David lings

Peter Very timely as l was about to look this up as it is time l changed my wiper blades. l have a is300h but seems the same as a UX from experience driving one as a courtesy car. Thanks David

I wired a voltmeter into my is300h there was slow discharge unless the engine was running. Once running the battery voltage rose to about 14v until charged then dropped back a little. With the car in P or N the voltmeter read about 12.8v dropping to 12.2v 30mins after switching off and everything shutting down. l had a very reasonable parasitic loss. These checks l found necessary as Lexus were hopeless and it help me prove my unreliability was more battery related than ‘hybrid’ or whatever . Lexus just kept saying ‘battery not fully charged due to too many short runs’. When asked what Lexus defined ‘low battery and short runs’ as they were unable to say. I did 35miles to my dealer and it was suggested that was sort. So the next time l did 200 miles and asked if that was still a short journey. The above checks are the sort of checklist l think Kuba needs to help find his problems if he has not already got them sorted. David

Micheal Hope you have been successful in procuring new tyres that are not so noisy. l have similarly suffered high road noise since procuring a 2nd hand Lexus. My discussion with the local tyre shop gave me a number of suggestions and l opted for Lhasa based on cost and recommendation. l now have Lhasa tyres all round, which seem ok for grip and reasonable for wear, plus they have also made the car quieter on most motorways. Whether another make would be even quieter l don’t know. David

Kuba You could have a number of issues that need checking in addition to a defective battery. l had similar problems with a recently procured Lexus. l found the Lexus dealer totally useless. l would suggest you have the battery checked for a defective cell but also get your alternator checked and what your parasitic loss is. Do all these and you will get an indication as to where your problem lies. Good luck. David

All Many thanks for all your comments which l found very interesting. As with most things there was a mix of experiences. I, personally, have never had any positive encounter with Lexus. To try and trigger a response l replied negatively to a number of surveys Lexus/the dealer asked me to complete. The response ~~ they stopped sending me surveys!! many thanks David

My own experiences with Lexus quality and their dealerships have not been good and l notice in various posts other people making comments on the quality and service. l was wondering if, after all the various comments, has anyone ever been contacted by Lexus to take issue with comments or to help resolve them. David

Alan l too have stopped using the Lexus satnav after a couple of times it sent me in totally the wrong direction. l prefer good old AA Road maps for the route, only using ‘google’ once in at town/city for final directions. One notices quite a few complaints in general on Lexus quality and some dealers yet surprisingly Lexus don’t seem to react or bother ~ strange! David

Stephen Welcome to the the joys of owning a Lexus and it’s generally poor dealerships. Not had as many issues as you but my issues improved greatly when l stopped using the Lexus dealer and had the car ‘professionally’ serviced. Either Lexus or their dealerships or both do not believe in preventative maintenance which when added to the general Lexus quality issues meant l had issues with my second hand car. Your car would appear to be new, or nearly new, so a combination of poor quality car and poor quality dealership. Lexus, nice car just a pity they are,these days, NOT a quality car. Hope you manage to sort out your issues. Don’t rely on the guarantee as, if like mine, it is not worth the paper it is written on. l found that nothing seems to be covered by the guarantee or issues were brushed off as just standard for a Lexus, e.g. sign recognition. Normally a dealer will give a refund period (7 to10 days). If you have this my advice would be take it back, get your money back and go buy a quality car. Good luck david

Dess One possibility from what I have seen in my is300h 1) Does your model have the hybrid fan filter? I have today serviced my hybrid fan/filter and found some bits in the filter. if your model does not have the filter or the filter is damaged, some dirt can get into the hybrid battery casing. When was the fan and filter ( if fitted) last checked/cleaned. For what you show the amount of dirt is a lot to have come totally from this source unless the car has done many miles with no hybrid service. Not sure how helpful this will be but hope you eventually get the answer. david

