FatherTo1

Our 06 LS is in for a tranny inspect and possible "flush" and fill because I don't feel the shifts are smooth enough. I had an independent mechanic perform a drain and fill a few months ago and that made the tranny smoother, but only for a few weeks. I also don't know why LS tranny and engine seem to flare up a few hundred revs in 3rd gear when I'm accelerating gradually.

Anyways, I was given a '16 RX loaner this morning. It is comfy and the big tires ride over expansion joints better than my LS it seems. The '16 also exhibits better body control and less floating than my parents' 07 RX.

The nav screen is nice, big, and bright but I wish it was quicker when changing screens because it seems to lag. The slow transitions are exacerbated by the clunky mouse. As old as the 06 nav is, I can still input an address and be on my way in a third of the time it took to use the '16 RX nav and mouse interface. Even something as basic as changing radio stations takes longer than in our 06 LS. The standard '16 RX audio system sounds great though with good clean bass.

What bothered me most was the raucous RX engine! For a $50k- $60k SUV it just sounded unrefined and noisy. The first and second gears especislly reminded me of a 4-cylinder, just not smooth. Higher gears sounded better and smoother in operation.

I did notice the AC condenser or water pump noise that other owners reported. At first it sounded tinny or like a constant rustling of dry leaves. It definitely would irritate me if we owned this car.

Between the rough engine and pump noises, I can't wait to have our 06 LS back later today. What has happened to Lexus quality? I just expected better from the '16 RX. Was thinking we would replace the wife's ES330 with an NX or RX in a few years but now I need to expand the search to see what other brands have to offer, whereas in the past I would only look at Lexus.

Johnhav430

I am not familiar with the new models, but some are 4 cyl? Even a GS turbo.

Curious...how much does it cost to get a tranny flushed? Also, any clue how much for a coolant flush?

Newer cars tend to have electric power steering, which is so light. I had a '16 BMW 328i x drive for over 3 mos. due to the Takata airbag recall, I got used to the steering, and then my wife's GM Suv seemed heavy, as did my '98 Maxima. I did not have the LS430 at the time. It's not heavy, it's light as a feather...

FatherTo1

Hi John, yes, I believe the NX is a turbo-4. However, my colleagues turbo-4 in his Audi A6 is quite smooth and quiet. The '16 RX V6 lacked refinement in the first couple of gears and the engine sounds like an old buzzy 4-cylinder from the 1990s. It was just out of place for a vehicle of the RX's stature.

They will call me back with a price quote for the tranny drain and fill. They want to test drive the LS first and don't want to perform any services if they don't feel it will produce a satisfactory improvement. I figure minimum bill will be $169 for the diagnosis (which applies towards any service performed). I would rather let my mechanic do it but he said he doesn't have the equipment to do a full drain and fill. I wonder how much my mechanic was able to drain out a few months ago...

FatherTo1

I do like the electronic parking brake on these newer Lexi. I tried to see if I could operate the nav more quickly with voice command and bypass the mouse. However, I had to repeat myself frequently and the process is slowed down because the digital assistant itself repeats your voice input -- I already know I said "POI", you don't have to remind me what I just said. Hopefully there's an option buried in the settings to disable the unnecessary repeat of voice inputs. On the bright side the digital assistant has a pleasant voice and is polite with her "pardons".

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

If you feel like you are getting a harder downshift then normal your transmission is most likely under-fillled. It is very important that the transmission be warmed to operating temperature, shifted through the gears, and then topped off. This is a mistake I have seen pretty often and at dealers as well. Often you cannot fully fill the unit unless you follow the instructions properly. This leads to harder shifting.

lextout

The LS is the flagship for a reason

FatherTo1

Thank you, Lavrishevo. I just got the LS430 back from Lexus of Roseville in California. Surprisingly, they said my tranny was overfilled by 1-quart! They removed the extra fluid and didn't even charge me for today's service even though I helped myself to their danishes and coffee and had their '16 RX loaner for 6 hours!

I was more than pleased with today's outcome. However, as I was exiting the dealership parking lot, the transmission did a hard shudder, as if I was rear-ended. I really had to check to make sure there wasn't a car behind me that just hit me. The transmission has never behaved that way. I was in a state of shock and thinking "what the heck was that?!?!". I was still mumbling to myself while I continued down the road. This is a big auto mall so I pulled into the Ford Dealership just to make sure there wasn't rear-end damage because it really felt like something hit me. Everything looked normal and as I pulled out of the Ford dealership the shudder happened again! It occurs when I slow to a rolling stop and then gently re-apply the gas. Anyways, because of the great treatment I had just received from Lexus of Roseville I was reluctant to complain. Then, a mile further down the street it happened once more at a traffic light. At this point I was starting to get worried and turned around back to the dealership to share my experience with the service manager. I didn't want to blame them for creating the problem and simply asked if the symptom is indicative of any known problems. The service manager shook his head and re-iterated that the LS didn't throw any codes during inspection and didn't contain any historical codes either. He suggested I drive it for a few days and let him know if the problem persists.

