So I got the carfax for a 2014 IS350 I'm interested in and saw that it has this open safety recall?:

• Manufacturer Safety recall issued
  • NHTSA #20V012
  • Recall #20LA01 SAFETY RECALL 20LA01 (REMEDY
  • NOTICE), MULTIPLE MODELS AND MODEL YEARS, VEHICLE
  • MAY STALL DURING DRIVING AT HIGHER SPEED
  • Status: Remedy Available
• Locate an authorized Lexus dealer near you to schedule an appointment

Any idea what this means? And are recalls covered even if it's out of warranty or would I have to pay out of pocket
And should I be concerned if the car is a previous corporate vehicle

 

The recall work should be covered at no cost to you, whether there's a warranty or not.

Previous corporate vehicle is interesting. I'm not sure why someone would want to use an IS as a fleet vehicle - so, maybe it was just a tax write-off? No idea. That'd be a good reason to have a pre-purchase inspection done on the car.

 

Do you know if I'd be able to do a pre purchase inspection if I'm not in the state that the car is in?

 

I haven't really done an out-of-state purchase yet... It's one of those things where I'd want to be pretty sure about the car beforehand. The PPI would just be to let you know if there's anything really big that could be a showstopper and/or to prepare you for things needing attention after you buy. Maybe you could get it work if you had a friend or family member in the area who could arrange that or at least give it an in-person look.

 

could this be a workaround to not list the vehicle as a previous dealer loaner when it was? like a corporate vehicle for a large dealer network, or for any dealership llc even if it were used as a loaner?
edit: but it's a 350, which a dealership generally wouldn't use. hmm.

 

Many corporate cars are used by "execs" at Lexus or Toyota USA then get sold at dealers later. Not sure about that one specifically, but I would much rather see Corporate over Rental on a Carfax report.

 

Yes you can have a PPI done even if you're out of state. I used one when I was looking at a car that was located in TX and I'm in AZ. You can search online for some companies. I paid about $100 for mine. The report was very detailed and included pictures.

 

It was probably a demo car for journalists to drive in and abuse. Those would be tied to a business (associated or not with Lexus directly) and this one would be considered a corporate vehicle as well (being it a lexus/toyota corp or some AutoCorporateLoaner LLC).