I would be very careful of any Lexus plans particularly ones with an MOT. First It is rare an MOT matches a serice milaeage which is often a problem leading to loss of MOT months (if tyat bothers you) or early unecessary servce. Second Lexus do not service their cars (look in your service book) . It is a very expensive oil/filter change and box ticking excercise for everything else. Depending on how long you keep your car this lack of tender loving care tends to lead to some expensive repair/replacement cost eventually. Suggestion My suggestion would be to take your car to a professional for a quote for a proper old fashioned service. Any professional VAT registered can stamp your service book. Then compare and you will find you save money on servicing and your car will go longer before needing any repairs. A properly serviced car will also be far more relaible. Hybrid System Don't be conned by 'major servce including the hybrid system. The hybrid system is a very complex computer under the bonnet that has no service just a check. It is just like a car's CPU Good luck with whatever you decide. Everyone is different and it is always your personal choice of what you think is best for you and your car David

Phil One think I liked about Lexus when looking was that it seemed to come in three standards only (Sports exceted). When looking at Merc/Audi it appeared that when purchased new you started with a basic model and added 'options' to suit your personal desires. This made looking as second hand cars you did not really know what standard until you went for a look. Sometimes the advert said plus "x" pounds of options but rarely listed them. With Lexux it clearly said 'Executive' 'Advanced' or 'Premium' so you knew what to expect. I have two dealer options one 25 miles north and one 25 miles south. I noted the previous owner of my car lived in the same area as myself and had bought from the dealer south, had it serviced at the dealer north then sold back to the dealer south rom where I purchased. I will go and talk to the service manager of the one north and see what he has to say as it belongs to a different dealer franchise.. Thanks for your experiences. Daavis

