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As a two Lexus owner and recent purchaser of a late gen 1 NX300h I’m kicking myself and reading with mounting horror that somehow I missed the RAV4, ES, RX, NX canbus theft fiasco despite doing what I thought was extensive research for a nearly new used vehicle from various premium brands and deciding on the NX based on reliability, comfort and the dealer after sales service. Outside of owners forums, the criminal fraternity and a few articles this issue seems have been kept a dirty secret by Lexus and to make matters worse the Lexus (as a brand) attitude seems to be a two fingered, not our problem, fob off to affected and potentially affected owners of vehicles subject to this theft method. A theft method made unjustifiably easy by poor design by the manufacturer and it appears they are making every attempt to deflect and avoid responsibility for. Sadly this appears to be the modus operandi for Lexus (the brand) when faced with inconvenient problems of their making that owners suffer for. Although class actions have been mooted it appears the most likely method owners of affected vehicles can gain satisfactory redress to safeguard their valuable possessions as far as possible and to a level expected of a brand whose vehicles start at £40,000 and go up significantly from there and where even used models are between £20,000 to £35,000 from authorised dealers is to kick up such a very public fuss that it has the potential to become Lexus’s Ratner’s prawn sandwich moment. Although not generally available from a casual internet search and often actively hidden by larger corporates and brands it is relatively easy to establish the full corporate structure, senior and board officers and obtain personal contact details for most large organisations that prefer to remain obscure. Lexus will be no different and it really is wasting time dealing with a ‘customer service’ mouthpiece. That is exactly what they want. Obfuscate, wear down, evade and hopefully the energy and anger will dissipate and the problem quietly go away without doing anything. Should my NX300h be stolen due to canbus theft I am an educated, assertive, persistent and vindictive retired man with plenty of time on my hands and I will make it my mission to make sure Lexus’s refusal to provide a remedial fix for a problem entirely of their own making and they are fully aware of will be their Ratner’s prawn sandwich moment. I will sell my Lexuses, never purchase another one as has been the attitude of some of the more aggrieved owners on this site already inconvenienced and out of pocket due to canbus theft and make sure this does not remain concealed from the general public who think Lexus is an aspirational and desirable brand to own with high customer satisfaction. There is no point keeping this issue under wraps. The criminal fraternity and organised crime gangs are already fully conversant with canbus theft so owners are not disseminating anything that would cause them further significant damage. I would be interested to communicate with other Lexus owners who are concerned about this canbus theft issue, who have been fobbed off so far by Lexus UK Customer Services with such nonsense as use a steering lock deterrent, owners who have suffered and are now ex Lexus owners and who intend never to purchase another Lexus again due to the experience and those who have communicated with Lexus executives or organisations such as Which, mass media generally or similar rather than waste time with Lexus UK Customer Services. As a cohort existing Lexus owners are generally more likely than the average brand customer to be educated, affluent, assertive, pro-active and have useful skills and contacts. If Lexus wants that sort of customer for its premium priced vehicles, but chooses to insult and ignore them when not convenient for the brand as far as I am concerned it should expect to die by or at least be seriously financially damaged by its own sword and arrogance.

For the best under bonnet experience of a Lexus you cannot beat the original grand daddy of them all the series 1 as seen here when mine was 18 years old

I suppose my other reflection is that with my Audi, before a “fast” overtake or if going up a hill, I’d change the gearbox to sport to get the engine power I needed. I don’t worry about any of that with my NX - it stays in normal, and I simply put my foot down should I need to accelerate. It gets and goes plenty fast in response.

Before the 450 I owned an Audi Q5 which was plenty fast. I have been experimenting with the Lexus and find that eco mode makes for a nice sedate limousine like drive, normal mode sharpens everything up including responsiveness and acceleration, and sport mode boosts responsiveness and acceleration more again, with the addition of some regen breaking. When in auto EV hybrid mode, if I floor the car in Sport mode, the engine kicks in assisted by the electric motor, the nose comes up, the wheels spin, and the car accelerates quickly, which does feel fast and is much faster than the Q5. The car is fine during motorway driving and I find the car can more than held its own during a trip to London and back last week (using adaptive cruise control is wonderful). Electric power alone is instant and fast and would not break records, but what more would you need unless your goal was to lose your licence or to get yourself into a spot of bother?

