dblacha

6 hours ago, mister_johnn said:

Hello everyone,
I'll try to keep it short. I have my IS300h since was young around 30k, now I'm over 110k and never noticed this issue... until yesterday (when I was focused on other issues with the car)... I was cruising in Normal Mode at 40 Mph (battery was empty and ICE kicked in) when I started to feel these vibrations but with no other noise (maybe I didn't pay attention) and thought is because of the road bumps or holes, but the road had no bumps or holes and a bump makes me go up and down, I was feeling more like a front to back (ahead/back) vibration and initially I thought I was going crazy, is all in my mind as I was focused on my other car issues, continued my journey and got on another road with 40 Mph limit and started feeling this again... so I said to my self (...what a wonderful world 🙂 )... hang on! This can't be possible... then I got home and Google'd "Lexus is300h shaking"... for my surprise found this discussion... so... Today went to my local dealer in London and discussed the other issues and specified also about this one... dealer said that they have no idea about it, they don't take into consideration any information from the internet as "Is not officially coming from Lexus" (I showed them this discussion, the part with TSB CP-0082L-0614) and they said it can be some many other things and "We need to investigate further and reproduce the vibration"... I will have to do this in the next few days and see if I can feel it again. If this will happen again, can you please recommend me a dealership which can a bit be more open to fixing the issue and able to accept information coming from their customers?
So far I've seen Coventry (a bit far for me) and Reading. Wondering if anyone fixed this issue in London? ...if not, I'll go to Reading... forgot to mention, the car is still under Lexus warranty.
Thank you!

Hi mister_johnn!

On what RPMs do you feel vibrations? Have you an active damper installed? 

Regards

Dominik. 

i think it wasn't fixed in 2015 model version. ToreOe wrote about this - he's got replacement his car for the 2015 model, and he found the vibration issue is the same.

also I drove GS300h '2015 and I found the same vibration issue as well.

I bought a new IS300h f sport 3 weeks ago , I would like to know how I can find this fault if it exists on my car.. is there any video or capture of sound i can refer to ?

It is very hard to record, more you can feel it than hear.

Just switch your dashboard to RPM display, turn off ASC, and on flat long road where you can drive with stable 70-90kmph try to stick to 1300 RPMs.

Hi,

I have got the damper and new soft updated - first installation here in Poland I suppose :-)

It's working great. The IS300h is great!

BR,

Dominik.

Well, so this is the same ECU update as mine done a few months before. Exactly, it did nothing for me (other than placebo).

However... since I've got 35kkm+ on my ODO, I'm feeling that vibrations are less fillable! Maybe it's due to higher env. temperature.

A have one flat and long the road suburbs where I always felt vibrations. Now I CANNOT get them stable, even if I'm trying hard... Only short one when I'm sticking the 1300rpms hotspot.

Twan,

Thank you for this very interresting piece of new information.

I'm the one that got a new car from Lexus because of these driveline vibrations, but after 6000km the new 2015 has the same vibrations. Not as bad as the 2014, but definitely noticeable.

The IS has an appointment with Lexus for an infotainment update monday, I will definitely inquire about the "bugfix" then.

-Tore

Tore, GS300h 2015 has the same issue - I drove it for one service day.

BR, Dominik

Dear IS300H owners,

Finally, there is a solution for our vibration. Last Monday my IS was modified by adding a dynamic damper on the wheel suspension plus another motor management update. To be honest the vibration is drastically reduced. At 80 and 100km/h there is no vibration noticeable only a slight vibration between 60-70km/h. This weekend I will do some more testing but for now I’m a happy driver.

The solution is still in the pilot phase but just asked your dealer for this solution they most probably have to ask the Toyota importer for approval first.

Thank you Twan! This is a FANTASTIC news!!! Regards.

Thanks :-)

Nice site also, however it lacks a summary for model / year or something.

Tore wrote that his 2015 is "faster", so I'm trying understand this, can't get any info from Lexus directly - they still standing with "no changes at all" sentence.

Maybe they changed accelerator map - so car would indeed feels faster, but also a consumption should rise. Something like driving always in Sport mode.

Happy Easter too!

Dominik.

It is not so small, almost 200 fuel-ups. However, a few cars only. We will see :-)

Tore,

look on this: http://www.fuelly.com/car/lexus/is300h

Maybe indeed they did something with the performance.

Consumption differs meaningly between 2013 and 2014,

Dominik.

Correct they are both Atkinson, sorry I was thinking of the difference between the RX Gen2 and Gen3.

I've not heard of these issues on the Camry/ES hybrid. To me the sound seems to come from the rear, possibly from the exhaust system rather than the engine.

Do you notice any difference if you use Sport mode compared to normal?

RX Gen2 has Otto ICE? I didn't know, seems to be interesting. Maybe that's why it is more robust than Gen 3. And of course more thirsty ;-)

If I use Sport mode, it seems like I have less chance to stick with 1300rmps, but it's possible and sounds then identical.

Last days I'm driving in the normal or sport on "S" with the paddles - it's the only way not to get the vibrations, unless I'm on the 6 gear with steady speed but... it's a rare state ;-)

I found the ASC very nice sounding for me, specially on normal mode and S - a nice mix of the artificial sound and the real ICE sound.

I also think, that it is the ICE resonance with the exhaust pipes or (a worse case) the drive shaft resonance with the ICE.

I have also the Prius 2G (THD 2004), of course, it has smaller engine, but its natural (normal) vibrations are just like in IS300h (a little stronger due to weaker damping), except the vibrations @1300rpm. I drove 200kkm and never had such issue. Only small shaking when the ICE is starting / stopping on low speed just like in the IS. No constant, resonant vibrations at all. There is no a rpm meter on board, however I'm pretty sure, that Prius on a common, out of the city speeds like 70-80kmph, has also very low rpms, close to the 1200-1300.

