Sapple

On two locations the Infotainment system in my 2017 RX 350 has frozen. It would not respond to any inputs I made in the radio or using the joystick or other menu options. In both cases stopping and restarting the car resolve the problem. I took the car to the dealer, they ran diagnostics and found no issues. Has anyone else experienced this issue with their fourth generation RX 350 ?

PeeVee

It occurred on my 2016 RX multiple times when brand new and they applied a software update and it stopped after.
I was told that updates are received over the air and that sometimes the update does not happen correctly (for me due to the fact that I keep it inside a garage?). They had to flash it manually using a USB stick.

The problem occurred again on me last week. I went to check on the (Canadian) Lexus web site to find that there is a new update that can be downloaded and transferred via USB stick.

I will do the update soon, did not have much time to take care of it.

17450

It is a terrible system. All the dealer will do is reboot the system, but it doesn't fix the problem. The problem is a very old and bad system.

mcomer

Sapple, not a solution to the principle problem but you can just press and hold the radio On/OFF/Volume button in
for a couple of seconds till the screen goes black and it will reboot the Nav without resorting to stopping the whole car.

Couple of points to sort out the original difficulty, have you changed the default values of the cars Bluetooth ID and/or
the password? Older Lexi required you to type in the displayed password, current models automatically enter it. Change
them back to the defaults and delete and repair the phone(s).

The www.lexusdrivers.com access to the Multi Media update is free (OK you gotta buy a flashdrive) and easy.
Note: it is Not a Nav upgrade, it is just everything to do with what you are experiencing, system drivers.

Sapple

I haven’t made any changes to the Bluetooth settings or passwords. However I will try holding in the radio off on button for a few seconds next time this happens and see if it works. Thanks for providing the tip.

CareAllend

The infotainment system froze once on my NX300h : https://www.clublexus.com/forums/nx-...l#post10548371

• which most likely led to a partial 12V auxiliary battery depletion overnight ,
• which led to a "jump start" by the mechanic called in by Lexus 24h/24h assistance ,
• after which my car had to be hospitalized (neurological department)

AndyWW

On my 2019, this has happened twice since owning the car (a little over a month), which is quite concerning. Eventually it reboots (purple screen) without restarting the car, but basically was dead for 15-20 minutes before this occurred. Was going to bring it up at my 5,000 mile check-in, but doubt the dealer will do anything.

CareAllend

Quite concerning indeed! I thought (I was hoping for) that this problem had been solved on 2019 cars.

Basically, the issue can be one of three things:

1. a hardware error -> as your car is still under warranty, you might be able to convince your dealer to exchange the unit. Giving evidence of the problem can lubricate the arguing process (so have your GoPro or mobile phone camera ready to film a potential recurrence).
2. a software error -> not likely, but easy to solve by having your dealer reboot it. (I'm a bit reluctant to recommend this, as my unit was rebooted about three weeks before the issue came up: it was done as I complained about a bad FM reception (only strong locals came through)).
3. EMI (ElectroMagnetic Interference) -> can happen if your car comes close to high energy radio signals (radars, GSM antennas, high power electric motors, etc. etc.). Nothing can be done about it, it happens out of the blue when some "bits" numerically change status in electronic memory. Given the extremely high number of similar occurrences on NX300h, I suspect the unit isn't very well shielded against this kind of EM pollution.

In my very specific case, it is likely the unit remained switched "on" even when the car was "off", depleting the 12V battery overnight. The subsequent "jump start", performed after the mechanic (mandated by Lexus !) had electronically reanimated some electronics, but not the engine, killed the ECU...

AndyWW

This is the first car I have owned where the audio system just locks up -- and multiple people it has happened to. Given it seems to be happening to multiple people but not everyone, it sounds to me like it is specific to something in how we have it configured (maybe the model phones connected, OS level) or some other configuration vs. one-off faulty hardware. I also would be surprised if EMI is to blame, but never know.

I could try a swap of the audio system or maybe if enough complain it could initiate another firmware upgrade.

Sapple

Mcomer, thanks for the tip. I have not had an opportunity to try this since I posted a message. But I hope it works if I run into this problem again.

CareAllend

AndyWW, only a tiny fraction of car users talk to each other (the car manufacturers & dealers know this...), so the real number of issues might be higher. I love this forum, but to be honest, I consulted it 4.5 years back for 6 months when buying my first Lexus, and came back only last week when I ran into serious trouble... So thumbs up for the Forum!

ECUs (Engine Control Units) are inherently safe, or fail in a safe mode at least... but car manufacturers learnt it the hard way (see http://www.availabilitydigest.com/pu...04/sua_emi.pdf, or more recently https://eu.usatoday.com/story/money/...ll/1532120002/ ) . I honestly think Toyota & Lexus are world class leader in ECU safety; and ECUs, like aircraft, have double redundant CPUs, plus a watch-dog CPU. But how much electronics have been crammed under the hood, especially in hybrids; the car itself is the biggest EM polluter. I didn't mention the potential "shielding issues" of wiring.

Don't even expect the same rigor has been applied to infotainment, gps navigation,... they are not safety relevant! And when you try to explain YOUR issue to the dealer's workshop, you look into a stone-faced sphynx: "You're the very first customer reporting this issue, show me...". And then of course, your car behaves like a charm. You might take a print-out of several forum threads with you, just in case...

And yes, I'm a bit EMI-centric: I've seen too many issues in industrial process control; and only think about how scared airlines are to allow using computers, cell-phones or Bluetooth devices in their planes (I'm glad they do). It's not only because "of the very sensitive navigation devices", but they are scared to death your RF signals might wreak havoc to their fly-by-wire triple redundant computers.

AndyWW

Thanks CareAllend, you definitely have more knowledge in this than I do, so trust that you have a point re: EMI. Regardless, I've had navi's for the better part of 15 years at this point and never saw any other model lock up.

Also, as a quick side note -- lock-up may be the wrong term. It mostly locked up when it happened to me. More like it was pseudo frozen, just really lagged and slow to the point it seemed frozen. Seemed like a software issue.

CareAllend

Thanks AndyWW, you're welcome!

If it's a software issue, a reboot can help, and it's fast Just note, I was driving my car for 4.5 years without the slightest issue, now it's dead... I love it so much, I exchanged it against a new NX300h (albeit this time with a 5-year warranty extension plan). ECUs are terribly expensive...!

Cocal

I had a similar problem, my screen wouldn't come on after starting sometimes for seconds sometimes for minutes. Service manager told me, if it happens again "Turn the headlights switch on/off 5 times, this will mark a spot from which the dealer computer will then be able to ascertain the problem. I did it, they replaced the whole radio system under warranty and now I have an updated 2019 on my 2017 RX350. Maybe this will help you.

Cocal

This is the problem with these computers on wheels. I think the time when one will no longer buy but lease are drawing neigh, but what will happen to the used car market then?
I'm not worried as I've reached the age when one doesn't buy green bananas anymore, but for younger buyers, food for thought.