Frustrated. I have an issue where my Navigation crashes and it disables all center console controls (air/nav/radio...). Cannot be replicated by dealer (Watertown, MA) and therefore "nothing is broken". I asked that it be logged as a "safety concern" because I don't know if the software also impacts the suspension, braking, collision avoidance or other systems. I was ASSURED by Lexus of Watertown that the systems were all separate therefore an-on-the-go reboot of the software or a crash while driving won't impact the

VIDEO Links:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=11H...I6ogTjsaOiUBvV
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1h6...-4XTFMcbFT-XiZ

Anyone have any perspectives on what is causing this?
Anyone know what I should do as Im let down by the dealership not being willing to invest in the problem?
Do these crashes impact any of the other systems I rely on to operate the vehicle safely?

Thanks.

 

I have updated the firmware and now it works fine. Let your dealer check if you have the current firmware installed.
The crashes do not impact anything else. It happened to me about twice a month until updated.

 

Thanks @ClaytonW , but Im told the software is updated. There seemed to be a lot of issues with this in 2016, caused by a firmware update, but it seems to have died down since then. Are you and I the only people with this issue to your knowledge in 2017+ models?

More detail...as I have been asked to reach out to "corporate" by my dealer.

• Lexus of Watertown has been unable to reproduce, acknowledge or address the concern on both occasions despite customer supplied video evidence of the issue. More instances have been witnessed but video is not always safe to acquire.
  • Provided video evidence of The Problem:
    • https://drive.google.com/open?id=1XM...r934BLc70Ft-uu
    • https://drive.google.com/open?id=11H...I6ogTjsaOiUBvV
    • https://drive.google.com/open?id=1XM...r934BLc70Ft-uu
  • There were no “service bulletins” and I was told the software was updated.
  • I was told that “nothing is broken” and “if we replace the navigation unit, and its no the issue, then we [service center] will be stuck with $4000 expense”. These don’t represent the customer’s issues and seem to represent how Lexus of Watertown is more concerned with bottom lines than addressing an issue.
  • I was told that it isn’t a Service issue but a Product issue and I should call “corporate” and was given a phone number.
  • The Problem is a safety concern and I logged this with the service department because to fix the situation, the operator is required to pull off the road because of a vehicle failure. Secondly, we am not convinced that other electrical, suspension, braking, ignition and vital systems aren’t impacted. I don’t accept that these are “different systems” and no one can prove to me that the car is 100% functional.

 

i own an LS460, not an LX 570.

i have had great luck at Lexus of Norhborough. Not saying the end result will be different, but they have been thorough when I have had problems.

 

While it is not a proper fix, my 17 LX Enform has crashed twice in two years. By holding the power button down for a few seconds the system will reboot and should then work fine. Better than pulling over to the side of the road and turning the car on and off, anyway.

 

• What did corporate say when you called them?

 

a) didn't know that would work
b) good suggestion for when it happens again.

 

Corporate is opening a case and assigning a case manager to it. I believe that case manager will broker between the service department and Lexus NA to try and find a solution. It's not my intention to cause waves, but I HATE it when im told "nothing is wrong" or "we can't replicate it, please leave."

Ill keep the group updated and the case manager is scheduled to speak with me tomorrow.

I do not believe that the software should crash. Lexus Enform is a bit of an outdated joke according to most reviews...but to be told it "won't work with a phone" or to have mysterious failures is unacceptable in a $89,000 car.

 

What they call a "case manager" is normally someone in your general region, employed by Toyota/Lexus, who orchestrates fixes between customer and dealer. What he / she says goes...all there is to it. A good friend in Norcal has that job with MBZ in the SF bay area...says he's much busier than guys he knows who work for Toyota.

 

They took the car back to the dealership. Ill keep the group posted.

Im sympathetic b/c I know it is erratic and difficult to replicate but the videos might help.

There are A LOT of choices in this price range and just want something that works and Lexus has a terrible reputation for their infotainment products...this is another nail in the coffin for me. Shame...liked the drivetrain and interiors a lot.

We shall see...we shall see.

 

I think I'd accept your so-called "terrible reputation" in the infotainment area. Though I would not accept the "reliability" of Toyota's competitors. I selected Toyota since wife and I are sometimes far away from civilization in the truck. Toyota's competitors make vehicles that can't touch a 200 series off road...which is why we drive both an LX and a Land Cruiser. If I bought a vehicle simply because of more electronic accessories, I'd restructure my priorities. But I do understand that we all have different priorities.

You may want to check Consumer Reports, JD Powers awards, and frequency of defects with just-delivered vehicles v. Toyota.

 

@hankinid I bought into the LX570 in 2013 and have been loyal since I upgraded from by MB G500 and appreciate a capable off road vehicle.

HOWEVER, i expect the car to work and not just the differential or drive train. Long story short my LX570 has a great engine and remains a capable vehicle until the A/C, Navigation, Radio and center console stop working be that on or off road.

I just want the darn product to work as intended and not just be an off road powerhouse.

 

Oh boy, this whole thing has become a bit of nonsense and im starting to feel badly for Lexus b/c they really are trying.

1. Lexus of Watertown told me that the reason for the errors were b/c of emojis in my contacts on my phone and they had seen it once before. As a result, they want me to NOT SYNC my phone and drive for 2 weeks to see if the problem resurfaces. Instructions from LEXUS are attached.
   1. Specifically, and I paraphrase from the service manager, there was an instance where an emoticon was used in a iPhone's contact name that seems to have created an issue in the Enform system. Once those emoticons were deleted from the iPhone, the system hasn't errored since.
   2. Editorial: That just seems ridiculous to me that a character can drop the entire infotainment system and makes me question how much, if any, testing that the system gets. With new emoticons and emoji apps coming out, it seems like the software is outdated and future-resistant and that should be a problem from Lexus into the 2018+ models. It seems crappy that I drive a 2017 Luxury SUV that can't sync with a phone or it crashes. Good luck with that product.
   3. What annoys me the most is the BS that i have to endure. Each person I speak to talks to me about "service bulletins". "can't replicate", "thanks for the videos..."
2. Corporate "Lyndzee" contacted me once to tell me she would be involved. I haven't heard back from Corporate in 10 days so that seemed to be a way that Lexus placated me.

Net..net, the 2017 LX570 has an undocumented problem where certain software crashes and Lexus doesn't know what the issue is and has no service bulletins. I suspect that the fequency will continue to get worse as know one knows why their software crashes. I intend on taking more videos of the issues as they develop b/c I feel obligated to our community.

Does anyone else have this failure?

 

As of today, I haven't had any issues. That leads me to believe that Enform has a material bug when mobile devices are connected to the system that causes the software to act eradically.

Waiting to hear back from Lexus on next steps.

Buyer beware...

 

This is where the customer's demands for "cutesy" features gets ahead of the technology. Lexus' Enform is an ancient platform that they grafted all kinds of cell phone stuff on to - the problem is that nobody really went and integrated the two properly.

Back in the very early 2000's, I had the Kyocera Palm Pilot phone and some (Jabra?) phone interface to the car. My wife had the same phone but I had this program on the phone that connected contacts to calendar entries.

My phone always crashed the system - my wife's worked flawlessly. It took forever to figure out what the problem was - some ASCII code added to the contacts. Jabra did a great job setting up the system for the Palm Pilot, but a non-standard code threw it for a loop.