valley boy

Could be the EGR valve is clogged up. I had this a couple of times and not long after the "check vsc" warning and limp mode scenario would kick in. One time it killed the cat and would have been a £2,000 - £2,500 repair as the car was >1 year out of warranty, but Lexus covered it as goodwill gesture (it probably helped that the car was serviced by Lexus / Toyota though).

To avoid a repeat of this and any potential head gasket / DPF/ DMF failures I now drive a Toyota GT86 - miss the Mark Levinson, reversing camera and some of the refinement - but good fun and better on fuel. Will probably return to Lexus in a couple of years time once the new IS is bedded in and if they do bring out a couple version as hinted.

Try putting some grease in the runners and move the seat fully forwards and backwards a few times to spread the grease - it solved the problem for me.

On my home from work tonight (about 3/4 miles from home) I had the dreaded "check vsc" warning and engine went into safe mode. As posted above I had a similar experience about 18 months ago. That time I was told the EGR valve had got clogged and caused the CAT to fail.

Is it likely to be the same fault (I have done 10k or so since)? If so would Lexus cover the cost? Or what elaeis it likely to be. I have Lexus roadside assistance - would they be able to diagnose the problem?

Rang Lexus Roadside Assistance (the AA), and they turned up within 20 mins, plugged in his computer and was told the problem was the EGR valve. I took up his offer to clean it and clear the fault codes to get me up and running again. He did this in 3/4 of an hour and the car drives normally again. The amount of "soot" was amazing. The car is due a service (at my local Toyota centre) next week and have asked them to check the valve (as per AA man's recommendations), although he said this would happen again at some point as my commute to work is only about 10 miles. So I think I will be keeping it until next spring and be going back to petrol or possibly hybrid.

PS The service from the AA was excellent.

On my home from work tonight (about 3/4 miles from home) I had the dreaded "check vsc" warning and engine went into safe mode. As posted above I had a similar experience about 18 months ago. That time I was told the EGR valve had got clogged and caused the CAT to fail.

Is it likely to be the same fault (I have done 10k or so since)? If so would Lexus cover the cost? Or what elaeis it likely to be. I have Lexus roadside assistance - would they be able to diagnose the problem?

I had the same problem last year. Mine was 13 months outside the warranty period (44k) and had been serviced by Lexus / Toyota service centres. I had mine towed into Lexus Cardiff and they estimated around £2300 to put right, but said they would contact Lexus if any goodwill would be forthcoming. Fortunately Lexus came up trumps and met the cost and restored my faith in the brand, so will give them first crack of the whip when I decide to change.

All sorted - if all else fails read the manual!!

The following warning message appeared today "oil maint req'd". I've checked the oil level and that seems fine and also reset the oil maintenace log in the maintenace menu on the navigation screen. The car drives normally and the temperature gauge is normal aswell. Has anybody had a similar message and is there an easy fix?

Hello All

I own a 2007 IS 220 D - had it serviced in Feb 2010 - in March VSC message of self destruct come on and car goes into limp mode - Lexus recovered and advised it was the EGR valve which they replaced and all would be good. For a short while it was and then on the 15/06/2010 the dreaded VSC message comes back - RAC advised same code as before and goes back to Lexus - received a call from Lexus they advise it is the EGR but this time something to do with the cooling ???? and said the repairs will be £2000 after re gained conscious and began to breath again - they advised not covered as the warranty expired on the 30/04even though they did not offer me any extension to the warranty. I'm not a technical guy so they could be talking in French for all I know - the car has only covered 38000 miles serviced by the same Lexus dealer it was purchased from.

Any ideas as I aint spending £2000

I think I had the same problem (I have a 2006 220d Sport with 44k). I took mine to my local Toyota centre and was told that the cat had failed which would have cost me £1k. They went to order the part from nearest Lexus centre but were told that there would be something else wrong that caused the cat to fail so simply replacing the cat would probably be a false economy. Anyway it was taken to the Lexus dealer and they diagnosed that it was the EGR valve that failed which caused overheating and killed the cat. I was also looking at £2k but the dealer applied to Lexus GB for a contribution and they offered to pay for the repairs in full. I assume that this would have been done at a reduced price so fair play to the dealer for foregoing the extra profit if I was paying the retail price. I have a third party warranty so hopefully I would have been covered anyway. All other things being equal as a result Lexus will most probably be my first port of call when I'm ready to change. In addition I don't know if it was a result of the repairs or a software update but it is now a totally different car - much quieter, smoother especially at low revs and the scarey flat spot and sudden surge has disappeared, although the fuel economy has stayed the same.

