Hello to all, new member here. I was wondering of anyone could shed any light on some problems I have been experiencing with my new 2010 GX 460. It is my wife's car; 2 weeks ago we traded in her 2004 RX 330 for a new 2010GX 460. It currently has only 660 miles,but already we are experiencing some issues.

This morning, when I started the car, the check engine light and the "slippage" warning light immediately came on and "4 Lo" was flashing. I turned off the car and tried again, but the same thing happened again. We were staying at a hotel and had to drive the car home like that. It drove no problem, but those warning lights are still on. Has anyone experienced anything like this?

In addition, I feel like the steering needs to be centered. When I am driving around town, and especially on the highway, I find myself having to hold the wheel 2 or 3 degrees to the left, to get the car to go in a straight line. It is not pulling to the right, but if you hold the wheel dead center, the car will drift right.

Naturally, I am concerned that I am having any issues at all on a car with only 660 miles! I am hoping that someone may be able to shed some light on these issues.

Thanks,

Carson.

 

Hi Carson, I haven't had your first problem, but my vehicle was out of alignment at delivery. I would have them check your alignment, the toe was way off on mine. Also, have them center the steering wheel, but that should be part of an alignment. Let us know what they find with your other problem...

 

Carson, we made a similar 'upgrade' ... traded a 2006 RX 400h for a 2010 GX 460 ... they are like day and night. What you describe may be an intrinsic difference between a unibody crossover like the RX and a body-on-frame truck like the GX.

All roads must have a 'crown' ... a slight slope from the center to the sides so rain runs off to the shoulders rather than pooling in the center. As a result, most of the time we are driving along "the side of a hill" albeit a very slight hill. As you can imagine, there is a slight tendency to turn 'downhill' toward the shoulder of the road.

The higher the center of gravity, the taller the vehicle and likely a myriad of other factors, some vehicles are more likely to turn toward the shoulder. Our GX tracks straight and true on a wide highway, but starts to drift toward the shoulder on narrow roads. Perhaps you are noticing the difference between the GX and the RX as we did. As suggested, you should have your dealer re-align the suspension ... on both ends, but the tendency of the GX to turn toward the shoulder of a narrow road with a high crown is innate.
Regards,

SaniDel

 

Craig/SaniDel,

Thank you both for your responses. Lexus came and picked the car up early this morning on a flatbed, and my wife already has got the car back. Apparently, the cause of the "4 LO" flashing, along with the "Slippage" warning light and the "Check engine" light was.................................................wait for it....................................a loose gas cap!

I am not sure why there isn't a warning light that just tells you the gas cap is loose, instead of the dash lighting up like a Christmas tree, but there you go!

With regards to the steering issue, I have not driven the car yet, but the Service Advisor told my wife that they had "ixed the steering issue", which makes me think that there was indeed something amiss, even if only slightly. 4 days after we got the car, we had to take it back to the dealership for the exact same issue you are describing Craig, where the car was pulling badly to the right. This was slightly different in that it wasn't pulling per se, but it felt more like the steering needed to be centered. SaniDel, I hear what you are saying, and I think that is a large part of it. I drive a BMW and the steering is much, much heavier than in either the old RX or the new GX.

Anyway, hopefully that will see to those issues we were having.

Thanks again.

 

Will give that a try ... loosen the gas cap and see what lights up on the dash. Off the top of my head I don't recall a warning light specific to that situation, but the "Check Engine" light is a catchall for many problems.

You will read from others in this forum who have had steering problems, but our 2010 GX 460 with over 8,000 miles rides rock solid. We just finished a long day of highway driving on Interstates 68, 70, 76 and 81 over the Allegheny Mountains and had no problems. I've been convinced by this forum that higher tire pressure is better and raised all four to 35 PSI before we left. If you drive a BMW you already know how important it is to match tire pressure. I use a PSIClops Extreme to be sure:

http://www.northernautoparts.com/Pro...tModelId=18007


Lexus tends to overboost their power steering systems so they are easier to turn. Our RX was the 400h hybrid with electric power steering ... very light and the GX is surprisingly light for a truck. However, I've had several 'emergencies' where I had to rapidly make steering corrections to avoid other drivers and the GX performed admirably so it is not too light and certainly not 'sloppy'.

Hope you and your wife enjoy your GX as much as we do. It is our only vehicle and we both love driving it ... so much so that we alternate driving daily so that neither one has all the fun! ;-)
Regards,

SaniDel

 

The steering (and throttle) should be "By Wire" (electric) and it is speed sensitive. The faster you go the heavier it feels.

Koz