kadams1123

I just bought a 2006 GS430 with 44K miles. Within 48 hours I saw the first sign of trouble. All the warning alarms related to vehicle stability control went off and the multi information display would toggle between CHECK VSC and CHECK VGRS messages. But the car would continue to drive normally and when I turned the car off and back on the alarms would go away for a day or two. The first time I took it to Lexus they said the car was fine, no problems found. Then driving from the dealership the alarms went off again and I drove it back to Lexus while the alarms were going off making sure I did not turn the car off so they could look at it while the problem was occurring. They ended up diagnosing the problem as bad steering angle calibration and said they fixed it. Then again, shortly after leaving the Lexus dealer all the alarms went off again, only this time the steering wheel calibration had shifted 90 degrees! I never even noticed the change from driving it, but visually I could see that the steering wheel had to be turned 90 degrees to the left in order for the car to drive straight. That was bizarre and downright scary. Now I don’t trust this car’s safety and don’t trust Lexus’ ability to truly fix this problem. I fear I made a big mistake buying this car.

austinGS

Sorry to hear of your experience - Quite frustrating I agree.

This might sound strange but please check your gas cap to make sure its secured tight and not just old and you need a new one - often the reason for similar alarms. Does not hurt to give it a try. You would have to disconnect battery to reset the alarm lights.

kadams1123

I did check the gas cap. It looks fine to me. Even if it was bad that couldn’t explain how the steering would shift 90 degrees. It was strange that I didn’t even notice it. It must have happened during a turn. At no time has the car ever seemed to drive differently. And again, after turning it off and back on, everything worked normally. It’s at Lexus for the third time now and they said it might take a while to figure out. I am very disappointed because I really loved driving this car and now I am stuck driving a KIA loaner. Quite a culture shock. 
But thanks for the tip though. The gas cap is not something you normally would think of as causing an alarm. This car seems almost too technologically advanced for its own good.

passnu2

iTrader: (33)

I have had my VGRS go off a few times. They replaced something and I havent had any issues since. I also had the gas cap replaced the 2nd week I had the car and that took care of my issues.

*Batman*

The steering wheel calibration is variable so it can shift due to electronic errors. The LS steering had a bug in it where the calibration could go off and they had to do a recall. The GS steering has had no issues.

All your issues seem electrical or computer related.

Have you had the car inspected for signs of flood damage?

kadams1123

I did not specifically have the vehicle inspected for flood damage, just the standard Lexus inspection and they gave it a clean bill of health, except for 2 rear parking assist sensors being bad which they quoted me as $740 to fix. It did have a clean Carfax report. The dealer I bought it from said they will make this right so I am still hoping I can get this car back and enjoy it for a while without it costing me an arm and a leg. But you are right, it sounds like some major electrical/computer problem.
The dealer I bought it from said he drove it for 3 weeks as his personal car before I bought it and had no problems. That is a big coincidence, or he is lying, or could I have done something to cause it?
I know one thing I did that he probably didn’t was operate all the systems, the navigation, paired up my phone with blue tooth and made a few calls, played dvd’s, operated all the buttons, got an XM subscription for the satellite radio. Maybe one of these things is causing a short?

bigblack06

iTrader: (20)

This isn't from a lexus dealership is it, cause if it is they should have never quoted you for the sensors, I had the same problem when I bought my car from Lexus and they ordered and installed for free. But all that other stuf sounds crazy hopefully everything gets fixed so you can enjoy your Lexus.

worker

I've the exact model and year and mine is fine.. no major problems and now at 105K miles on the odo. Just did the timing belt thing. Other than that just oil change and gas... and the stupid emission inspection coming up.

lkapimp216

iTrader: (2)

My 2006 Gs 300 had a rack and pinion recall could this be the issue???

IXI187IXI

iTrader: (3)

im still saying its the gas cap, how did you check to make sure it was fine? the steering issue seems like something lexus messed up. it didnt do that before but after they fixed the steering angle calibration, it started acting up.

kadams1123

I inspected the gas cap which looked in good repair and made sure it was tight with the click that the manual says to look for. I would hope if that was the problem the Lexus tech would be able to determine that. It would be great if it was that simple.

I don't discount the possibility of the gas cap causing alarms. But it seems a stretch to think the gas cap could cause the steering to go off 90 degrees. True, the steering goofed up after Lexus recalibrated, but only after the alarms went off. The alarms and steering are related.

I did not buy it from a Lexus dealer but am having it serviced there.

IXI187IXI

iTrader: (3)

^ well a good way to tell if the seal of the gas cap is bad is when you take it off. if you only have to turn the cap approx 1/4 of a turn before it comes off then its probably the O ring thats bad.

Yes the gas cap will cause those lights to go on. I would hope that Lexus would be able to rule out the gas cap first hence why the did the recalibration but you never know. The steering didnt act up til after Lexus touched the car.

kkash19

I got the dreaded "check engine" and "VSC error" light this week also - just bought my 2006 GS 430 in December with 60k miles .. I was like "Oh great!! .. I bought a problem car!!" ... but after the helpful advice from users at this forum, I found it was the gas cap! .. Presto - system back to normal (had to pull the battery for 10 mins), then all good!. Interesting thing is I bought a new replacement gas cap at dealer and the new cap has a NEW design compared to my old oen .. the new cap actually 'screws' on for a tight seal .. the older design only had to groove points on the cap.

Thanks again to everyone!

worker

I was just went for VEIP. (smog inspection) The guy turn around and ask "Is yours a GS300?" LOL He even have the card in front of him stating mine is a GS430.

7 days into the new year and I have donated $100 to the gov. $75 for a redlight camera which I didn't run cause I did stop, and this VEIP for another $14.

LIMS407

sorry to hear all the problem,,,surprised dealer gave u kia loaner not lexus loaner,,what part FL u from??