Looks like I have a similar issue. Took the car to my local Toyota Service Centre and they said the cat had failed and gave me two fault codes - P2002 and C1207. They went to order the part but after discussions with Lexus Cardiff they advised me to take it there as there be more involved than simply replacing the cat. The car should now be in Lexus Cardiff and I am waiting for their diagnosis. I have a warrany direct warranty but the cat is specifically excluded but if Lexus do provide a 6 year warranty on this I will hopefully be OK. I have had the 5th injector recall so I don't know if this will have any effect as in your case.

I can't say I am impressed that such a fundamental component fails so soon (my mileage is approx 44k).

What is your latest situation?

hi guys, im new to forum and new to lexus and already have problems.. I bought a 2006 is220d SE-l with 84000miles. After 92 days and only 1,000 miles, it gave a check VSC error. took it to kwik fit because a friend works there and its just round the corner and it looked like it was the big rubber pipe in the engine (dont know what its called!!) but it had burst and seemed to be the reason for no power.

anyway, it was fixed very quickly but "check VSC" remained. ran through a general auto computer and tried to reset. No joy.

ran through toyota computer and reset. no joy. error comes out at CAT1...

my friend said he didnt want to order the cat as its £850 + VAT and he has been told by a local independant lexus place that the cat was redesigned and therefore you cannot simply replace the part alone because it just wont fit but you have to change the whole system which is a cat, a "service cat" EGR valves and few other bits.. this comes to £2000 for parts. He will fit it cheap but the problem doesnt stop here..

Lexus originally said that the cat was covered for 6 years or 100,000 miles and as the car is less that this on both counts i can just book it in and they would do it for free.. Bonzer. BUT THEN they called back and said they would not do it because "its had previous work done" i asked them to tell me what the work is and when they got back to me they said "a modified cat and valves were fitted in September 2008".. so i said, if its covered and you did the work what is the problem? and they said the only thing i can do is as follows

1) pay for the repairs and they will try and claim it back from TME under warranty (very expensive im assuming)

2) get it fixed elsewhere cheaper but they wont be able to apply for warranty money (expensive anyway)

Now I know the dealer is liable for the repairs technically but as expected he is saying just speak to Lexus and doesnt want anything to do with it. The car has been parked up since 11th April and it going in next friday for a diagnostic and quote but i cant get the work done until at least the 12th May as i have given the dealer until 11th may to agree to fix before i sue him...

seems VSC is common, but has anyone heard of Lexus refusing work on a part they told me outright was covered under their warranty because "they already fixed it once"?

and has anyone had any experience with their CAT and having to replace the entire system rather than just the cat itself due to this redesign?

sorry this is such a bumper first post, ive been going round in circles for weeks!!

Just noticed that one of the plastic pop up covers from the headlamp washers has disappeared. At first I thought it had been pinched but there is no damage or any marks on the bumper, and everything works OK except that the jet sprays in the wrong direction as the cover deflected the water back towards the headlamp.

I was wondering if you can just buy the plastic part and it just clips on or whether you need whole new unit and have it fitted at a garage.

Just had a 40,000 service on my 220d sport at a local Toyota service centre. Cost £220 including the brake fluid change. Also changed the 2 rear tyres 255/40/18 (Vredstein Ultrac Sessanta) for £242 which I thought was a cracking price until on inspection I saw they put on 225/40/18's in error. We will be "sorting something out" together on Monday when they correct their error.

I was quoted £365 for the 40,000 mile service by Lexus Cardiff about a month ago, although I'm not due a service until Mid October.

Hi All,

I'm sure I've seen something on this before but can't find it. Basically, when I start the car and the speedo & rev counter dials do their sweep, I hear what I can best describe as a "rattatchy" noice, which only lasts a second of so. I doubt it's anything to get over exicted about but I would welcome any other users experince, and whether in fact it is something I should be concerned about.

Many thanks in anticipation.

I'm starting to get the same noise, and it seems to be getting gradually louder. I don't know if it will lead to failure but am considering buying extended warranty just in case. I have read here that you are looking at about £1500 if the unit fails. Plus I would be covered for other items.

At the end of the day its down to the individual. I chose the Sport mainly as you basically have the SE-L spec at the price of the SE with the exception of leather and a much more usable 6th gear which I read overcame the problems with the 6th gear on the other models. You get a firmer ride and 18" wheels and tyres are obviously a bit more expensive to replace.

Well it isn't the brake cable it seems, nor is it the parcel shelf because Lexus Leicester say the rattle continued from the back even with the entire shelf removed. Having previously replaced the rear sunblind (oops) they now propose to remove and reseat the rear screen. It does seem to be heat /sunlight related.

