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2005 Gs300 Se-l - Huge Estimate For Repairs....


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So, my GS300 SE-L (2005) went in for a servioe at Lexus Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I had been having some odd problems with the Engine Managment light coming on which triggered the VSC to disable itself. This would typically last a few hours - or even a day and then would go away. I asked the dealer to have a look a few months ago but they couldn't find anything wrong. I also have some problems with one electric mirror which will only go up and down and not in and out. Yesterday, however, they found that I need the following replaced:

Labour to replace 2 x Oxygen sensors @ £218.75

Labour to replace mirror unit @ £70

Cap, breather pg (??) @ £2.36

Mirror Sub Assembly @ £258.54

2 x Oxygen Sensors @ £346.66

1 x Engine Computer @ £2055.45

Grand total £2951.76 + VAT £442.76 = £3394.52 !!!

Now, as a 4 and bit year old car with around 44,000 miles on it. this seems dire to me. I've had the car for 19 months and it's always been serviced by a Lexus main dealer. Surely this is not normal on an "executive" car with such low mileage? I had been a BMW owner for the previous 8 years and have never experienced anything remotely like this.

Has anyone else out there suffered similar issues with their GS - or am I just very unlucky?

Pete

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Yeah, but if there is a problem with any of the engine components, VSC disables itself as the ecu thinks it may not be able to overide the engine management. So the VSC coming on, is not an indicator that the ecu is knackered. i.e. It doesn't necessarily need changing. So I was wondering why they said it needed changing. For instance, fixing the O2 sensors, will put the Check engine light out, which in turn should put out the VSC light, without the need for a very expensive £2000 ECU.

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Yeah, but if there is a problem with any of the engine components, VSC disables itself as the ecu thinks it may not be able to overide the engine management. So the VSC coming on, is not an indicator that the ecu is knackered. i.e. It doesn't necessarily need changing. So I was wondering why they said it needed changing. For instance, fixing the O2 sensors, will put the Check engine light out, which in turn should put out the VSC light, without the need for a very expensive £2000 ECU.

Ah - thanks for that. I will ask specifically what is wrong with it. Actually, they just said that they wanted the car back in again to "double check" the problem which seems a little odd too!

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Ah - thanks for that. I will ask specifically what is wrong with it. Actually, they just said that they wanted the car back in again to "double check" the problem which seems a little odd too!

They're probably reading this post and have just seen what tigerfish has written above lol.

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So, my GS300 SE-L (2005) went in for a servioe at Lexus Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I had been having some odd problems with the Engine Managment light coming on which triggered the VSC to disable itself. This would typically last a few hours - or even a day and then would go away. I asked the dealer to have a look a few months ago but they couldn't find anything wrong. I also have some problems with one electric mirror which will only go up and down and not in and out. Yesterday, however, they found that I need the following replaced:

Labour to replace 2 x Oxygen sensors @ £218.75

Labour to replace mirror unit @ £70

Cap, breather pg (??) @ £2.36

Mirror Sub Assembly @ £258.54

2 x Oxygen Sensors @ £346.66

1 x Engine Computer @ £2055.45

Grand total £2951.76 + VAT £442.76 = £3394.52 !!!

Now, as a 4 and bit year old car with around 44,000 miles on it. this seems dire to me. I've had the car for 19 months and it's always been serviced by a Lexus main dealer. Surely this is not normal on an "executive" car with such low mileage? I had been a BMW owner for the previous 8 years and have never experienced anything remotely like this.

Has anyone else out there suffered similar issues with their GS - or am I just very unlucky?

Pete

Hi,

I have exactly this problem. 2 x oxygen sensors and an ECU, £3006 to fit!

My car is a Mk3 GS300 2005 with only 28k on the clock. Apparently the early ECUs had a problem and most were changed under warranty but it seems a few have got through. Give Lexus GB a ring, they should offer 50% towards the cost. I have been lucky enough to get the garage where I bought the car from to pay for the repair as I have only had the car 5 months.

It is absolutely appalling that a known problem like this is is not being rectified free of charge. Lexus cars are not the absolute in reliability.

I think a few more people are going to have the ECU problem soon making a small fortune for Lexus. This is very annoying and coupled with the dealer service being half hearted, my Lexus experience is not a good one.

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So, my GS300 SE-L (2005) went in for a servioe at Lexus Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I had been having some odd problems with the Engine Managment light coming on which triggered the VSC to disable itself. This would typically last a few hours - or even a day and then would go away. I asked the dealer to have a look a few months ago but they couldn't find anything wrong. I also have some problems with one electric mirror which will only go up and down and not in and out. Yesterday, however, they found that I need the following replaced:

Labour to replace 2 x Oxygen sensors @ £218.75

Labour to replace mirror unit @ £70

Cap, breather pg (??) @ £2.36

Mirror Sub Assembly @ £258.54

2 x Oxygen Sensors @ £346.66

1 x Engine Computer @ £2055.45

Grand total £2951.76 + VAT £442.76 = £3394.52 !!!

