My iPhone connects with no problem with the cars bluetooth. But when I try to talk, the people on the other end complain of very poor sound (echo, garbled) and the sound in the car is also terrible. When I talk, there seems to be a feedback echo in the car. I can hear the other people perfectly. I have tried to cover the phone (in my pocket) with my hand and even tried putting the phone in the armrest compartment. Neither helps. I don't remember having this feedback at all when I used my Blackberry curve before. The phone is almost worthless when using the bluetooth. Any suggestions? Anyone else having this problem? I have already replaced the iphone since the first one was terrible on dropping calls. I updated this one to 2.1. Both phones have the same echo problem.

 

Same problems for me any my LS460L. My original iPhone worked fine. No echo, few complaints outgoing sound quality (unless the HVAC fan was on high). I did get into the practice of turning down the HVAC fan when on the phone. The significant problems started with the iPhone 3G in the LS. The dealer installed (for $250) ver. 7.1 of the nav system (to get rid of the "I Agree" annoyance). No help.

My sons each have iPhones (one 2G, one 3G) and 2008 Lexus IS 250s. They don't seem to have problems so long as they speak in the direction of the mic. I showed them how to increase the mic sensitivity to make it easier for callers to hear. I'm not sure which version of nav is in the '08 IS, but it's probably at least ver 7.1 (no "I Agree" button).

I've used the iPhone 3G in my wife's 2006 GS 300, but not enough to conclude whether its a problem or not. I don't recall any echo problems but unsure about garbled outgoing transmission.

Since the original iPhone worked fine it seems the 3G may be at fault. Apple moved to a new chipset which has caused a number of problems. Maybe this is another. Hopefully some future update of the 3G will solve the problem.

Bluetooth connectivity seems to have been a problem for Lexus from the beginning. The '06 GS would work with only a few phones when it was first purchased in Feb '05 (we changed providers to get one to work). Since bluetooth is a published standard it's surprising so many chip makers have compatibility issues.

Well, at least I talk alot less than I write.

 

My brother just leased a new GX470 and is having iPhone-Bluetooth troubles similar to yours. It's almost impossible to hear him when he calls me from the vehicle as it cuts in and out.

 

It's an iPhone problem with their Bluetooth implementation. They tried to correct it in the last software upgrade (2.1) but it didn't seem to help much. E-mail Apple and maybe they will fix it. There are thousands of complaints on the Apple forums about iPhone Bluetooth issues. It's not a Lexus problem.

 

How did you increase the mike sensitivity?

 

With the car in full accessory mode (car on, engine off)...

On nav screen, go to "Disp" menu, touch the screen on the left side just below the top bar then touch the screen on the left just above the bottom bar. Repeat this left-side top/bottom screen press sequence until a special diagnostics screen appears.

On the upper right of the screen press the "MENU" button. This will take you to a diagnostics menu. Near the bottom of the menu buttons you'll see the bluetooth option, press it. On this screen you can set the mic volume and the speaker volume. Set the volumes as desired, turn the car off and restart.

There you have it.

(You can search the forum for a better explanation if needed. I've seen it posted several times over the last several years.)