Phil A lot of my issues, I think, depend on how you view a 'car'. If it is just something you use every day, fill with fuel, occassionally take to a car wash, let someone service and then after a few years change you will most likely think I am too fussy. For anyones interest I list the things that I don't like. It's a pity really as the IS300 is exactly the car we wanted. A new car was outside the budget and there is always risk with a second hand car. I though by gong for a Lexux and through a dealer I was reducing my risk but alas not so. Saftery Check/service In the test drive the car exibited brake problems (noisy and grabbing) so when discussing the deal on offer I mentioned this and was told they do a 150 point safety check that would cover this. Plus part of the deal was they did a major service so the service package offered covered two minor and one major service so a better deal for me. I did the deal and collected the car but still with the brakes noisy. My initail concerns were the reliability so did nothng about the brakes until the car went in for sorting of the relaibilty issue. At that time I mentioned: - brakes noisy; - vibrations through the steering wheel and transmision; - steering that 'banged' when turning through 90 degress. I was told all ok nothing wrong. So no change once returned, other than the battery sorted. Not satisfied I again decided to look for myself. Safety Check The safety check is purely a sales gimmick as they had done nothing. Don't be fooled by such sales talk. Just tell them you wil take it to a proffessional for a safety check and see their reaction. The major service possibly the same - see below. Brakes The front brakes had never been touched in possibly years. They were clogged up with rush from the disc which had packed itself around the pads. Once I found this I took it to the garage that had looked after my IS200 for a though brake check and PDI (Pre-deliver inspection). The car had never been serviced for years. In addition to the front disc issues the rear nearside parking brake mechanism was almost siezed up. I subsequenty found that Lexus do not serives their cars hence the mess mine was in. They change oil/filters only and then supposedly inspect other safety related aspects (read your service guide). Lexus don't maintain only repair. Without service things deteriorate and eventually require repair and, of course, Lexus then tell you it requires repair and, of course, repair at your cost. All very good for business So firstly buying from a Lexus dealer is not necessarily your best bet. As a friend did, buy at a garage that gives you 7 to 10 day buy back option, explain you will take to your regular garage for a PDI and any thing seriously wrong you will bring back for repair or money back. If they don't accept something must be wrong so go elsewhere. Moral Lexus 'service packages' are not worth the money - just another con-trick. The 150 point saftey check is a sales gimmick only. If you want your car properly servicing to last as long as possible, then take it to an independent local garage that does a proffessional job. You will be pounds in pocket and the car will last longer. Vibrations Whenever I contacted the dealer they just kept saying never heard of such a problem hence must be nothing wrong. So again I decide to have a look myself. I checked myself, and through my reguar type provider, the discs for true, wheel bearings, tyre pressures, steering alignment, wheel balance, etc. The car had two different tyre makes so I matched them across the front/back axles. Underfloor body panels stopped me checking the UV joints. I then started to see if I could 'fix' the vibrations to a set speed but no, it vibrated any speed between 20mph to 80mph. I did discover that the transmission vibrations were when the car was not being driven hard and occurred between 1100-1500rpm. All this I put in a report I sent to Lexus and they called the car back for a test drive and inspection. They agreed there was I problem and booked the in again for checking. On collection they claimed nothing wrong but had reset all the wheel/steering based parameters, e.g. alignment, balance, camber, etc. of all wheels. This they charged me for as there was nothing wrong. It has improved the steering wheel vibrations a little but those of the transmission no. I was told nothing wrong with the transmission so it has to be the Lexus standard and you have to live with it. Steering Bang This I was told is just standard Lexus steering 'skip' due to having a good turning circle. Others The Lexus IS300 has a number of electronic gadgets/gimmicks that again are not of the best quality so check carefully before buying. The windscreen wash/wipe washers every time but only wipes when it feels like it. Not a major issue. There is a system that identifies roadside speed restrictions and brings them up in the info screen between dials. This system has a mind of its own. You enter a speed restriction, say 20mph, and it brings up 110! It may actually get the correct speed but then stubbornly refuses to change no matter how many differnt signs you pass. Finally it recently decided that no matter what speed it showed, once your actual speed went above 25mpg the background turned red suggesting you were speeding. Just a gimmick so turned off now. In fact I have now turned off all the elctronic aids/gimmicks. Driving Possibly not a probem but something anyone considering buying a Lexus IS300 ought to check and be satisfied with before buying. The car in the passenger cabin is noisy compared to the old IS200. At 70mph on a motorway, that does not have a billiard table smooth surface, you cannot hold a conversation with rear seat pasengers due to road noise in the passenger cabin. Also the steering/front suspension are very susceptible to road surface condition. A deaf person would know through the steering wheel every time the road surface changes. The rear passenger ventilation system (located between the two front seats) just does not work. These are not complaints just inherent IS300 norms you need to satisfay yourself they are not of concern to you. Dealer The service manager is excellent and tries very hard on my behalf but nothing ever happens. Always nothing wrong - take it or leave it. Battery The battery now seems ok but one word of warning. NEVER use the auxillary for anything for more than 10-15mins as it will reduce the battery capacity to an extent it may not start the hybrid system. ALWAYS have the car in 'ready' mode whenever you are doing anything. This tip I leaned from the AA man who came to rescue me. He had many 'hybrid' call outs for flat battery due to owners, like me initially, not undertsansing the system weaknesses. Conclusion For all my complaints I still have the car and drive almost 1k miles every month. I just have to accept the inherent idiosyncrasies of a Lexus as irritants and keep going or change to something else due to poor quality car and dealer franchise. What to change to though??? At present I will not be rushing to a dealer for my next purchase Hope you all have safe and enjoyable motoring David

Thackeray Same problem every time - flat battery. I kept taking it back to the dealer and all I got was that the battery passed a drop test but was not fully charged. Never looked at any other possible cause - not interested. According to Lexus, runs of generally more than 30 miles were insufficient to charge the battery fully - rubbish!!!! This just demonstrates that the Lexus garage did NOT have experienced/qualified mechanics, a point as proven with other issues I ahve and stil have. No matter how hard the service manager tried on my behalf they kept saing 'nothing wrong' and it kept failing. Eventually I bought a digital multi-meter and did my own checks over a week. The results I sent to Lexus showing 'charging' seemed ok and the problem pointed to a weak cell in the battery. The battery never had more than 12.3v and after 8 hours in the garage it had fallen to below 12v. So every moring you were trying to start the hybrid system with less than 12v. Park for say 4 to 5 hours whilst playing golf and you came back to a flat battery. Eventually the service manager took the car in saying it would stay with Lexus until something was sorted. Ten days later I got the car back to be told all ok and nothing wrong. For sure they had put in a new battery and whatever else they did I am not sure but suspect nothing. Since they did it it has become more reliable for every day use but still a bit weak if you leave it for say 10 to 14 days without using. My experinece is do NOT take your car to a Lexus dealer for service/repair. They tick boxes, do nothing and charge a fortune. Unfortunately my car came with a 3 year service deal. Experience dictates, to ensure my family are kept safe, I take it to a professional after any Lexus visist to be checked. Lost all faith in Lexus dealer. David

