I've been having some troubles at the dealership during the past 4 weeks. I have a GS430 and it was hesitating really bad. Well a week goes by and problem is still there. RPM's drop suddenly while maintaining a constant speed for no reason and then from a stop it won't want to go. Also on release of the gas pedal the rpm's drop drastically not a smoothe decline that I'm used to. So they finallly do something about the problem. They said they replaced the the throttle body and remapped the ecu. A few days have gone by since then now the problem is back and worse then ever. The other day I was on the high way attempting a pass with a Semi coming up behind me I got on it and started to pull into the other lane when there was a sudden loss of power. I pulled back into my lane quickly in fear of the on coming semi. That really did it for me! I know the car like the back of my hand and push it to the limits on a regular basis. After it performing like that makes in dangerous for me to drive. I went back to the dealership today and talked to the service manager. And he gives me the same crap all talk but no walk. Just a question but why do they put people in service that do not have the slightest clue of the workings of an automobile? Well I go for a ride with the master tech and he "can't feel anything" while he was insisting on this he'd apply gas and the car would hesitate he kept insisting that it was normal and just giving me a big load of crap. Then another problem that he actually acknowledged was a clicking sound in my front end he could hear it but "didn't have the time" to do anything about it today.
So what should I do? I asked for the owners name and address in the attempt to send him a letter. Come to find out ownership has changed Tampabay and Clearwater Lexus are now under Autoway. This was a shock to me as well but I can honestly see how treatment has changed since. My big problem is being able to duplicate the problem. I can tell the difference but someone that has never driven the car before might think it is "normal". I have a appointment to bring it in next week when the shop foreman is in. My family has bought 7 cars from Lexus of Tampabay and I really love my 430 but with continually bad service and reliability of this car I am almost tempted to take my dad's advice and go look at a 540.


WHAT SHOULD I DO?

 

seriously, call or send a letter to lexus of north america, explain the situation and how you were treated by the dealership. ask for their advice and tell them how satisified you were with the 7 lexus you bought but how frustrated you are with the gs430 now. they will do something

 

chino78,

I had the same problem with my 98 Explorer a while ago. The RPM dropped when I release the gas pedal and most of the time stopped the engine. I changed gas station, and it seemed to fix the problem. Your problem seemed worse but I think it worth the try to switch gas station and see if the problem is still there after few fill ups.

For bad dealer service, I hear you man. I has a problem with my auto air temperature at one time (same 98 Explorer). The mechanic told me that time that the heater will turn on and then the air condition would turn on interchangeably to keep the inside air constant. I told him that is not true since at that time the outside air was 85 Farenheit and the heater was automatically on for good few minutes with the setting at 70. I had a themostat, and it shown 95 Farenheit inside the car. The mechanic first said that it supposed to be that way . . I then talk to the manager and he agreed to fix it for free (still under guarantee).

 

chino78, stay on top of the dealer. A quiet customer means a happy customer to them.
good luck,
steviej

 

Chino78:

Make EVERY attempt to contact Lexus Customer Service on this issue! Make SURE you point out the safety issue of such a problem! Also, once you have the attention of the representitive, let them know your issues with the dealer and ask to have your Lexus be sent to another dealer via flatbed as you are becoming concerned about driving it.

Keep escalating it up until you get a resolution.

If you have to return to the dealer in question, take out the service manager in a loaner/demo model of your car, show and explain how it reacts. Then, return to the dealership, both of you jump into your car and try same driving technique. Note to him the issues you are experiencing, if both of you agree, return to the dealership and ask him to make your car like the demo! DO NOT ACCEPT THE CAR BACK UNTIL IT"S CORRECTED!

Follow up with Lexus Customer Service, and inform them of your current status to the problem. Then ask to have the dealership reviewed. Ask around to other owners if they had issues with dealer, if so, have them as well contact Lexus Customer Service to update status of dealership.

If enough people call into Lexus Customer Service and file a complaint of issues at this dealership, things will change quickly!!

Keep us posted!

Regards,
Deanski