After owning a new Lexus NX 450h+ F Sport for over a year (registered since 02/2024), I decided to share my experience with anyone interested. A short summary:

- Defects:  after 6 months left rear suspension replacement, after one year fuel tank and central unit replacement, serious malfunction of fuel gauge system

- E-CVT: keeping the revs unnecessarily high, especially on slopes which results in a constant loud engine sound over 70-80 km/h. I mean very loud!

- Engine: screaming and roaring when accelerating or driving on slopes, unacceptable.

- Interior: the biggest disappointment. Never tested in the summer or desert? See attached videos. The door panels creak and squeak, the dashboard and displays creak and rattle whenever the cabin temp rises. Sunlight and summer heat make the rattles unbearable. Not only when driving on bumpy roads. Always! Even when stationary. I have driven some 30 different cars in my life and never ever had such a bad interior quality. Of course, it looks nice from a distance...

- Updates: no OTA updates, still driving with the original firmware/ software dated 2023. (I guess there were some 4 firmware upgrades in past 2-3 years) Still driving the old Carplay screen on which you cannot  select icons of the Lexus menu. (Nor does the  dealer  have the latest firmware or any updates)

Conclusion:  Very disappointed. I would never ever buy a Lexus again

 

 

 

 

 

 

27 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

- E-CVT: keeping the revs unnecessarily high, especially on slopes which results in a constant loud engine sound over 70-80 km/h. I mean very loud!

- Engine: screaming and roaring when accelerating or driving on slopes, unacceptable.

I can't comment on the other stuff but what you've written above leads me to respectfully say that you seem to have no concept of how the E-CVT and the engine etc., work together.

I'm not going to try to reinvent the wheel here so I'll just say that there's plenty of info out there that will explain it all and show you that this is all perfectly normal and that it's working as it should, not being kept "unnecessarily high" just to annoy you.

Thanks, I know how it works.  I just expressed it in layman's terms. I've driven the old gen. 3.5 liter hybrid RX with e-CVT before and I know the difference.  

Well, for anyone who doesn't know but wants to find out, there's a nice little interactive animation at https://eahart.com/prius/psd/

3 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Thanks, I know how it works.  I just expressed it in layman's terms. I've driven the old gen. 3.5 liter hybrid RX with e-CVT before and I know the difference.  

Are you based in Europe or USA Peter?

Based in Budapest/ Hungary. My NX was built in Japan.

21 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

My NX was built in Japan.

That's really shocking build quality. Why did you even keep the car for so long? Why didn't you just return it after few months because obviously it is not fit for purpose. 

I would love to. But I would have to go court with Lexus. That would not make sense. The car can still take you from A to B. It is not a serious quality defect that impacts driving. No breach of contract. No guarantee for cabin silence. Of course, I can live with the engine and CVT sound. That is intentionally engineered like this. I got used to it.

But I cannot get used to the constant rattling and creaking. Even my passengers keep asking about the noise. And they joke if it was really a Lexus or just a fake car 😞😞 😞  

It would be interesting to know whether other users of similar NX models can reproduce the same creaks.  I have tried on my RX in comparable places and can't and mine feels very solid.  It seems Lexus may be building down to be price-competitive, not good for you or prospective owners.

6 minutes ago, Barry14UK said:

It would be interesting to know whether other users of similar NX models can reproduce the same creaks.  I have tried on my RX in comparable places and can't and mine feels very solid.  It seems Lexus may be building down to be price-competitive, not good for you or prospective owners.

I've actually just been out and tried. 

Ive got a NX 350H FSport with the same interior, and everything is rock solid in mine, no creaks at all like in the video.

What I suspect PeterPan, is your NX has at some stage been subject to a repair and the door card has not been properly refitted. The screen is odd as the plastic piece is in one section so the creaking there is odd. 

Its not much use to you that mine doesn't make the noises yours makes, but it should re-assure others possibly.