All Very pleased to read so many satisified IS300h drivers. I have had a '17' plate IS300h since May 2021 and all I can say is nice car, economical (45mpg on average) but unreliable (initially), noisy, rough transmission and poor quality . Bought with 33k on the clock and now just about ready for a service as 42k now on the clock. Let me down 5 times in the first month but recently it seems to have become more reliable. However, the Lexus moto has to be 'don't leave home without the AA coverage/Lexus assist'. Also I would not trust my local dealer to repair my bicycle let alone my car. The service manager is excellent but what he has to put up with is pitiful. Hence it will not be going to the dealer for servicing. Thankfully reading your comments it would seem I just got unluck with both the car and dealer. Been thinking of changing but what to is a problem. Lexus GS too big, CT200h too small expecially rear passenger leg room and boot space. UX like CT200 too small and NX ugly!!! IS300H looks nice and is the right size. May test an Audi A4 for comparison before deciding on whether to change or persevere a bit longer hoping the worst is over. Good and safe motoring to all David

Be warned. IS300h is a very nice car but insist on: - it being provided with a “jump start” kit otherwise a very unreliable car; - get them to give you a full tutorial: - full explanation as to why you never do anything without the car being in”Ready” mode. Much better you consider a Korean Hybrid in my opinion

Wiring your dash cam direct with a hybrid Lexus IS a mistake. If it did not have the voltage detection you would end up with a battery incapable of activating the hybrid system and hence the car would not start without a jump start. it seems a design weakness of a Lexus. Many forums bemoan this problem which I unfortunately have also experienced. You never do anything in a hybrid Lexus without the system being in “Ready” mode. to do so just quickly flattens the battery.

A modern hybrid Lexus cannot be classed as a ‘reliable’ car in my experience. I had an old IS200 (2000 vintage) that never missed a beat. I traded it in for a 3+ year old hybrid IS and it is very poor for reliability. Over 14 days it let me down 5 times. I would would have been lost without Lexus Assist. My next car will also most likely be of Korean manufacture.

I have a IS300h (4 years old) and in the first 3 weeks it let me down 5 times with a flat battery. I took regular voltage readings indicating the battery was life expired. Lexus finally took the car back and after 4 days of checking reported the battery was faulty. It took two weeks to procure a new battery. Since the new battery was fitted “so far so good”. The IS300h maybe a very nice car but I have learnt: - you never do anything in a Lexus without the car being in “ready” mode, - a Lexus dealer multi-point pre-delivery inspection is not worth the paper it is written on and, - never leave home without a “jump starter”.

I have also over the last week been doing regular checking of my battery voltage and experimenting with various things. After a short run (less than 15 miles), or a long run (100 miles plus), the standard state for my battery is between 12.2 and 12.3 volts. The car is never stationary for more than 18 hours but the average voltage loss extrapolated to 24hrs is 0.3v. This suggests leaving the car 3 days without running there would be a serous risk of insufficient battery power to start the car. Switching on the hazard lights or ‘power on’ and switch on the radio and the average voltage loss is between 0.3v and 0.4v every 5 mins. So 15mins and again a possibility of insufficient battery power to start the car. This 15 mins is more or less as experienced with ‘auxiliary power’ and the radio. After around 10mins the radio switched off as did the auxiliary power and a “low battery” warning appeared. As noted from one response to this topic of battery life, my IS300h seems very good providing you never use any function without power on (using the hybrid system). If I every have to leave the car unused for more than two days and don’t have a jump start facility then I would consider disconnecting the battery. Many thanks to all for some useful comments. David