The hard shudder didn't recur when on my way back to the dealership and it didn't manifest itself again on the 15-mile/30-minute drive home in stop-and-go traffic. What I did notice on the drive home though is that the shifts were hardly noticeable and quicker/crisper than before. Before, shifts felt like there was drag or slowness, possibly due to too much fluid. In any case, I will keep an eye on it. Perhaps the tranny and computer were re-calibrating and getting used to the new level of transmission fluid. The transmission is noticeably smoother now but those experiences during the first 2-miles after service really had me worried.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Are you sure your independent mechanic used OEM fluid? This is important due to the additive package. Toyota Type IV. The shuttering is odd and it should not do that but if it is acting fine then you should be good.

Coulter

It seems like every time a dealer tries to change the fluid, somehow they get screwed up.

FatherTo1

I am not sure what type of fluid my independent mechanic used, Lavrishevo, but seeing as how he has 20 years of combined Toyota and Lexus master tech experience, I would hope he put in the correct fluid. I thought I recall reading on these forums that the tranny uses World Standard (WS) fluid...is that the same as Type IV?

Coulter, in defense of the dealership, the tranny is truly smoother after the few big hiccups the first 2 miles. I am just surprised they had to remove a quart. That seems kind of much to be overfilled. The service manager did mention at the beginning that they can't really drain the whole transmission but in a normal drain-and-fill on the LS430 what they do is put some fluid in and let it drain out, monitor the temps, repeat 4-5x. His comment was that, overall, the procedure used typically adds an amount of fluid that's equivalent to the capacity of the entire tranny. In my case, they removed 1-quart and that was it. I am sort of curious why it didn't leak out if it was overfilled. I guess it was over some MAX level but still not enough to leak out, similar to the MIN/MAX marks on the coolant reservoir or brake/power steering reservoirs.

FatherTo1

I don't know if "shudder" is the correct description, but it did feel like the transmission slammed into a gear, hard enough that I thought I was rear-ended by someone. I would compare it to what our 2002 Sequoia used to do when I disengaged the 4WD, but it was a milder effect on the Sequoia and not enough to suggest something was wrong with the Sequoia. The LS tranny slammed pretty hard, sort of like when you're pulling a trailer and you brake hard and you feel the trailer crash into you. If something did get damaged in my tranny then I would have expected more trouble on the drive home. Of course I paid extra attention to the tranny all the way home but it was just so darn smooth in operation from then on.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Yes, you are correct, WS fluid not type IV. Type IV is for 03 and below. My memory is slipping. How you can overfill that much is also a mystery. The overflow "port" is sealed with a plug so this is why nothing would leak. The LS430 Aisin transmissions are built very well so I doubt anything was damaged.

Bocatrip

I understand that the 04-06 LS430 does not have a dip stick to inspect the level or color/condition of fluid. Transmission fluid changes can be tricky in as much sometimes more harm can be done than good. Since your trans is now behaving better and is smoother, you are most likely in good shape. You original abrupt banging after leaving the Lexus dealership might very well have been the computer adjusting to the new fluid level. Personally, I never mess with transmission fluid unless there are serious issues or the fluid (models with dipsticks) looks obviously burnt or discolored. Good luck to you and keep us posted to your transmission's performance.

warminwisc

Good luck with the tranny. I drove a bunch of SUV's in the RX class and did not really like it myself very boring and pedestrian The new models front ends are pretty well IMO ugly. I like the Q60 X5 ended up buying a Touareg TDI.

FatherTo1

Thank you, Bocatrip/warminwisc. The tranny has been holding up well. Drove a total of an hour around town today running errands and the tranny was very well-mannered and, dare I say, rivals the smoothness of the 01-03 5-speed! I am shocked that all the dealership did was remove excess tranny fluid to produce, or restore, what I believe is factory shift quality. I keep thinking there must be more that they did (firmware update, transmission mounts, or complete fluid flush even) because it is just so much smoother than before. I mean, before wasn't terrible...it was just very average shift quality getting the job done and nothing exceptional. But now the shift quality is truly impressive and gives off more of a luxury feel. Sometimes the only way I could tell if shifted was by looking at the tachometer because I certainly didn't feel anything. At times, it's very CVT-like in operation.

On a separate note, we got our first big rain today and the storm is forecasted to deliver 1"-3" of rain this weekend. The Pirelli P7+ tires performed admirably. Despite the splashing, it was still a quite and comfortable ride in the cabin. Some drains were already overflowing by mid-day and I saw at least two other cars spin their rear tires when the light turned green, but not the LS with the P7+. Wet braking also seemed fine in that I never even gave it a thought while driving today.