Makes me think twice about the purchase.

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http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04345/424551.stm

Hesitation issue goes beyond Toyota's luxury line
Friday, December 10, 2004

By Don Hammonds, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Toyota engineers are working to find an acceptable fix for a hesitation problem in five-speed automatic transmissions in certain of its luxury Lexus and Toyota models, the Japanese automaker said yesterday.

The problem was brought to light this week when the Post-Gazette reported on troubles McMurray resident Timothy W. Farabaugh was having with his 2004 Lexus ES330 ("Hesitating Lexus unsettling for owners," Dec. 8, 2004). The vehicle didn't respond immediately when his wife pressed the accelerator while trying to merge into traffic, causing her to narrowly avoid an accident.

It became clear the problem was more widespread when other readers who saw Wednesday's PG story reported the same hesitation with their Toyotas and other Lexus models.

It turns out that the five-speed automatic in the 2002 to 2004 Lexus ES300 and ES330 models also is used in the Toyota Highlander and Lexus RX330 sport utility models, two of the company's biggest sellers.

"The engineers in Japan are trying to come up with a fix on this problem ... The first attempt to solve this has not been completely successful," said Toyota spokesman Wade Hoyt. That first attempt "involved reprogramming the computer that controls the transmission," he added.

The reprogramming "relieved part of the problem, but did not completely cure it,'' he said -- a statement with which Alvise Anti of Pittsburgh can concur.

She said her RX330 had the "update -- Lexus calls it the fix -- but obviously it's not working. The car is drivable, but if you are not aware of the problem, it can be dangerous."

Another owner, Beth Caldwell, said her 2004 Toyota Highlander V-6 with the five-speed automatic transmission had the same hesitation problem and that when she took it to the dealer's service department, she was told "that's how the new transmissions are."

Scott McAliley said he got a similar response when he approached his dealer about his 2004 Lexus ES330. He said the dealer told him that, "a.), They couldn't find anything out of the ordinary and b.), The problem would diminish over time as the computer learned our habits."

One 2002 ES330 owner, Michael Moran, said he "made contact with the customer service department at Lexus headquarters in California, which led to a test drive of my car and a resultant confirmation of the malfunctioning transmission.

"I was offered a new 2004 ES330 for $4,000, an offer I unfortunately accepted. ... The 2004 ES330 model I am now driving has an even more pronounced malfunctioning transmission."

There have been no reports of serious or fatal accidents because of the problem.

Spokesman Brad Nelson said that once Toyota comes up with a successful fix, it may issue a technical service bulletin to dealers so they could make repairs on cars when they are brought in or launch a service campaign that would notify owners that there is an issue and that the problem can be corrected.

Hoyt said he believed that only drivers who were unusually sensitive to their cars' shifts and performance would notice the hesitation.

 

Interesting...

They blame the drive-by-wire, but I believe that my '04 Land Cruiser also has a drive-by-wire setup and I fortunately haven't experienced that problem.

 

I would most definitely 'hold off' from buying any Lexus vehicle until after they remedy the jerky hesitating transmission. I sure wish we had known about the problem prior to purchasing the 2003 ES300.

 

too late

 

I believe I was in an accident partially caused by this hesitation. A fews days ago, Dec 27th., I was stopped for a red light and I saw the car approaching me from behind. He was coming fast (est. 45mph) and I immediately knew he would not stop in time. His brakes were locked up. I jammed the gas to move forward which would have given him more time to stop and might have taken me out of the accident zone. Needless to say, with my foot to the floor, nothing happened. The RX330 just sat their like a lumbering whale. Seemed like forever but actually it was only a second or two until he hit me. Had the Lexus not hesitated, I believe that second or two would have allowed me to avoid being hit. Even if I would have still been hit, the severity of the impact would have been reduced as he would have been able to slow his vehicle more with a couple more seconds of wheel-locked braking.

His vehicle, a 92 Dodge truck, was totaled, my 04 RX330 suffered around $7,000 in damage and I was hauled off to the ER with a pinched nerve in my neck that resulted in my hands going numb.

Come on Lexus, fix this.

 

Check out this thread:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=144569

Lots of people are having the same issues.

 

I took mine back to the dealer with less than 5000 miles on it refusing to drive it anymore, I got the same stories about it "learning my driving styles" and "this is functioning as designed" but when I was almost rear ended trying to merge up on the highway - I said forget it!!

After upgrading the sound system, clear bra, tinted windows I said just get me out of it. I figure I lost about $2000 upgrading to the GX but ohhhhh what a difference. The feeling of safety is worth so much more. I started the mediation process but Lexus came through with a deal that made me happy.

Yeah to Hennesey Lexus of Gwinnett!!

Nay to RX330 tranny whatever.........

 

[QUOTE=jfelbab] I jammed the gas to move forward which would have given him more time to stop and might have taken me out of the accident zone. Needless to say, with my foot to the floor, nothing happened. QUOTE]

This happened to me only when I was trying to accelerate from a 5-10 mph rolling stop (almost got t-boned!?! My acceleration from a dead stop is okay.

 

Have anyone had this problem on their 2005 RX 330??

I'm planning to get the 2005 AWD. Any inputs..?

Thanks.......

 

Has there been a TSB on this yet?

 

i am not sure this report relates to everyone. i don't have any fears of not being able to merge properly or speed up to avoid collisions . . . in fact the RX has enough power IMHO for everyday situations. sure it's no V8, but i am wondering if these particular articles are referring to defective transmissions??

i definitely had the herky-jerky-couldn't-decide-between-2nd-and-3rd transmission, but recently got that fixed at the dealer; something about replacing the transmission cooler lines. but i have not experienced any of the dangerous sort of lagging. i have an early production RX330 built in Japan, Feb 03 and it's doing great so far, minor irritations here and there, but for the most part a great car. i am already at 35000miles, and hope to keep it until 100k unless i have an uncontrollable urge to upgrade to a V8 model (GX/LX); for my sake I hope this does not happen given the gas prices around here...

 

Next time you are entering the freeway......try to change lanes when you are at 20-30mph and press on the gas pedal. You will notice that the car doesn't wanta go!!!!!

 

i am not sure how often i am going 20-30 mph on the freeway (usually i am about 65-70 by the time i get on), but during traffic i do go that slow, and i haven't noticed that.

if i need to gun it to switch lanes, the car will downshift and give me more power. but usually in traffic i don't make those kinds of moves so suddenly because it's crowded. is this happening EVERY time for you? it sounds strange . . . and defin abnormal.

btw, in addition to replacing the transmission cooler lines, i have had my ECU thing reset after about 1 yr of ownership when i first complained about the herky-jerky nature of the transmission in low gears. have you done both of these yet?

 

No. I haven't done any of those TSB yet.

What I meant was....when you are merging into the freeway just gaining speed then try to change lane. This happens to me....press on the gas pedal but the car can't decide to go faster. I hear the engine rev. but eventually (2-4sec. later) it will kick in then speed up. Some kind of delay..
Is like the tranny can't decide.......

 

I have a full circle loop I have to get onto the Interstate off of and am usually going 30mph when trying to get the RX going and definitely notice the lag ... makes me nervous taking that loop.