For those who have the patience this short 5 min video was taken by Phil Walker Car Sales Ltd of Sheffield just after I sold my LS460 to him a few years back. He retired not long after and spent 40 years selling cars but loved the LS460. I was so proud to own this car in this colour combination. This was my very first Lexus and I stuck with Lexus ever since. Towards the end of the video he shows the car with the bonnet up and that is what this post is really about. He sold the car 5 days after he posted the video. In my opinion Lexus set out to impress by having the cleanest look of any car I have ever seen when the bonnet was opened. A damp cloth was all it took to keep it looking like new. My current car the LS500h has a similar look but not like a LS460 and certainly most cars today make it very difficult to keep an engine bay looking like new or at least clean and for someone as anal as me that's a hard thing to overcome. OCD has always been an issue for me but the first time I opened the bonnet of a LS460 I thought "now this is what I'm talking about" and how much time I would save cleaning. The ES300h I owned before my LS500 took a lot of time to keep clean and it still looked like a plumber's nightmare. If there is a smarter, clutter free, more streamlined under bonnet look than a LS460 be sure to let me know.

The £10m JLR are spending seems quite cheap to me and I suspect they have a significantly higher sales volume in the UK than Lexus. If nothing else they could do a deal with one of the 3rd party products such as Ghost at a fraction of the cost a retail customer would pay.

Thanks Kieran. I have managed source one from eBay, together with a few other bits I need.

What I love most about this car is that it doesn’t encourage you to drive like an idiot, instead rewarding a lighter right foot with a serene and comfortable experience. My previous car had twice the power of this one and I have to confess that the re-arrangement of internal organs during a burst of ‘spirited’ driving became very wearing and stressful.

Try Wales... no joke 😂

Thank you for the messages and support. I just wanted to bring some updates... so far nothing, the car is still stolen... last night I got a bit hopeful as an article from BBC was saying that a thief was caught in Grays and had a Lexus, but it was an NX300h... full article here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-67526914.amp Also wanted to add an interesting article from JLR: https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-12774935/Jaguar-Land-Rover-older-models-Range-Rover-security-tech-keyless-theft.html?fbclid=IwAR0Rv7IF9K0aUeL1lxHn3vtFL-klUjEnpLSYPWDvMbFZkdoHafAtDDyvsWw JLR is doing something about their theft issue, maybe is not the perfect solution, but at least they are trying, they admit they have a problem and are trying to fix it. The thing that annoys me the most is that Lexus could have done an awareness leaflet (email) for every person buying, owning, servicing, or anything to do with having a car from them or using a service they offer, saying that they are aware of the increased numbers of Lexus (or Toyota) being stolen via CAN method and encourage the use or fitting of extra deterrents (steering wheel lock, immobilizer, tracker...), this way people can are aware and prepare. I was servicing my car at Lexus every few months, so they had plenty of opportunities to make me aware. I'm not referring only to me, other people don't use forums or they trust the brand too much to think that this can happen to them, or maybe they think that the car is bulletproof against theft or they don't use the internet to keep up to date, maybe other reasons... Lexus (and Toyota) are losing customers because of this, I won't be buying another Lexus, and if my car is recovered I will sell it straight away... I'm still hopeful... but I'm aware of the fact that even if I'm adding extra deterrents to keep it from being stolen the thieves will still try to steal it and damage will be done every single time... to replace the cable and front bumper is around 6K... In the last week, I got in touch with quite a few people who were in similar positions, Lexus owners... if their stolen car didn't have a tracking system or immobilizer it was never recovered... if they had a tracking system or immobilizer then they were left with the car, but damaged... one person had 4 attempts and after being repaired 3 times (bumper and wiring loom, which takes a few weeks for parts to be delivered and fitted, insurance premium goes up) the 4th time the thieves decided to cut all seats... so far everyone which had their car stolen or vandalized had moved away from Lexus... just by curiosity, try to go to a Lexus dealer and ask if they want your car... they might say that their stock is full... more and more people are realising the hard way that this is not a great car to own because of theft... other than that is amazing, reliable, fuel-efficient... I know that not everyone will agree with me, but I do hope that people are being informed more by the manufacturers... It's a game of cat and mouse, thieves are always finding new ways of stealing, but the manufacturers can make a difference by at least keeping their customers informed and aware... Sorry for the long post, but I do hope this will be read and shared with other Lexus (or Toyota owners)... and I do hope that they are heading in the right direction, maybe trying to fix the problem like JLR... maybe other manufacturers... Have a great day and I'll keep you updated if anything exciting happens....

Understood. I initially thought you were saying your insurance wouldn’t cover the damaged.

Due to the fact, I know these low lifes will try again, so claiming multiple damages would only damage my pocket. Trust me they came back for a second go. In this case what would you suggest?

How things have changed over time. The original LS400 was starting to sell in the states with 8000 units sold when two (2 )owners complained about the cruise control. They recalled all 8000 cars, called the owners when it would be convenient washed the car and filled to the max with petrol. Owners living over 100 mls away from a dealer were visited by an engineer to perform the recall. Compare that to todays reaction... Seems todays management is full of bean counters looking at spreadsheets instead of customers.

You're right Stephen, Portfolio first appeared 2 or 3 years after your XK in the picture. My error.