I too have never had any vibration issues in a Gen 2 Prius, and I've driven many more miles in that vehicle compared to my IS300h.

Personally I believe the engine runs a little faster in the Prius has it has less torque, but it is also a very different engine being a standard otto cycle engine rather than the Atkinson cycle engine in the IS and no direct injection.

Nope, Prius 2G (and any other generation) has Atkinson ICE as well. Indeed without DI, however... there are a lot info about the same vibration in the 3G, and there is no DI. Did something happen when Toyota changed the PSD - adding the second planetary gear set? It will be interesting to find if this issue exists on the ES300h and the Camry Hybrid.

Once I had other possible explanation: the cars for UK and Japan are OK, and something happened when Lexus had to reconfigure the IS300h for right-lane driving law.

But... I found later, that in Australia they have the same problem: http://au.lexusownersclub.com/forums/topic/12573-is-300h-vibrations/...

It is something that I have previously suggested - it is something to do with LHD vehicles.

However there is no reconfiguration for RHD vehicles - that is the normal and correct way, it is a RHD designed vehicle. The reconfiguration is to convert it to LHD ;)

I didn't know that it is RHD designed vehicle. So my hypothesis doesn't make a sens :-)

Having said above ^^^ I do think RHD vehicles experience this, but maybe it is less. Certainly I've experienced it a few times and initially I thought it was just a piece of poor road surface that I was driving over. It happens so infrequently that I personally don't see it as an issue - it is so rare that the engine is running at 1,300 rpm for anything other than a fraction of a second with my driving style.

My ECU was upgraded to the firmware that is meant to reduce this effect when I purchased it so no experience of how bad it is without the upgrade.

Hi Colin, I don't think it is the effect of the LHD or THD (Toyota Hybrid Drive == LHD) construction itself. I have also the Prius 2G (THD 2004), of course, it has smaller engine, but its natural (normal) vibrations are just like in IS300h (a little stronger due to weaker damping), except the vibrations @1300rpm. I drove 200kkm and never had such issue. Only small shaking when the ICE is starting / stopping on low speed just like in the IS. No constant, resonant vibrations at all. There is no a rpm meter on board, however I'm pretty sure, that Prius on a common, out of the city speeds like 70-80kmph, has also very low rpms, close to the 1200-1300.

Once I had other possible explanation: the cars for UK and Japan are OK, and something happened when Lexus had to reconfigure the IS300h for right-lane driving law.

But... I found later, that in Australia they have the same problem: http://au.lexusownersclub.com/forums/topic/12573-is-300h-vibrations/...

Hi,

thanks Twan for sharing your experience.

Low emission: I'm trying to understand what can be the point. Maybe, there is some (stupidly precise) rule in EURO5 where at the given speed, when the speed is stable and we are riding on the flat road, the emission should be below some level? And f.e. when we are riding with 90kmph (and this is the rule test speed level), we are limited to not go higher than 1300RPM in those conditions and Lexus can't lower the RPM for this concrete conditions because of not enough power below 1300RPM and this is why we are stick to this value? I have no idea how to explain it in an other way, anyway, non hybrid cars are producing more CO2 at such conditions... Crazy enough.

I'll ask my service if they know about this update, I would be great if they found the solution.

Best Regards,

Dominik.

Interesting that it anyway it was there, but disappeared. Maybe is it because the tires was new?

A few day ago I was trying to record this vibration, but with no luck. I should use some fixed, piezzo microphones I supose.

How did you estimate the frequency?

Day by day, I'm more furious feeling this... I have 1kkm left to the 30k service, and I want left them my car until they do something,

regards,

Dominik.

Hi Tore,

have you found something else interesting in your 2015?

I'm curious how you feel the car after more time you spend under the steering wheel, still no vibrations?

Regards,

Dominik.

Tore,

thanks for an info.

I think, I must to drive the 2015 demo car.

Maybe I shall to switch to the newer version - I have an option to get this car in the leasing.

Unless the service will do something... Maybe the next software upgrade?

regards,

Dominik.

I'm 40+ too :-)

Interesting is how they did that the car is now "quicker" while the power is the same.

I would be good to check the RPM on the same driving mode and the same speed.

Maybe they work around booth, vibrations and performance by raising RPM for wider driving conditions?

Can you observe please, when you f.e. going stable 90kph on the flat road, what the RPM is?

regards,

D.

Tore,

So maybe they just upgraded the Normal mode.

Seriously you even didn't try the sport mode?

It's an enormous difference in the response comparing with the normal mode.

Even more when you are using the virtual gears and you are keeping the revs over the 4000rpms. It's a beast :-)

Fortunately, even with those conditions, consumption is still acceptable.

BTW: how the consumption is in 2015?

regards,

Dominik.

Thanks Tore!

Do not worry, english isn't my native language too :-)

Quicker, smoother, no vibration... I'm depressed. Really ;-)

I checked the 2015 specification, it looks the same, still 8.3 0-100 and the same power, so maybe they just changed the software to get a better response feeling. Just guessing.

Do you feel it in an each drive mode? Eco/Normal/Sport?

Definitely I should take a ride the 2015 and check it myself,

regards,

Dominik.

Congratulations Tore!!!

I'm happy that our action have at least symbolic progress.

I'm close to the 30k service and I'll let them try do something with the vibration, because it is more and more irritating.

You wrote that ICE is better sounding? It's more damped or just sounds different?

Regards,

Dominik.

@Tore:

great document! Thanks,

Dominik.