Kaius88

Ok.....as the title indicates, my ES350 barely passed the end of the 50k warranty period. At 47k miles, the engine hose busted and all my oil leaked out. Lexus fixed that, and was issuing a recall at that same moment. Last week, when my car reached 52k miles, the battery died. I called Lexus to have them replace it under warranty because I was barely passed 50k miles. Lexus said no, so I got a brand new DieHard battery from Sears which was much better than the Panasonic original battery. $125...no big deal.

Then immediately afterwards, my check engine light came on, and the stability control light came on. The warning said: Check VSC. I took it to the dealer, and they said I had a bad starter coil. $240 to replace, and I argued. They gave me a 10% discount, and insisted that my warranty was over.

I feel that now my car is systematically wearing and tearing....and it will be expensive to fix it in the near future. Anyone else experiencing problems immediately after 50k miles?

Timothyj

Sorry your having so many problems. My 04 es has the same battery since new. Panasonic. 74000 miles on the car. I was told after replacing the battery the car computer has to be re-set or re-programed, the key also. Toyota dealer told me this. I would try another dealer, some Toyota dealers will work on Lexus. Check them out.

Tim

Macklin

Kaius, where you been man?! What, you only come back to report your problems?

Seriously though, sorry to hear this. I am even sorrier to read what Timothy posted. What a PITA if true. This wasn't true with my ES300. AND, the Panasonic battery in that car lasted 8 years! But I'm sure that was a once-in-a-lifetime battery.

The same can be said for the car which was trouble free for 10.

Only have 34K on mine right now. And what...one more year of warranty. Scary thought.

Lexus ain't what it used to be...

miniz

The only real failure is a coil at $240. The battery is 3 years old/50k miles. If you live in So Cal, the heat could have easily contributed to the early battery failure. That is more normal wear/tear. I wouldn't start worrying at $240. If I could have spent that little to maintain all the German cars I've had, I'd be one happy camper.

Once your warranty is up, its up. There is no grey area of where it might be covered or not be covered 'around' 50k miles. If you wanted longer coverage, you should drove less miles or purchased extended coverage! The moderately high mileage got you, not the time aspect.

garsarno

I am at 39,000 miles on my 2007 since 10/06, bought the extended warranty before the factory warranty timed out. Will replace the battery before winter as a precaution because it will die at the most inopportune time.

zhivuyatut

Extended warranty for ES350 is a bargain compared to say MB or BMW.
I am definitely getting one when my factory warranty runs out.
I still have a year to go.

YotaCarFan

The dealer's $240 diagnosis seems a bit fishy. If the "starter coil" is what it sounds like (ie is a solenoid or inductor related to or inside the starter, or a relay that runs the starter), then it would not be logical for the VSC light to come on. It normally reflects issues with the ABS, TRAC, speed sensors, or transmission. My guess is that the battery shop replaced the battery while the ignition was "on", causing spurious error codes to be registered in the engine computer, and the dealer made a nice profit clicking "reset" on a scan tool. Something similar happened to me years ago when my Camry battery was replaced and the ABS light came on.

dreyfus

Sorry about the just-over-50K blues. Some cars know when their warranty is up.

I've just over 80,000 on mine and haven't replaced anything but the filters (plus TSIBs).

My passenger headlight is flakey and I'll probably replace the bulb later this year.

AD&AD

Oh yeah, all kinds of issues running in the thousands of dollars before (on the house) and right after warranty (on us). Premature alternator, axles, malfunctioning heater ($2K). All things considered, including poor dealer handling of issues, not likely a repeat buyer but you can never say never I guess. Just cringing when I think of the tranny and it's continuing flare issues and hoping it won't go out a second time before switching brand. First time was around 450 miles...

IS350jet

I agree with YotaCarFan. Starter coil? ABS/Check engine light related? Something is amiss.

Kaius88

I don't even remember the last time I posted here. I am overall happy with my vehicle. The bottom carriage got $2500 of damage from a hill with a tall intersection. I did $1500 of damage on my door when I scraped against a corner of a brick wall. But at the moment, car looks and drives like new *knock on wood*.

Lots happened since I last posted. I am now divorced. I am still fighting for custody of my kids. I am dating a really wonderful woman. Overall I am happy, except I'm quite broke due to divorce. Other than that, everything else is the same.

Ochasey

@Kauis88.. I feel you on that brother... Nothing compares to a piece of mind..Being happy is the key to life.


2007 ES 350.. AquaMarine Blue..