Now, as a 4 and bit year old car with around 44,000 miles on it. this seems dire to me. I've had the car for 19 months and it's always been serviced by a Lexus main dealer. Surely this is not normal on an "executive" car with such low mileage? I had been a BMW owner for the previous 8 years and have never experienced anything remotely like this.

Has anyone else out there suffered similar issues with their GS - or am I just very unlucky?

Pete

Hi,

I have exactly this problem. 2 x oxygen sensors and an ECU, £3006 to fit!

My car is a Mk3 GS300 2005 with only 28k on the clock. Apparently the early ECUs had a problem and most were changed under warranty but it seems a few have got through. Give Lexus GB a ring, they should offer 50% towards the cost. I have been lucky enough to get the garage where I bought the car from to pay for the repair as I have only had the car 5 months.

It is absolutely appalling that a known problem like this is is not being rectified free of charge. Lexus cars are not the absolute in reliability.

I think a few more people are going to have the ECU problem soon making a small fortune for Lexus. This is very annoying and coupled with the dealer service being half hearted, my Lexus experience is not a good one.

Do you, by any chance, have any evidence to support the "early ECU's had a problem" comment as I'm sure this would help enormously in my negitiations with Lexus?

Cheers

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I also have a 2005 SEL.......

I had the Check VSC and engine lights on the other week....result new oxygen sensor required £300 odd quid.........looking back over the cars history it has already had 2 of these..............

-------------the evidence from ownership of Lexus (MKII) and now MKIII is it all seems to be going downhill fast.....................don't even mention the diesel IS's.

Let me know how you go on with the ECU replacment, cost's etc........I can at then at least "brace" myself. :shutit: :shutit: :crybaby:

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So, my GS300 SE-L (2005) went in for a servioe at Lexus Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I had been having some odd problems with the Engine Managment light coming on which triggered the VSC to disable itself. This would typically last a few hours - or even a day and then would go away. I asked the dealer to have a look a few months ago but they couldn't find anything wrong. I also have some problems with one electric mirror which will only go up and down and not in and out. Yesterday, however, they found that I need the following replaced:

Labour to replace 2 x Oxygen sensors @ £218.75

Labour to replace mirror unit @ £70

Cap, breather pg (??) @ £2.36

Mirror Sub Assembly @ £258.54

2 x Oxygen Sensors @ £346.66

1 x Engine Computer @ £2055.45

Grand total £2951.76 + VAT £442.76 = £3394.52 !!!

Now, as a 4 and bit year old car with around 44,000 miles on it. this seems dire to me. I've had the car for 19 months and it's always been serviced by a Lexus main dealer. Surely this is not normal on an "executive" car with such low mileage? I had been a BMW owner for the previous 8 years and have never experienced anything remotely like this.

Has anyone else out there suffered similar issues with their GS - or am I just very unlucky?

Pete

Hi,

I have exactly this problem. 2 x oxygen sensors and an ECU, £3006 to fit!

My car is a Mk3 GS300 2005 with only 28k on the clock. Apparently the early ECUs had a problem and most were changed under warranty but it seems a few have got through. Give Lexus GB a ring, they should offer 50% towards the cost. I have been lucky enough to get the garage where I bought the car from to pay for the repair as I have only had the car 5 months.

It is absolutely appalling that a known problem like this is is not being rectified free of charge. Lexus cars are not the absolute in reliability.

I think a few more people are going to have the ECU problem soon making a small fortune for Lexus. This is very annoying and coupled with the dealer service being half hearted, my Lexus experience is not a good one.

Do you, by any chance, have any evidence to support the "early ECU's had a problem" comment as I'm sure this would help enormously in my negitiations with Lexus?

Cheers

Hi.

My local Lexus dealer told me about the early ECU problems and said that these were rectified during the 3 year warranty. The ECU was updated sometime in 2006 and since then no problems occur.

I rang Lexus GB as soon as I found out I needed a replacement and they in turn rang my local dealer offering 50% towards the cost of repair. I rang my supplying dealer though and secured the full of cost of repair as I only had the car a few months.

I was shocked to hear I needed an ECU on a car like this. My initial reaction was to get rid of the car and I may do so once the repair is done.

My Lexus dealer has also left me disappointed. Obviously I was anxious to rectify this problem but it seemed like every time I rang the service department I was bothering them. I needed to know when parts would arrive and when I could book the car in. I left them my number to call me on several occasions but they didn't bother. For example I rang to ask when the ECU would arrive. I was told it would be Friday so they would book my car in the following week. I heard nothing more so the following Tuesday I rang them. They said the parts were there so I could be booked in the week after. This means I'm booked in 2 weeks after the parts arrived to get my car, which I need, fixed. If I hadn't rang would they have just forgot about me? This is after all a £3000 repair that they seem half-hearted about and not very understanding.

Sorry, off topic a bit but I'm a tad annoyed!

Good luck with your problem and the dealer!

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What is it about these ECU's that costs all that money, its just a few mico chips on a board in a box with a plug, someone is getting very rich off these.