Just noticed the response on expected voltage and will monitor the battery voltage over the next few days including when using some auxiliary functions. thanks

I have recently bought a 2017 IS300h and have also had a flat battery issue requiring AA assistance. i had a tyre issue and on getting it fixed i followed the users guide to reset the tyre low pressure icon only for the procedure to flatten the battery. The battery was checked by Lexus and found to be ok other than low charge which was strange as the car had done two long runs (over 20 miles) post being jump started. Lexus had no answer as to why the battery was not fully charged and asked to monitor for a few days and return if the problem recurred. The problem seems to be that something in the car design has left it prone to high battery consumption when used in auxiliary mode for such things as following a Lexus procedure, using the radio, etc. Since never using anything without ‘powering up’ I have not had any further flat battery issues but it has certainly knocked my confidence the the cars reliability. Does not seem right that Lexus owners have to carry with them a “jump starter” to avoid an hour or more stranded awaiting Lexus Assist to jump start at the car

Sat quiet today to reflect on Monday. First the comment that the Lexus does not accelerate but glides In must admit is a pertinent point. Talking to a friend with a Lexus it would seem the dealers, perhaps rightly, think the cars sell themselves, so all they have to do is sell as many options as possible. This would perhaps better describe my experience. However, the whole thing has left me disappointed and less interested in buying Lexus at present. The dealer I went to is 30 miles south and we have another dealer approx same distance north. I will take your suggestion to try a different dealer if the Lexus Is reconsidered. one other point. Does anyone have any experience of depreciation of a Lexus IS300h. I told the dealer no financial deal required as it would be a cash sale. When I returned from the test drive they asked if I wanted to see the deal they had put together. All this turned out to be was a hire purchase deal with high interest rates and a PCP deal both with optional extras included. Also my is200 had suddenly gone from having some trade in value to costing me £20 if I wanted them to dispose of it. A though perhaps £250 to help seal the deal as nothing off the asking price but not so - oh the disappointment!!!!! The PCP deal claimed to offer the very best trade-in value after 3 years. A 2017 car would lose £10.5k in three years. It seems a lot but is in line with my friends experience who comments his car is depreciating at a greater rate than is repayments. Anyone experienced such a high depreciation. David

Hello All The IS300h test today went ok. The dealer spent 40mins on how wonderful the car was, how many electronic gimmicks it had, how well it was made, how reliable it was and how powerful with a 2.5ltr engine boosted to perform like a 3.0ltr engine by the hybrid system. I took it for a short test drive and certainly a very nice car. The only dislike was the transmission and lack of power from such a large engine. It is powerful enough if only that power was transmitted a little better/smoother. The transmission reaction time was not very impressive and yes a bit noisy and not smooth when forced. My wife has a 10 year old Honda Accord automatic and I was expecting better but alas not, so a little disappointed. Disappointing but not necessarily a killer blow. On returning to the dealer it was further disappointing to find such a supposed quality car needs extra guarantee, roadside assistance as it might break down and the lifetime guarantee on the leather seats suddenly needed renewing for every new owner. The take it or leave it attitude of the dealer was the last straw so I said ‘ thank you but no thank you’. After spending weeks in lockdown researching cars like a Merc C Class, Audi A4, Lexus, etc. and the Lexus coming out on top I now have the dilemma of finding another car that comes up to the Lexus spec. That’s life I guess. Thanks to all for your helpful comments but it looks like I will be departing the Lexus club shortly. David

All Tomorrow i test drive a '17' plate IS300h Advance model and hence found all your comments useful. My concerns have been with performance of the elastic band transmission which appear from your comnents to be a relevant concern. Not a lover of automatic transmissionanyway - not driven one yet that ever knows what gear it wants to be in and once it has decided it is all too late - so will pay particular attention tomortow to 'pick-up'. Spare and repairs for BMW, Merc, Audi, Lexus ate always eye watering. Many thanks David