THis was my first new car fresh out of college. My previous car was a 92 nissan 240sx and the only thing that ever needed done from 80tousand to 270 thousand miles was the water pump at about 220 thousand miles.

Yes it's a less technologically advanced car. But . You cant tell me that they cant make a navigation screen that will last more than 2 years. They said they'd never seen what was wrong with mine and they were taking pictures of it because it intrigued them. If it had been a month later i would have been out 4 grand. To my knowledge a catalytic converter should not go out at around 100k and if I would have not complained a lot I would have been out a another few grand.

Yes, all cars have their problems. I had just gone into this thinking there would be less than most and my problems happened so so close to costing me nearly 10 grand that I am now highly suspicious, naturally.

Even with 100k (mostly highway) in 2 years I think my problems have been in excess. Since it IS my first new car I cannot compare it to others when it comes to recalls which I know are common. I AM glad that they were so fast and efficient with the gas line recalls.