Its all such a rip off. and its the same with all car makes.

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Does anyone happen to know if this is likely to be a problem on the GS430 as well? I hope not as I've only just got mine (05 GS430 Mk3).

Looks like the early GS300's (2005 models) are affected. As yours is a 2005 car, is there any paperwork with the car stating that the ECU/other faulty items have been replaced under warranty?

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Does anyone happen to know if this is likely to be a problem on the GS430 as well? I hope not as I've only just got mine (05 GS430 Mk3).

Cheers,

Mark C

Best thing would be to check with your dealer or contact Lexus GB by phone or Email.

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Not sure if these are anything to do with it, but found these service bulletins which I have put up on my server for now for you to look at.

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (obsolete)

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (revised)

That looks like the same problem. I will also have an oil and filter change to go with the new O2 sensor and ECU.

This really should be a no cost fix.

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OK - thanks for this Knitware. I've subsequently spoken to my dealer who is going to speak to Lexus GB on my behalf to secure some assistance on the financial side. I'll let you know how I get on.

Pete

That's what I mean about dealers! Your dealer is ringing Lexus GB on your behalf where as my dealer gave me the number for Lexus GB to ring myself!

You should secure 50% towards the cost, but the should pay the full amount. I would argue that this is a known issue and the parts should be changed free of charge.

Best of luck. Let me know how you get on! Mine is due to be done next Saturday.

John

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  • 2 weeks later...
So, my GS300 SE-L (2005) went in for a servioe at Lexus Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I had been having some odd problems with the Engine Managment light coming on which triggered the VSC to disable itself. This would typically last a few hours - or even a day and then would go away. I asked the dealer to have a look a few months ago but they couldn't find anything wrong. I also have some problems with one electric mirror which will only go up and down and not in and out. Yesterday, however, they found that I need the following replaced:

Labour to replace 2 x Oxygen sensors @ £218.75

Labour to replace mirror unit @ £70

Cap, breather pg (??) @ £2.36

Mirror Sub Assembly @ £258.54

2 x Oxygen Sensors @ £346.66

1 x Engine Computer @ £2055.45

Grand total £2951.76 + VAT £442.76 = £3394.52 !!!

Now, as a 4 and bit year old car with around 44,000 miles on it. this seems dire to me. I've had the car for 19 months and it's always been serviced by a Lexus main dealer. Surely this is not normal on an "executive" car with such low mileage? I had been a BMW owner for the previous 8 years and have never experienced anything remotely like this.

Has anyone else out there suffered similar issues with their GS - or am I just very unlucky?

Pete

My wife's 2005 (55 plate) GS300 SE has had exactly this problem for a few months. The lights come and go -exactly as described. She has just been to the dealers today to be given exactly the same estimate for replacement ECU and 2 oxygen sensors. The car has only done 28,000 miles but she has had it for 9 months and the warranty she had from the (non-Lexus) garage that sold it to her has of course expired.

The dealer said it was a problem they had seen "a few times" and the implication was that Lexus did something about it for a first owner car - he suggested that she get in touch with Lexus but didn't seem to think we would have any joy.

This looks like something that is a design fault and should be replaced free of charge. Can we find out how many people have already been affected?

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Not sure if these are anything to do with it, but found these service bulletins which I have put up on my server for now for you to look at.

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (obsolete)

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (revised)

no, they wont cover it they are for the Middle east cars cars with the 3GR--FSE 3 litre V6 engine

This does seem to be the same problem though! What is the difference between the Middle East and UK engines?

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Not sure if these are anything to do with it, but found these service bulletins which I have put up on my server for now for you to look at.

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (obsolete)

o2 sensors and ECU Bulletin (revised)

no, they wont cover it they are for the Middle east cars cars with the 3GR--FSE 3 litre V6 engine

This does seem to be the same problem though! What is the difference between the Middle East and UK engines?

Contact Lexus GB. They will offer at least 50%, try for more!

This ECU problem seems to be becoming more common! E-mail honest John at the telegraph or What Car to help too. Lexus should be replacing these things FOC, it is a known problem.

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My wife wrote to Lexus UK. A telephone message from Lexus was left today, expressing regrets but no offer.

She will write again and if no joy then I will encourage her to take it up with Watchdog or Honest John or both.

Personally I think it stinks that Lexus issued a TSIB for cars with the same engine, having the exact same fault, in other countries but don't do the same here.

From TSIB EG007-07 noted in previous posts, it says they have to replace 2 oxygen sensors with ones of a different design, making a modified EMU necessary.

This is exactly the remedy suggested by her dealer, so it is obviously a known design fault. Goodness knows how many people have spent money on new sensors only to have the same fault reappear later.

Also note the following Quote from TSIB EG007-07:-

Applicable Warranty**:

This repair is covered under the Lexus Emissions Warranty. This warranty is in effect

for 96 months or 80,000 miles, whichever occurs first, from the vehicle’s in-service date.

** Warranty application is limited to correction of a problem based upon a customer’s specific complaint

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