Toyota Recalls Another 1.5M Cars - Including Thousands Of Lexus In The

[Steve ( West Mids )]

Thousands of Lexus cars are being recalled in Britain amid concerns their brakes could fail.

The company said in a statement that it was working with the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) to contact registered owners and keepers by letter to advise them of the procedure for taking their vehicle to a Lexus centre or an official Lexus service outlet for repair work.

The problems have not been known to cause any accidents so far, the company said.

The first recall concerns the brake master cylinder fitted to IS, GS and RX models built between February 2003 and November 2005.

‘Lexus is aware that the seal between the brake master cylinder and the brake booster may turn in its seat, causing brake fluid to leak into the brake booster,' the company said.

‘In the very unlikely event that this happens, the driver will be alerted to the problem by the low brake fluid warning light. The brakes will continue to function normally for a significant time - over 200 miles of regular driving. Lexus knows of no accidents caused by this issue.’

The repair involves the replacement of a small seal and a check for any fluid contamination in the brake booster. If any contamination is found, the brake booster will be replaced.

The job will take approximately two hours to complete, at no cost to the customer.

Approximately 15,400 UK registered vehicles are affected by the first recall.

The second recall concerns the fuel pump on GS 300 models built between September 2004 and February 2006.

Expansion and contraction of the fuel tank may stretch the fuel pump's electrical harness.

This may lead to a break in the circuit, causing the fuel pump, and so the engine, to stop without warning.

The repair involves replacement of the fuel pump wiring harness, a job that takes about three hours. The work will be done at no cost to the customer.

The second recall affects 2,081 UK-registered cars.

Belinda Poole, Lexus director, said: ‘We apologise for any inconvenience or concern these recalls may cause our customers.

Our Lexus centres will be liaising with our customers to carry out the recall repair procedures as promptly as possible, with all work undertaken by expertly trained Lexus service personnel.’

Toyota, the world's biggest automaker, has already recalled more than 10m vehicles in the past year, mostly for unintended acceleration, denting its reputation for quality and attracting intense scrutiny from U.S. safety regulators.

Today Toyota said 600,000 vehicles spanning 11 models in Japan were subject to the recalls, either for the faulty cylinder seal, the fuel pump wiring or both.

In the U.S., 740,000 Avalon, Highlander, Lexus GS300, IS250 and IS350 cars are being recalled to replace a brake master cylinder seal because there was a possibility that some brake fluid could leak from the cylinder, causing the brake warning lamp to light up.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1322427/Lexus-recall-selling-models-brake-fears.html#ixzz12ycoa8kk

[Parthiban]

I've just escaped this one, does that mean the brake system changed between my 2002 and a 2003 car?

[04AAA]

....

The first recall concerns the brake master cylinder fitted to IS, GS and RX models built between February 2003 and November 2005.

....

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1322427/Lexus-recall-selling-models-brake-fears.html#ixzz12ycoa8kk

So who is correct?

All IS models - or - just the IS 250 and 220d ?

I've never had much faith in recalls getting through to the s/h owners - if this does affect the IS300 I'd like to be forewarned, thanks.

[Jiberjaber]

Wow interesting news.... will have to see if I get a letter through the post then.

[Rory]

MODELS AFFECTED BY TOYOTA RECALL:

Lexus IS250 (UK)

Lexus GS300 (UK)

Lexus IS220d (UK)

Lexus RX300 (UK)

[Steve ( West Mids )]

I forgot to mention, I had the brake problem in my IS250 in May 2007 - total brake failure and the car was taken away on a flatbed.

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=41696&st=0&p=435664&hl=+total%20+brake%20+failure&fromsearch=1entry435664

They replaced the master cylinder, sent the old one to Japan for inspection but never did get back to me on what was wrong with it. So they can't deny they had not had any reports of failure of the master cylinder.

[knitware]

I forgot to mention, I had the brake problem in my IS250 in May 2007 - total brake failure and the car was taken away on a flatbed.

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=41696&st=0&p=435664&hl=+total%20+brake%20+failure&fromsearch=1entry435664

They replaced the master cylinder, sent the old one to Japan for inspection but never did get back to me on what was wrong with it. So they can't deny they had not had any reports of failure of the master cylinder.

They've obviously had reports of failure but what Toyota say is that they have had no reports of accidents caused by this problem.

[sidp]

I told Lexus my brake warning light came on, and was told it was ok, as I was booked in for a service. Service was cancelled a couple of times due to the snow in Dec/Jan by the dealer. Told them brakes were getting worse, finally had to get it towed from house to garage - and they told me the leak caused the damage and ~I had to pay as it was 'one of those things'.

(Is250 2005 - I assume they won't send me a recall notice, as the cylinder was replaced. I'll be speaking to them about a refund though.

Lexus is not what it used to be :(

Edited October 22, 2010 by sidp