The law is very clear here. You can return that car within a 30 day period and are entitled to a full refund. Thereafter you lose this short term right, but would still be entitled to repair, or replacement. As usual this sounds like your typical sales guy trying it on. Literally just tell them what you want and explain what comes next if they wish to sidestep the issue.

But don't you think keeping the SC 430 is just a reminder of bad memories? Do you really want the burden of carrying that baggage around with you. I am always glad to help out others in alleviating stuff like this. Just feel free to reach out your hand for a little help in discarding that issue.😀

Truly very disappointing, as my experience with 2 attempted thefts including poor action on trying to resolve this issue quickly has led me to sell my car quickly. Now driving a very good Audi A6 Avant but keeping my SC430, which I still love driving by the way. Overall, my experience with Lexus has been a bit of a setback. I thought very highly of the brand but knowing that they will not be doing their best to keep existing customers reassured when they clearly have a serious weakness with the CANBUS system is hugely concerning.

I had 1 lower quote of £694 but that was for a telematic policy as well, and I have been driving for 59 years after passing my test first time when I was 17, absolutely ridiculous.

I haven't really tried a quick 0 to 60 yet but electric cars are generally very rapid as no gear changes are required. Something else to try 😀

Before I went for the LS500 I had the ES300 which was only 16 months old and bought retail from that awful Lexus dealer in Cambridge. Here is what they believed was a well presented retail car in terms of under the hood and it's leather. The seat shows a 50/50 split after I cleaned half of it to emphasise the filth. Total anathema to me and only because of the spec did I continue to do a deal knowing I would sort it out later.

😉 XK

Thanks for the couple of responses. By way of a quick update. I ended up going for the Nextbase 622GW. It does enough for what I want. I decided against having it installed by RS Connect after seeing the horror story above. Contacted Lexus Sheffield and had it installed by them for 1.5 hours labour charge for front and rear cameras, hardwired so it starts recording when the car starts. So slightly more than RS connect. They did a perfect job at the dealers, really pleased with the result.

Where did you get the info that it's a direct drive compressor and doesn't have a clutch? Just curious because from what I can see it does have a magnetic clutch and isn't massively different to the LS400. From looking on Amayama and RockAuto there is a magnet clutch assy on the front which looks the same as the LS400, which definitely does have a magnetic clutch. My previous LS400 had an AC issue and it was the clutch on the compressor so bought a Denso one from RockAuto, ordered Friday lunchtime and it was delivered Monday afternoon!! They are listed on RockAuto for your car, Denso 4710574 - £470 including carriage and duty, and it looks like it has a clutch assy to me. You should be able to check yourself, just have a look at the compressor and if it has a clutch assy it will look like the pic of the one listed on RockAuto and Amayama. RockAuto link: More Information for DENSO 4711574 (rockauto.com) EPC link: Heating & air conditioning - compressor for Lexus LS430 UCF30R - Auto parts (epc-data.com)

Wow, with one's that size you must have been in bomb disposal.

Bravo. I think this sums it up perfectly

If you have FB, join the UK LS 400 430 460 group, great group overall, but there is a guy Scott who is breaking a 96 LS400. I've had a few bits off him before, he's a lovely guy and may have what you are looking for! 🙂

I have a 450h+ and previously drove an Audi diesel… As long as not forced into Ev mode, and you have some battery charge, I find it plenty fast. Especially a 0-30 start from traffic lights if there’s an idiot planning to undertake and pull out before the bus lane ahead…

It might be less, cannot be stolen if you are driving it 🤭

Exchange it. You don't have to get a replacement from them within the 30-day period, but you do need to declare that this is what you'd like to do. I bought an approved gen 3 model back in 2019 and it had damage to the exhaust system and undertrays that suggested a harder life than normal. They wouldn't do anything about the exhaust so after a tetchy conversation with the branch manager it was agreed that I would exchange it. Luckily the right replacement came along and I haven't needed to go back there since (it wasn't my local dealer).

Glad you got it sorted. Not good that your dealer wanted to charge you for fitting, many will do it for free. You won't have any issues going forward, it would be immediate if there were an issue. The advise here to use an official dealer was because of specific issues with the IS stereo that is known to fail. As I stated, I'm not sure it applies to 2017 models anyway but if you were to have experienced the issue then you would be looking at a £2000 repair bill than an independent would deny any liability for.

That's the one!