For five years Lexus Leicester saw me once a year for the annual service on my 200 sport. Now they see me about once a fortnight. Oh well. I had better explain before I take it back in that the brake squeal they fixed (at the second attempt) with new pads two weeks ago seems to be making a comeback - not too bad as yet but we shall see. Pity because they did seem to have cured it.

Has anyone had that rear screen fix done? Does it work?

Not had the rear screen fix done what is it?

But i do have a very similar rattle to you. mine isnt there all the time and it appears to be heat / sun light related sounds very "tinny" to me it sounds like its coming from the back seat???

One thing i have tried a couple of times is to pull over give the rear seat a whack! (very techinical fix this) just against the seat itself on the vertical section, and also open and close the hatch thing (is it supposed to be for ski's?.... very useful in kent! :P ) that seams to cure it. As mine is very intermittant, i have not really had chance to...

A:- Sit someone in the back and try all of the above to try and narrow it down...

or

B:- To get chance to keep pulling over and try all of the things if on my own ..... this is of course a right pain in the butt... pull over.. seat belt off ..door open ...in the back of car... do some whacking ..shut rear door ...back in front.. seat belt on.. drive off.. do half a mile ...hear the noise... find somewhere to pull over .....belt off ..etc ..etc ..etc :tsktsk:

Keep us posted if you find a cure! mine is not really that annoying as it seams to be there for about 5mins then goes and its probably only there about once a week or so. but it would drive me to distraction if it was there all the time i am sure

I have done this and it seems to have done the trick. No hint of any noises even the warm spell we have had the last few days .

Just changed my two fronts (225/40/18) thanks to hitting a pothole and knocking the tracking out. Looked at some reviews on mytyres.co.uk and after drawing up a shortlist ended up buying from tyretraders.com. Paid £140 including delivery for the tyres and £20 for fitting. Went for Falken FK452's as they scored well on grip, wear rate, and noise. They scored slightly better than the Toyos that are mentioned a lot on here. Other makes scoring well were Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta and Avon ZV5. The guy who fitted couldn't believe the price I was paying but said prices change so quickly to take advantage depending on what is in the country. Indeed I looked on tyre traders today and the Falkens are not listed neither are the Vredesteins, so it is well worth looking around. Camskills have good prices also.

Not long after I had mine I was pulling up outside my house one evening and my neighbour was going out to the local for a couple of pints (he had his back to me). I pulled up alongside him to say that I would meet him there in 5 minutes and he was startled to see me as he hadn't heard the car. To my mind the Lexus is certainly no louder than others especially from the inside. Another neighbour has a Golf diesel and you should hear that we he starts it up.

Hi,

I'm new here we recently like 2 weeks ago brought a Lexus IS220d, very classy n nice i must admit but one thing troubled me that we only recieved one key. I want to get another key/fob but Lexus dealers are quoting £350. Is there any place other than dealers that i could get a fob from and get the dealer to code it?

Any help would be greatly appreciated :)

Hello

Did you purchase your 220d from a Lexus dealer? If so you should have at least two keys/remotes. It says so on the Lexus website. Go to http://www.lexus.co.uk/used-cars/key-features.aspx and look in the "Vehicle Preparation and Valeting" section and the "outside" sub-section, top line. The dealer should have known about that, when I part exed my IS200 last year one of the first questions I was asked was "how many keys have you got?"

Good luck!

Mine went in for its 5th injector recall last week. Car is much smoother and responsive than before, but haven't noticed any improvement in fuel consumption and still getting 32-33mpg albeit mainly on 10 mile each way commutes. But I did get £40 of diesel and 2 bottles of wine and a loan car. Also went in to check for a rattle in the back door, but has to go in again for 2 days for the dash rattle that I can't hear although the door rattle is still there. I am assuming they will fix that at the same time. I have also noticed my wheels are starting to bubble close to the centres so they can check that out as well.

Just found my way onto this sight. Have had my IS220d Sport about 6 months and find I have the same disappointments as everyone else. I have a rattle coming from the drivers side air vent in the cold until it interior warms up (not noticable in the hot weather), rattles that appear to be coming from a couple of the doors, and a loud squeek from the rear shelf area when it is hot. Also the gear stick gator rattles when in 2nd/4th/6th which is mentioned by others. A bit pointless making a special trip to the dealer as they tend to fade away the longer you drive the car (but that isn't really the point), and you look like a bit foolish so will mention it at the next service and see what they say. Not sure about the economy / 5th injector issue (I purchased a used model). I'm getting about 33mpg but my main commute is about 15 miles each way per day which I know doesn't maximise economy, so is probably not too bad. I guess I am disapponted with the interior build quality especially the car is great in all other ways. My previous IS200 was superb and didn't rattle at all.