Lexus knows about gearbox probs !!!!!!!!

[Rob]

hi guys sorry i have not done part 1 about crap dealers im on my annual holiday so am just being lazy! im back in UK in Jan so will do it then.

About my gearbox - i bitched like hell to lexus Uk and dropped it at lexus plymouth a few days later, straight away they offered to strip the g/box and change whatever was worn, they thought it was a syncro ring that was worn. I got a new gearbox BTW, my parents picked the car up on friday and were told by the service manager that Lexus knows there its a problem with the gearboxes!!!!!!! and the official line is not to do anything unless the customer "strongly" protests about it, the prob affects 1st and 2nd gear- its a prob with the synco rings. there is a redesigned box which cures the problem - hence my new box. SO if u have a prob then complain like hell!!!!! i must add that this problem only effects cars up to a certain chassis number! new cars are OK.

also they have issued a tech bulletin about the water pumps leaking- i had mine changed .

ok guys catch u again when im back from hols.

Cheers.

Robbie.

[Edited on 18-12-2001 by fluff34567]

[Monster-Mat]

do you kow how new the cars are that DONT suffer gbox problems...........i ocasionaly have problems ,is the water pump changed as a matter of course or only if it leaks

[Rob]

Hi all,

ok a few more details about the g/box, the problem is that the 1st and 2nd gear syncro rings and hubs wear in one spot which causes the occasional difficult gear selection, the new g/box has re-designed casings and internals so its a gearbox replacement, not just a strip.

The symptoms are:

1. Difficult selection of 1st and 2nd (but sometimes other gears)

2.2nd gear crunches when engaging(3rd also known to do this)

3.The shifter goes into the "gate" but then great resistance is felt before the gear engages.

4.If you double de - clutch the gear change is

normally OK.

5. The problem is intermittent, it does not depend on the operating temp, driving conditions etc ( mine would be fine for 2 -3 weeks then be bad 5 mins later)

6. 1st gear is impossible to engage if you are going more than walking pace ie changing from 2nd to1st.

The official line from lexus to the dealers used to be do not do anything unless the customer complains strongly, ( My sugesstion is to contact lexus head office first before the dealer) I have also noticed that when people mention the problem to dealers, they are saying

" They are all like that" this is just an excuse to avoid changing the gearbox!!!!

I am not sure up to what chassis number this problem effects, but i was told that mine was about the middle of the grouping with a known potential problem and mine was a V reg - I know that doesnt mean much, but it does mean that there are a lot of cars out there with bad g/boxes.

Remember complain like hell and get your g/box changed.

With regard to the water pump, it leaks around the small metal pipe on top of the pump, you will see if it is leaking as the coolant is red and stains the pump housing, if you are not sure its leaking, after running the car for a while use a bit of paper towel and dab around the pipe/pump junction.

I dont know the policy about changing/repairing the pump, all i can say is that i said mine was leaking( its faulty sealing rings) and they changed it, I am assuming that a groove forms in the casting thus allowing the fluid to seep past.

[Monster-Mat]

im still getting occasional stiffness:o

mostly first -second and -3rd when i rush the gears,is this the onset of the problems,i had itreally bad in the black one...........alas its not mine anymore:D(i hated the black one)

i will be keeping an eye open for the problem getting worse,then of to lexus i will go,is there a fault/tech bullatin number,so i can quote it when the need arrises

[Rob]

No, sorry I dont have any fault/bulletin number, all that we were told ( By the service manager) is that lexus is aware there is a problem with the gearboxes and it has told the dealers to ignore or divert any customer complaints hence the standard "They are all like that" answer. ( yes, all the old gearboxes are like that!)

If you are starting to get resistance when changing gear, normally when the shifter is in the gate, or crunching gears then the syncro hubs/ rings are getting worn.

the difficult gear change is caused by the syncrohub /cone getting jammed between the gear cluster that is why sometimes the gear wont engage.

I am very keen to encourage people to complain as I had an absolute nightmare in getting mine changed, it has taken about 8 months of hastle with the dealers, but after one strong phone call to head office the car was in the workshop 2 days later.

If anybody has questions email me and ill try and answer anything in a bit more detail OR just post here.

cheers

Robbie.

[Edited on 29-12-2001 by fluff34567]

[Edited on 28-2-2002 by fluff34567]

[vic]

Ive got an IS200Sport which is a Yreg & is about a yr old, anybody know if mine is too new to claim for this? Within a week of getting it I went back to my dealer & said 'whenever I try to put it in 2nd it makes a bit of a crunching sound & sometimes wont go in' his reply was 'This is characteristic of the car, they all do that dont worry about it!!!' I really am glad that i've found this site because their is so much I wanted to know about my car & I'm finding pretty much all of the answers!!!

[Rob]

hi vic, it is a characteristic of the car ONLY because the gearbox design is S**T!! the cause is the syncro ring/hub wearing they are only brass( or that type of material) I have been told that lexus have pin pointed the item/cause of the wear and now they are replacing these components only - in my case i got a complete gearbox( redesigned) but i am now starting to get the first signs of trouble again!!

Go back to your dealer and tell them you know there is a known problem with the gearboxes and you want it sorted if they are being difficult about it say you will contact the head office. thiss normally gets a response!

keep me posted!

cheers rob.

[bucklepa]

My Lexus is 6 months old, no problems with 1st & 2nd gear but I get occasional resistance when shifting to 3rd, especially when changing quickly. Could this be the same problem? Sometimes it's ok though.

[darkness82]

i'm not sure whether is this one of the gear box problem..

it happened approx once every 4 days, when i'm trying to shift the gear from 2nd to 3rd, the clutch was fully pressed and when the gear shaft arrive at the 3rd gear's gate, it feel kinda like something is hitting the gear shaft (one time hitting) and bounce my shaft away... after that it return to normal again... is this one of the problems??

p/s: my palm felt painful when it bounce like that...