brittm

I purchased the '13 ES350 in Nov '12 in CA. Right off the bat I noticed rattles coming from the driver side window area. Took it in and of course no one can hear what I hear. Also heard rattles from the passenger seat. Got that figured out...they said that is just how it was made that it shakes alot and when it does it rattles, but it goes away when the seat is occupied. With the other rattles concerning the driver side that still hasnt gotten resolved, but i have an idea on what is making the noises most of the time. A rattle comes from the sunvisor when down and I think a rattle comes from the handle on the ceiling above the window. Haven't taken it in to get fixed because no one seems to hear it when I take it in.

I have just had a lot of problems with this car from the get go and its so dissapointing coming from Lexus. This is my first brand new car after having a '01 IS 300 for several years and not having and problems with it so having this much trouble with this car is so annoying.

Another BIG issue I am having right now is a horrible smell coming from the A/C when turning it on. I have kept my car in a garage that has a moldy/must smell to it plus having to ventilation. It was in there for a while since we have my husbands car and giving my car a break with miles since we put a lot on it for a while because it was our only car. One day I went out and turned the car on along with the A/C (I turn it off all the time when turning my car off) and out came this horrible smell. It seemed to go away after driving it a bit, but everytime I got in the car it seemed to smell. I took it to my dealer and they seemed to think it was something dead. After talking with my manager at my apartment and confirming they have no issues with rodents I insisted they spray just incase. In the meantime when I took it to the dealer they said it could be something dead and said in order to fix it my dash had to be removed. I am so picky about this car and after all the problems with noises I have been having I really just don't want to go through with it. I have tried (if there was something dead in there) flushing it out with water. turning the heat on and letting it run, ect. It didnt seem to help so my husband said it is not something dead because if it was it would smell worse than what it does and would smell all the time. I left my car out of the garage for 2 nights and when I turned it on to put it back in the garage because we were going off for the weekend the smell had seemed to go away. And then of course when we got back and taking it out of the garage the smell was back. So we have been convinced it is the garage making the A/C system smell. So I have been keeping the car out and it was out for a bout a week and a half. The smell has been on and off. Sometimes when I turn it on it will not smell, but other times it will.

I have tried calling Lexus and researching to see if anyone else has had this problem and I just dont know what to do anymore. And on top of that now my window makes a creeking sound when it is rolled up and down. Could anything esle go wrong with this car?

If anyone can help or have any advise it would be greatly appreciated. I DONT WANT TO TAKE MY DASH OUT! (TO CAUSE MORE ISSUES)

Thanks! Britt

Mike728

What's the build date compared to your purchase date? How many miles were on it? Just trying to see if flood damage is a possibility.

brittm

I am not sure where to find the build date and there were 63 miles on it when we bought it. Thank you for trying to help I am just looking for answeres since Lexus Corporate and the dealership here in Jacksonville, FL is not helping much.

Arty101

The build date is stamped on a driver's side door jamb. Could the smell be coming from something dripping into the air intake (near the wipers) in the garage?

Arty101

One other thing, did you or the dealer check your AC air filter? It's usually behind the glove box. There's a panel that pops right out, and you'll see an access door and the filter is right there. Even the Jiffy Lube or Oil Changers know where it is since they always try to sell you on a new one, which isn't a bad idea since it gets pretty dirty quickly. If its bothering you that much, it's worth replacing.

Another thought, do you run the AC with the Recirc. on? If so, try running the AC on Fresh Air or fresh vent only. Mold, spores or bacteria tend to build up on recirc. They tell you to run the vents on Fresh Air as much as possible, especially since you're in a humid climate.

Finally, have the dealer check to if the drain from the evaporator unit is clear. If it's blocked or hose kinked, water may be accumulating and not draining, causing the moldy smell when you're running your AC.

HTHs. Art

brittm

Okay. Ill check on that tomorrow. There is no leakage in the garage at all ,we checked. We even checked for holes in the walls for any way an animal could get in. The only thing we cant actually check is if there is actually mold behind the walls that could be growing, but the garage has a must/mold smell with no fresh air getting in there and mix that wth the humidity of FL weather makes for an even worse condition to store my car so it has been outside in the weather which doesnt make it any better and doesnt seem to be helping the smell either.