I do agree on the software updates, my NX sits outside my house connected to my wifi and has never even tried to do an update of any kind, its running the same software it was when it was made, so this is quite poor in my opinion. 

 

 

That is sad to spend all that money and to get a real old fashion Friday afternoon car. I have had my NX 450 from new for two years and no rattles or knocks. Maybe go back to the dealer and see what they and Lexus can do for you.  

Yes, it is a Friday sunset car. To be sure, all 4 doors have the same issue.  I searched similar cimplaints and there are quite a lot in different forums. (just like mine: 

So the story goes….

Well, I will ask the same question as your friends. Are you sure is a Lexus and not fake? There's too many faults in a short period of ownership to classify this as factory defect. It should not have been released by production and quality control to sales.

ECVT does not go fast by pressing down hard on the throttle. Doing that is noisy and pointless. It works by gently pressing down and hold and again applying pressure gently and gradually. I found by doing that it tackles all terraine with ease and I have done that effortlessly and serene on steep hills; and motorways at over 80miles with no such loud noise. It is not a sport car, so don't expect a sudden whoosh by hitting the pedal. Having it on sports or sports + - I drive Fsport gives an extra oomph. I do motorways on sports + always.

Rattles and creaks, own mine - brand new from 22 and not a single rattle or creak. I can hear the tyre noise in my UX 24 but not even tyre noise in the NX. It is that quiet.

OTA updates, I agree is crap. Only had one OTA update in 3 years. I think Lexus forgot the car receives updates by OTA after building it or simply don't care.

I think you may be unlucky with a defective batch turned out with very poor quality control from the factory unlike Lexus. Dealing with Lexus Customer Service is not very effective. I once wrote to their Uk Director of Sales and to my surprise all my requests accelerated fast. 

 

Unfortunately Friday/Monday cars do exist. I've had a couple in my time from so-called premium manufacturers. Hateful when it turns out you're the sap that ended up with one.

12 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Yes, it is a Friday sunset car. To be sure, all 4 doors have the same issue.  I searched similar cimplaints and there are quite a lot in different forums. (just like mine: 

So the story goes….

At the end of that reddit thread the OP said.....

"Someone on Reddit shared the solution to me. Spraying a silicone-based lubricant into the gap between the plastic door panel and the metal part it touches eliminates the noise instantly. I tried this and it completely resolved the issue. No more squeaking."

 

Worth a try?

Starlight, thanks for your comments. I fully agree with the e-CVT driving instructions. This is the way I also drive it. No kickdown, no overdose.  I also agree with other comments that it reflects a  completely malfunctioning QC system of the Lexus factory. You can build door panels and dashboard in your bad moments... but there must be a quality control to check the defects. 

As for the Lexus Customer Care: no use in submitting them any complaints. The send back all complaints to the dealer. The dealer is speechless and has no idea how to fix problems originating in the factory. Anyway, Lexus Customer Care is a Toyota Customer Care in CEE countries. (That too may be a mistake)

9 minutes ago, Hayzee said:

At the end of that reddit thread the OP said.....

"Someone on Reddit shared the solution to me. Spraying a silicone-based lubricant into the gap between the plastic door panel and the metal part it touches eliminates the noise instantly. I tried this and it completely resolved the issue. No more squeaking."

 

Worth a try?

Thanks Hayzee! I have already done this lubrication. Nothing changed. The dealer says they need to completely dismantle all doors and put in new insulation behind the panels, replace screws and tighteners etc. 2 days of work. Concerning the 14" central display creaking they have no idea. Certain plastic covers and panels reflect a bad choice of material with too high thermal expansion. There is no fix for that.

22 hours ago, PeterPan said:

- E-CVT: keeping the revs unnecessarily high, especially on slopes which results in a constant loud engine sound over 70-80 km/h. I mean very loud!

- Engine: screaming and roaring when accelerating or driving on slopes, unacceptable.

What rpm are you seeing when cruising at 80 kph? How high does the rpm go when accelerating?

