coach1, you seat pictures looked exactly like the problems I had. As I mentioned in my reply a few days ago the car is going back into the shop next week because there are still some wrinkles/indentations in the seat. The service mgr at the dealer seemed like he wanted to get this fixed. He did mention the Lexus ES350 seat issue is all over the web. Will update you all once I get the car back in about 10 days

 

I have uneven wear spots on my black UL leather but am hesitant to do anything with Lexus corporate as I have already had my ML amp replaced. Guess I should mention it so it's on record.

 

Just because one thing broke doesn't mean another can't break as well. Go get your seat fixed!

 

Based on all the post-delivery and post-service post card surveys and phone call follow-ups I get from the dealer, my assumption is that the dealer and Lexus both want me happy. Fixing 2 things should make them even happier (and you)!

 

Today (4-3-14) car went back to the dealer for a second time to try and repair the indentations in the seats and creases in side padding of seats. Will advise upon return in a couple of days. Car went in for first seat repair on March 22nd. If upholstery shop can's fix the problem then we'll see whats next.

 

Good News to hear.....Lexus encouraged me to let the dealership inspect my car. They took more pictures and said we'll see if anything will get done. I or the dealership were not in favor of having an upholstery shop mess with the seats or Lexus just sending me the same seat.....without improvements....we'll be back in another 5K miles. We compared my seats to a used 2013 GS....the difference was night and day with the GS looking perfect. The seats in the ES should not be inferior and their explanation of ventilation channels etc, etc is not good enough. Please do update us and test that the seats heat and ventilation operation.

 

Update to my April 3rd post

I got my car back today (4-8-2014) and the seats look terrific. The Lexus dealer used a small shop here in town that specializes in doing mostly custom car work. I talked to the shop owner who worked on the car and he thought in general Toyota/Lexus have good quality seats and perhaps my seats were built on "Friday just before quitting time" as the saying goes for car quality problems. He thought the leather was of good quality and he removed all the seats to tighten up the leather and added some extra padding where needed.

Based on the second try I am impressed that the dealer took the car to a shop known for its quality because it really shows. The shop owner did mentioned that heated seats in a lot of makes in general have problems with leather and recommended use the lowest setting, which has been mentioned in this thread.

He also recommended after two years to use Lexol cleaner/conditioner then every 6mo after. He did mention to never use a product that contains silicon on leather. Guess I would like to get others comments on Lexol and the silicon thing.

So as of now I am a happy camper

 

I have used Lexol products for years with good results. They also have a canister of wipes that I use as needed between applications.

I have also heard the negative on silicon products. If I remember correctly, it tends to breakdown the protective coating put on the leather and will cause the leather to dry out.

 

Anyone else have any luck getting their seats fixed?

 

Lexus finally got back with a response. One time only, nothing wrong with the seat design, as a good will gesture, we will replace the driver's side back rest. what BS....complete waste of time. I may install tailor made sheepskins. The seats in every other Lexus model show no sign of breaking down the way many ES's have. I see it happening more in hot climate like Texas, Florida, here in the south. It's a shame because the ES is wonderful in every other way. I'm not going to replace it with a GS just because of the seats.

 

Hum, how about a set of GS seats from a salvage if you are keeping the car long term?

..and just to be sure, this issue seems to primarily affect the luxury leather seats, not the premium nulux or the leather upgrade of the ultra luxury?

 

I just reviewed all of the posts in this thread. In the thread, there are 6 people who have stated that they have a problem with the seats. Four of them have said that they have the standard leather seats. One said that he/she has the U/L semi-aniline seats, and one did not say what material his/her seats are made from.

Considering that there are likely a lot more ES vehicles with the standard leather than with the semi-aniline leather and considering the relatively small number of those who have said that the seats in their vehicles have a problem, I'm not sure that the sample size is sufficient to conclude that the problem is limited to the standard leather or that there is even an issue at all that is present in more than a very small percentage of ES seats.

Also, I've noticed that, even though I don't see evidence of the problem with my ES, if I run my finger along the front edge of the seat with gentle pressure, I can feel the spots where there are openings (for the ventilated seats, I presume) in the seat padding. It would seem that, for those whose seats do show the problem, the leather has shaped itself to conform to those openings in the seat padding. Since the semi-aniline leather is softer than the standard leather, I would expect the semi-aniline leather to be more likely to shape itself to conform to the openings in the padding. Earlier in this thread, there were posts in which people wondered whether those who have the problem have used any sort of leather treatment or conditioner on the seats. Those with the problem have not responded to say whether or not they have used such products, but, if they have, I would wonder if those products could have softened the leather and, thus, increased the potential for it to conform to the openings and shape of the padding.

 

I've been occasionally looking at this thread. I have the U/L semi-aniline perforated seats and I use Meguiar's Gold Class Rich Leather Cleaner/Conditioner just about every weekend, especially on the driver's seat. I am a heavy guy and live in southeast TX heat. The reason I clean the driver seat so often is because I have had sweat/ color transfer issues on other Toyota leather seats in the past and I I want to avoid that again. I don't drench the seats, just apply some to a cloth and give a wipe down. I haven't chimed in this thread before because I haven't had any issue with my seats. I know that is no consolation to those that have had problems but I agree with lesz that I don't think it is as common as this thread may lead one to believe.

EDIT: I also have the leg/seat extender option - don't know if that would make a difference or not.

 

Take a look at the damage on my new 2014 ES 300h driver's seat.
1300 miles by the way. No seat extender.

Used Meguiar's Leather protector once after taking delivery.

http://t.co/NjupUBJCAR

 

That isn't the same issue that is being discussed here related to the heater elements.