All I have to say is Gor Blimey and Amazing

The whole car looks brilliant. Well done 👍 Those wheels look pretty good too ….. professionally done a couple years back on my Mk3 cost me £260 sans the centre caps which are a solid colour plastic thru’n’thru’ The refurbished wheels colour I had done to match the centre caps …….. I didn’t have the centre caps refurbd. as their manfd. solid state colour is ok to me and I thought a top painted finish might be vulnerable 🤔 The wheels refurb whilst not gteed. he thought might last 15 years …… if I don’t bash ‘em 😂 Malc I would leave your home finish as they look too good to mess around with right now Well Done 👏

I certainly don't class it as a slow car. I probably drive more sedately these days but when rapid acceleration is called for (overtaking etc) there is more than enough horses under the bonnet to complete the manoeuvre safely.

Plus, the ones with their fog lights on, whatever the weather..

I just find the RX a relaxing car to drive and do just that, on occasion if there is a big hill I make it work for a living within reason as this will help the engine IMO Did used to look at the MPG now and then when I first bought it but never do now.

Every 20k miles / 4 years is the standard service schedule. There is no distinction between a normal and severe schedule for this element. Worth testing it rather than just replacing it before the proper schedule.

You should do a "drain and fill" which is basically a standard change and not a flush. You want some of the clutch material to remain in the oil. Anyway I'm sure you know all this if you've been watching The Car Care Nut. Some or all of the extended fluid change intervals come with caveats, for example the 10k mile oil change assumes you drive the car a certain way, with certain things like towing or performance driving excluded, meaning you should revert back to 5k/6mo oil changes. I can imagine a similar idea with the transmission, since spirited driving will have more frequent shifts and high rpm hard shifts, etc. Also iirc the push for extended intervals was mostly driven by certain government and environmental agencies, rather than the manufacturers trying to make it better for the customer. You might be fine either way, but if you care about the car and want it to last a long time I think it's still better to do more frequent changes. Ironically it may actually be better for the environment as the car will last longer and probably burn less oil etc. When I had my RCF done it was in most of the day and the service advisor explained that the car had to be left to cool down, then put on the lift and brought up to a certain temperature during the process, so I believe they did it properly. The most annoying part is that they usually try to talk you out of it and you basically have to insist you've done your own research and want it done anyway. Coolant should be changed more frequently as well, since it becomes acidic over time. The one thing that's still a bit of a mystery to me is rear differential oil changes.

The other thing to note is this isn’t a full drain down and flush, more like a top up. Also it’s been done by Lexus, so I’m sure they know what they’re doing. I was out in mine today and the one thing I do remember was it used to be snatchy when cold. It’s perfectly smooth again despite me not being in the car much.

Toyota Lexus for “life” was is 100k miles I’ve learnt from this Forum As I’ve said before I’ve had the gearbox oil part drained and refilled on my 95 Ls400 a while ago and now on 248k she drives very smoothly I might do another partial drain at 270k miles too ….. a few years yet maybe Malc

The only way I can stop the engine from shutting off it putting the car in Sport+ and selecting a shift range S1, S2 etc.. When you come to a stop the engine will not shut off (in mine anyway!). These hybrids don't wear out like conventional start stop cars as the motor smoothly spins the engine up... Not like a starter motor!

Extremely thoughtful and well written post. Been trying to offload my ES for a few weeks now and have interacted with multiple Lexus dealers over the planned disposal. It has been most telling the interaction with them and when the sale is completed will provide a post about the experience.

So if third party companies can develop solutions that can be retrofitted relatively easily then surely Lexus could and should offer a solution.

Lots Of Good Comments here Len .. Very profound and could,nt Agree More

It is difficult to say if they are the same thieves but I suspect they could be since they knew where the car was for the second attempt. The thing is even if you have a ghost immobiliser, the thieves can still do some damage with the ES ie bumper and loom cable. This issue can still be a problem for the more secured ES 2023 and above (as encrypted CANBUS is programmed instead of 'open' program for all previous ES models) as thieves may try the same technique pulling the bumper out (damaging it) and cutting the loom cable. The risk is very serious as if loom cable cannot be repaired then, you would be looking at near £6k cost for the replacement loom, which would take 3 months at least wait... It would be an insurance claim but overall, the premiums will rise dramatically... Under these circumstances, Lexus should have reviewed this problem much sooner to try and mitigate the vulnerability. It is pretty serious and sadly more of us who owns or owned a Lexus ES will agree with this. Lexus will be loosing customers in the long run. Sad but a fact.

Actually had the misfortune of thieves ripping out my front bumper 2 days ago. It's a facelift but they didnt steal it for some reason, have them on video too, takes about 2mn, then they put it back and leave. Called lexus today to ask what was happening and the lady of the phone told me that just today, 4 people called and said that their cars was stolen, so this phenomenon might already be widespread. As of now, no official statement from lexus.

Honestly, it makes no difference as thieves do not necessarily know that 2023 is fitted with encrypted CANBUS. they will potentially damage the bumper and loom cable. Worst I would say is that if a proud owner wishes to have a private plate number, the thieves will not know which year the car is from so it will be prone to attempted theft...