Hi Peter, I am disappointed to hear that you have a "Friday Sunset" unfortunately you seem to have got it. I can only suggest what I would do, if it was me I would just wipe my mouth, sell it for the best price you can get and buy another car. This may sound harsh but if the Lexus dealership can't cure everything, you only have two options, put up and shut up, which will involve a car lifetime of aggravation or get rid of it. You will never be happy with the car.

It is your decision.

4 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Concerning the 14" central display creaking they have no idea. Certain plastic covers and panels reflect a bad choice of material with too high thermal expansion. There is no fix for that.

Yes there is a fix as I had the same issue on mine and my dealer fixed it and it has been silent ever since. 

Mine was the same, as soon as it got hot it I.e. with the sun pitching down on the surround it would start clicking/cracking. Cloudy weather there was no issue. 

The first attempt didn’t fix it completely, but then the Master Technician went beyond what the service manuals state and removed the screen again, but this time also removed the slim bezel from around the screen and applied thin self adhesive cloth tape (totally hidden and out of site). Since then it has been completely silent. He said he has never done that fix before as there was a risk he could damage the screen, but he has done others since mine and had the same success rate. 

Don’t give up, my Dealer has been excellent in sorting my issues. 

Thanks Stepppy, good workaround and I am happy to see this could be a solution. Of course, I can suggest it to my dealership. Yet it all depends on individual skills. Since there is no corrective action "from above", they can refuse doing so. The car has 3 years warranty and nobody wants to take risks. What a happy situation that you have a new car which needs "tinkering" with major interior parts. It was definitely tinkering in the Lexus factory 🙂,  plus skipping QC checks. It is a shame. I agree with Werlynne ("You will never be happy with the car"). 

15 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

Thanks Stepppy, good workaround and I am happy to see this could be a solution. Of course, I can suggest it to my dealership. Yet it all depends on individual skills. Since there is no corrective action "from above", they can refuse doing so. The car has 3 years warranty and nobody wants to take risks. What a happy situation that you have a new car which needs "tinkering" with major interior parts. It was definitely tinkering in the Lexus factory 🙂,  plus skipping QC checks. It is a shame. I agree with Werlynne ("You will never be happy with the car"). 

I am glad I have given you a glimmer of hope.

I know it’s disappointing, I came from a 2017 Prius which didn’t have any build issues so it was a bit of a shock that our lovely new Lexus had trim issues. Our Master Technician said it was a risk and really shouldn’t have done it, but he really wanted a happy customer so went ahead. I am not sure if he fed it up the line so it could be included as an official fix, but definitely worth asking. 

We too thought exactly the same as you and it would never be fixed, but we are very lucky in having an excellent dealer really want to go the extra mile. We never thought we would get to a place where we are as happy with the car as we are now - we love it now. 

3 hours ago, Thackeray said:

What rpm are you seeing when cruising at 80 kph? How high does the rpm go when accelerating?

The power indicator on the instrument cluster reflects the hybrid system's power usage rather than direct engine RPMs.  Yet the engine may rev loudly to maintain specific RPMs during acceleration because the e-CVT keeps the engine at an optimal rev point for power delivery rather than a smooth linear rise in revs. In a speed range of ca. 0-80 km/h the engine sound is not so  disturbingly loud, but when you keep pushing the pedal it gets louder and louder. The engine keeps "revving" but it doesn't necessarily correlate with vehicle speed. As a result, you can hear a loud revving engine in many situations while you cannot not feel any strong push in your seat. 

Did you buy it used?

The quality control for Japanese built cars is usually really good, so I am only asking as I wondered if at some point yours had all the door handles replaced (which means they had to remove all the door cards) and then the door cards have not been refitted correctly afterwards. 

Does not explain the screen, so maybe you just got really unlucky and its one of those cars where it was built with no care just before home time. 

 

This was a Lexus dealership exhibition car. It was de facto a  new  and immaculate car,  no service history. All doors "factory built".