qdn745

Hey guys,

I'm just about to call and book a service appointment. I'm due for the 64,000 km service (oil change, tire rotation etc.). I plan to take this time to report some of the issues that I am having with my 2008 IS 250 AWD.

I was hoping you guys can answer some questions I have or give me some tips on how to approach the dealership regarding these issues:

Major: Rough Idle / Vibration – car body (seats, doors) vibrates when idle and car is in D. Strong vibrations occur on cold winter days – engine starts to rev up in RPMs and steering wheel begins to vibrate strongly when idle in D. Rarely (once a month), the car’s engine will rev down as if it were about to stall when coming to a stop.

Minor: Driver side HID headlamps occasionally go out (one in every 10 nights). Switching off and back on seems to get it working again. This has been happening since we bought the car, but more frequently as of recent.

Minor: Dash rattle – sometimes driver side dash below the windshield would make a rattling sound. Especially when going over bumps and uneven road surfaces. Comes and goes but can be very annoying and I don't like my passengers having to hear the noises.

Minor: Throttle delay – there is a slight delay between stepping on gas peddle and car’s acceleration. This is in comparison to my dad’s Sienna, I’m not sure if this is how the car was designed. I read that a possible solution is to reset the ECU.

My goal is to get as much done as possible under my CPO warranty (aside from the headlamp and throttle response issue), I don't plan to pay for any of the minor issues if they're too expensive to repair. I have prepared print-outs of all the relevant TSBs. I will be going to Northwest Lexus of Brampton, Ontario, Canada.

1. Are there any tips you guys can give me so that I can get the dealership to do these repairs under warranty? E.g., who should I speak to when addressing these issues? What else should I include?

2. Will I be charged any fees if I report these problems and they inspect the car but I don't want to pay what they're asking for?

Any help is greatly appreciated - I've been wanting to get these problems off my chest since I bought the car last June. Thanks all!

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

Car having rough idle and stalling seem to be the carbon build up which cover under warranty. The light going off and on seem like a bulb should be cover under warranty also at least at my dealer it does. Dash rattle is under the tsb and cover under warranty. Should speak to your advisor he/she should be able to get all this work done.

ohiois350

iTrader: (13)

but his car got 64K on them it might out of luck but the rough idle should taking care of under the power train warranty

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

He stated CPO still under warranty and it 64km

Sango

iTrader: (10)

Which year Sienna are you reffering to? With todays cars, there will always be a throttle delay because it's done by electronic thottle as opposed to cable which would be instant. Ie. My mom's 99 Camry back in the day was cable throttle while the more recent Camry is electronic.

With the IS in particular, the throttle delay is about 1/2 second or so, so this is normal. The electronic throttle is more efficient than the cable because (I forgot the exact term and reason, but I'll mention it in a simple way!!) it puts gas in at the right timing such that it does not waste or burn the gas unecessarily to maximize efficiency.

Sango

iTrader: (10)

http://www.picoauto.com/applications...e-control.html <- this may give you a better explaination.

For one thing, I tried a Subaru's Lecacy's car and its electronic throttle response was horrible, it was more like a second delay!!

qdn745

Hmmm my dad's Sienna is a 2009. Perhaps it's because of the larger engine 3.5 vs 2.5 L? I hope I'm not making myself look stupid

I can live with the slight delay though, it's just sometimes the car jerks forward when I tap the gas peddle about 30%, my girl friend always comments on it.

Thanks to everyone who replied, I will come back with how it goes.

Sango

iTrader: (10)

I don't think it's dependent on the engine. I am not sure what the 09 used either; maybe Jeff can fill this in.

The throttle delay, is easy to adapt, you just have to know that what you did will happen 1/2 second later. If it were cable, you probably did not hit 30% because you feel in real time the gas so you probably let off. In the term of electronic, you probably did hit 30% and the car just did what you did. If you use more of a baby throttle, it gives a better idea how to throttle the vehicle.

carlos3366

Do not take to dealer for oil change, tire rotation etc. unless is free. Find yourself a good private mechanic.

Jeff Lange

iTrader: (1)

I find Lexus tends to dampen response in the name of smooth/quietness, however I find the throttle response to be relatively similar to other similar sized engines in Toyota models (though in my Manual Transmission car, the heavy dual-mass flywheel makes initial rev-up take even longer). The Sienna does use ETCS (not cable), like the IS, but I think the extra response you're feeling is most likely due to the larger 3.5L engine.

Still, most of the "delay" people seem to experience when driving newer DBW cars like the IS is mostly perceived and not actual. While the pedal to engine response time is actually quite quick, the throttle response from the pedal to the engine is actually on a curve instead of almost linear like it was on older cars. What this means is that there is less throttle plate travel at the start of the pedal travel and it ramps up as you press further. This is mostly done for fuel economy and also for smoothness. If you want to get rid of that "dead spot", I'd suggest looking into some various options for a throttle controller from companies like Pivot and Blitz, they can make a big difference to how the ECU responds to pedal inputs.

Jeff

andcas7

Correct me if I'm wrong but, If you drive the car in sport mode you won't notice the delay, or at least not as much. As far as the "jerk" in Drive, the car jerks because it is downshifting as you push the accelerator deeper, it doesn't do it right away because it can't guess right away that's what you want to do, so if you can put it in sport and downshift or keep the gear you are in and accelerate you won't get that jerk...

Sorry if that sounds confusing, I'm sure there is a better way of explaining that.

Sango

iTrader: (10)

There is still a delay regardless of which mode is used because it is not instant. This is due to the nature the electronic throttle.

Jeff Lange

iTrader: (1)

Yes putting it in ECT PWR mode will help, but not as much as the throttle controller will.

Jeff

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Jeff,

Any documentation you have on the impact of either S (sport mode) or ECT-PWR on the throttle?

Only documentation I've ever found/seen was what ECT-PWR does for the transmission behavior (and that being in S mode turns off learning)

Specifically this stuff-
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/5807368-post24.html

I've seen quite a few folks claim it changes throttle behavior too, but never found anything from Lexus to support or explain that and would love to see it if it's out there

Jeff Lange

iTrader: (1)

I was going based on what others have said and what I know the IS F does, which isn't any documentation. I don't have a switch for it in my car, so I can't say definitively, and after just looking through the documentation, it seems to me like it may not have much of an effect at all.

I know what snow mode does to the throttle curve, and I assumed the PWR mode would be similar but inverse, but that may have been jumping to a conclusion that may not be accurate.

Jeff