DASMan

You may want to sit in the back seat while your husband drives the car around so you can try to isolate where the noise may be coming from. In another thread, someone reported that there was something rattling in the vicinity of the passengers seat but it was actually overhead by the rear cabin lights and the rattle stopped once they put their hand on the headliner. In their case, they too reported it to the dealer but it couldn't be found until they rode in the back seat.

Give it a try to to see if that helps.

brittm

Thanks guys for replying. To Arty101 they told me they checked the cabin air filter and it was fine, but we can have then replace it anyways. I also read on here in one of the threads about musty smells coming from the A/C to check and see if the the liquid is coming out and it is so I know that its not blocked or clogged so should I still ask them to check if it is clear or not? I have tried to run it on both. I keep it on auto so it turns to whatever it needs to at the moment. The smell does seem to get a little better when it is on outside air more so than recirculating air.

To DASman when i took it to Lexus I was sitting in the back when the guy from the District in Irvine CA came to look at my car and figure out what is wrong. He was the one that actually heard the rattle from the passenger seat and confirmed that it was coming from there. We test drove another vehicle like mine and it did the same thing. So that rattle cant be fixed, well it could if they wanted to, but from what he was saying there is nothing that can be done with that. To the others like I was saying coming from my side, I drive my car alot with the music off and try to move my head to listen and drive at the same time and thats where I came up with one of the rattled coming from the sunvisor and I have pushed on it and its stopped. The other Im not so sure yet because I havent gotten to pin point it exactly and thats the one I think may be coming from the pulldown bar above the window.

txes

One thing I've noticed in mine is the passenger seat belt rattling when no passenger is in the car.

The metal clip hits the door post. I slide it up to the top and it fixes the problem until somebody uses it.

John

brittm

Thanks. Ill check it out.

Arty101

One way to check if your AC evaporator is draining is to park the car and check under the car after running the AC at 65 for a while. Considering the humidity in FL, there should be a puddle of water under the front wheels or water dripping after being parked for 15 minutes or so, and you'll know the drainage is working. If not, your drains are probably clogged and report this to the SM. Btw, park you car on a dry surface and use a flashlight if necessary.

Art

amphipri0n

Sorry you're having these issues. I've been pretty happy with how solid and rattle free my vehicle is, even on the bumpiest and worn out freeways here in CA, I would contact Lexus corporate if you feel that your dealer isn't making an honest effort to help you out. Regarding the smell, I have to ask the obvious-- if you are new to leather upholstery in a car, warmer / hot weather will give off that distinctive leather "smell" that you may not be used to and find offensive

brittm

Thanks. To Arty101 there is water coming out so I know that it is not clogged. They are saying in order to find out if there is mold growing is to take out the dash to check the A/C system completely and I just dont want that to happen.

To amphipri0n Corporate isnt doing anything. It took them a week to even call me back to let me know they had my case. The guy basically said they dont deal with stuff like this that is why they have dealerships so they arent much of a help at this point. And I know what leather smells like...this is def. not the leather smell coming out of the air vents when the A/C is turned on. Its a awful musty soured feet smell.

Arty101

Okay, it seems your evaporator is draining properly. Have them change out the AC filter. If dirty, it will smell, particularly if you're recirculating the air.

I've also heard that they also can "bomb" the vent and evaporator with a can of cleaner - think Lysol sprayed into the intake and the chem runs through the vents and fins of the interior to kill mold and spores. They run it for a half hour? with the windows closed and the recirc on to ensure it goes through the system. No need to disassemble the dash, but not sure how effective this is, but better than nothing. Much better than removing the dash and getting more problems.

amphipri0n

I have no idea what musty soured feet smell is but it sounds pretty hideous. Since you said the dealer checked the cabin AC filter and that turned out ok, it might be coming from somewhere near the fresh air intake for the AC. Is the smell worse when you have it on Recirculate or Fresh Air, or about the same? Also, is it present when you have the system set to cooling or heat, or both?