I recently purchased my 09... do I qualify for this

 

The worst part is that after the "supposed fix" the car still shudders from time to time. It's never died on me and that's what I tell myself every time it happens. Funny Lexus completely got rid of this engine on the new IS, but sucks for us!

 

Just did the new piston under warranty in July, took Stevens Creek Lexus almost 3 weeks to get everything taken care of (most of it waiting for the pistons). The car couldn't start one day because my wife left the light on, and AAA jump started it telling me to idle for 1 hour to see if it is the alternator or the battery. That idle probably loaded enough fuel vapor onto the intake valve and pushed it over the limit, triggering the VSC.


So if new piston is not a permanent fix:

Walnut shell blasting is around $500-700 at European car specialists, so in the worst case you can bring the IS to a Euro specialist to blast it clean once in a while.

Or you can go Harbor Freight and buy the tools yourself, and spend one weekend afternoon taking apart upper intake manifold and masking tape the rest of the engine bay, then hand crank to each cylinder close position and blast them all clean.

 

Yes the nightmare off all direct injection engines! I am going to try to avoid buying such an engine next time.

 

All the catch cans ive seen used in the is250 are non vented. Doesn't a catch can full of oily carbony crap that would otherwise go thru the intake valves provide enough proof of helping prevent the situation? Yes oil vapor still will go to the intake but way less that dosent mean im gonna say **** it and leave it as is if i can reduce it to the point where its less harmfull maybe its not even enough to cake up like it does and functions properly who knows. Maybe the catch can captures the bigger particles of carbon en goop that are what actually causes the buildup and the thin vapor that gets thru is harmless.

All i know is the less crap going into the intake the better thats why im getting a catch can on my 06 is250 with 77k miles had camshaft/intake valve recall done at 55k so less than 30kmiles of carbon and i want to keep it as clean as i can.

 

Based on what I read in this thread, 2011 and up IS250 shouldn't be prone to carbon buildup? 2010 may or not be prone to carbon buildup dependent upon it's build date, is that correct?

Exploring my options for my next car, however the carbon issue is a bummer.

 

Read through 30 pages.. but couldn't find any other symptoms than the rough idle. Would any of you know if my issues are related? It's somewhat ambiguous but very close to people's experience in here.

08 AWD - 70K
50% start ups, car makes a rattle noise as if the tranny has a bolt spinning around(goes away once you re-start)
CEL & VSC
14-16MPG (due to winter?)
when high RPM's, spits out smoke from exhaust
clouds of smoke pours out from exhaust when starting up. I understand typical cold starts but smoke continues longer than normal (vs. my TL) whether it's 20 degrees or 55.

any help would be great, thanks!

 

08 awd - 50k

I took my car in for the wiper recall and they ran a diagnostic test for carbon buildup. Lexus then authorized the csp for my vehicle. They offered to replace a bunch of stuff such as spark plugs and the water pump for only the price of parts which totaled $580. Should I accept their offer, or are they just trying to get me to buy parts i dont need?

Thanks in advanced

 

Its free labor, might as well change the sparks as they're due in 10k. As for the condition of your waterpump.. thats a maybe, since the wp's on these cars tend to fail.

I had my clutch replaced during the CSP for the price of the parts.

 

I agree with liqB. Why not while they're cleaning up your engine? Just make sure they're using the factory iridium denso plugs. They're the best. As for the waterpump I would probably have them do it...even though I hate the thought of any dealership getting their hands on things that don't need fixing. You may even get a bt better service by throwing them some money with extras. But you'll be pretty upset if a month do the road your waterpump goes...because the price of the repair will go up a lot. Your call but you're definitely not a fool if you have them do it now. Remember you're not paying for labour..so why not...

Cheers and good luck!

 

First question: Are you sure it's smoke? These engines are very high compression and tend to kick out a lot of water vapor on a good day. My 350 is high compression too and kicks out water vapor constantly and always has. Just make sure it's smoke in your diagnosing process...are your tailpipes black? Can you smell it? Is it blue or black or white?

Secondly there is recall for the carbon buildup that requires an engine overhaul. They replace the rings and seals on the piston. That will decrease the oil that blows into the motor resulting in extreme carbon build up. See if your car is a candidate for this.

With the "RATTLE" on startup, that is a secondary issue. You will notice it's typical when you start it after the car has sat...not because of temperature but because of non functioning mechanics of the VVT until the oil pressure builds back up in the system. It's actually the VVT or variable valve timing mechanism on the end of the cam shafts that adjust the timing of the cam shafts to crank shaft timing under various driving conditions. It's function is to optimize economy, performance, etc of the vehicle. This too is a recall. They will replace the inadequate vvt parts.

Lastly, there are several things that could cause rough idling and performance. Typically you want to address the regular replacement parts such as oil, oil filter, spark plugs, etc. If they haven't been done in a while. People don't realize the extreme engineering of these motors and that their oil plays a role in the operation of the motor not just to lubricate it. Dirty oil can plug up the VVT oil flow switches and you will see a drastic change in performance and eventual breakdown of the system.

Sorry...trying to summarize some key issues for you that I've researched over an over for my own problems...

So here's my short list
Plugs
Coils
Oil change (viscosity play a role in blow by)
Use a gas additive to clean the top end of you engine. Lots to chose from. Will clean the carbon off fairly well. Do this once a month. Cleans the valves, plugs, piston, cumbustion chamber, injectors and your catalytic system. It's worth it. And you'll recover miliage and performance.
Air filter
And clean out the throttle body carbon buildup

Hope some of this helps a little.

Good luck!

 

good read, thanks for that info.
I'm planning on doing some of that maintenance on my is250 as son as winter is over, with temps below Zero or not more than 30 for the next couple of months is kinda hard to get some motivation.

 

So my IS250 had recall work done at 50k miles, not a full rebuild, but a cleaning. If the issue were to come back, would my car still be eligible for new pistons and everything that comes with it, or would it be an issue since a cleaning was done already before?

 

I would have to say that if your engine (Or better yet your VIN) is valid for the recall and recognized by the dealership then yes. The recall service is in fact a re & re of piston rings and seals. The only thing that would stop them from doing the recall on your engine is A: Your VIN doesn't coorispond with any valid recall regarding carbon buildup (they already fixed the manufacturing problem when your car model was released) or B: The recall has already been done on it. And I guess there's a C...your dealership refuses to do the service. Lol.

I'm not sure what year your car was at 50k but the current recall on the IS250 what I listed above for certain valid cars. Perhaps it wasn't a recall and it was just warranty work? If it was in fact a recall you had done before I believe the current one would supercede your previous recall. But I'm not positive. A cleaning would just delay the inevitable breakdown of your engine. Best thing to do is find out if your car is valid for it with Lexus.

 

You're welcome!

I forgot a couple things in there if you're doing some routine maintenance... Air filter replacement (or clean the old one if it's not too bad) and clean the throttle body. I've read lots of people having issues after spraying a throttle body cleaner into the throttle body, as per TB cleaner manufacturers directions, so what I do is clean it by hand. The build up causes problems with airflow mostly when the butterfly is closed during low rpms. Use a rag like a microfiber cloth....if it's hard to get off with just the rag use a little gasoline on the rag or alcohol to loosen the buildup.

I hear you on the cold weather...hard to get motivated to go under the hood of the car...I just tell myself it's better than doing it when it's nice out.

Cheers!