sidgriggs

After owning my 07 LS460 for over a year and hearing my wife complain about the wind noise (on the few occasions I let her ride in it), it no longer has wind noise. Got my dealer (Park Place Lexus, Plano, TX) to apply the jmcraney fix. They first replaced the triangles. Then after my wife said it still had wind noise, they followed the postings on this site. She and I just did a test drive--she no longer hears the noise!

WhitBaby

Yeah, nothing like a little Permatex silicon sealant in the ears I always say...



Whit

Jamminx

My car wind noise problem is being fixed right now by the dealer they tell me that the reginal rep has driven in my car and has approved the fix. They are putting sealant under the trim pieces. Notsure if this is on their own or its now a TSIB. I hop its fixed they are letting it cure overnight.

PatsSoxfan

I very much doubt it is an official TSIB. I think that more and more dealers have now heard of jmcraney's fix and are willing to go ahead and go with this fix on their own. However, some do not realize that they have to follow the exact instructions as posted by the now famous jmcraney and the results on the first attempt may not be that good. That is what happened with me. I was petrified to try it myself. The dealer agreed to do it with no hassle at all. However, the results were not too good. After reading so many posts here from folks that did this on their own, I finally got the courage to try it as well. My first attempt was still not that great since I did not think I applied enough sealant in the gaps. However, I decided to try it again a few weeks later and I am now a happy camper. The wind noise is now practically non existent. Only in very strong cross winds do I hear anything significant. Hats off to jmcraney once again.

jmcraney

Anyone in the market for a used 2007 LS460? (JTHBL46F775045743)

Here is an interesting item:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-....c0.m245.l1308


Look at the information in the "General" sub-window. Might be a good fixer-upper.

If you don't want to chase the link, here is a part of description:

Quote:
PLEASE READ: We are offering this beautiful car because it was repurchased by LEXUS of North America due to the following minor issue:

1. Wind Noise

This is literally all that was wrong with this over $70,000 MSRP car. The vehicle was inspected by LEXUS and was found that it met manufacturers specifications. In other words, there were no real issues, the car was perfect and they repurchased the car to maintain customer loyalty.

As they often do, this was a "goodwill buyback" and an attempt to satisfy their customer. We have driven and tested this car and it drives like new with NO issues! LEXUS has provided us with a disclosure of the original complaint for you to review and sign at the time of purchase. This process does not affect the factory warranty in any way and the car has the FULL balance of the LEXUS factory warranty for 4-years / 50,000 miles. Most importantly, in addition to undergoing rigorous testing prior to being placed back into the market, the full warranty remains on this vehicle until 07/23/2011 or 50,000 miles. The car also qualifies for many of the Extended Warranties that are available on the market. These cars are the core of our business, and we feel they represent one the absolute best values in the highline car market today. Dealing exclusively with Mercedes-Benz, BMW & LEXUS Buybacks, we know the inner-workings of the program by working directly with key Manufacturer personnel and have a full understanding of their mindset regarding satisfying the customer "at all costs." It is this customer approach and true nature of the “issues” that make these cars such a great offering to potential customers like yourself. The cars are rigorously tested, as it is the goal of LEXUS to have 100% satisfaction with the new owner. You will receive an Ohio title with a "Buyback Vehicle" notation. Other states might not recognize the Lemon Law/Buyback brand, so your State title may not have this notation. Please call your local BMV (Bureau of Motor Vehicles) to confirm.

We thank you for reading this far and hope we have a chance to discuss this beautiful car and the LEXUS of North America program with you further. We will be happy to arrange any type of additional inspection of your choosing. Thanks and hope to hear from you soon!!
End Quote

garyr

WOW...thats amazing to me a dealer tells you the truth and stated that it is a Lexus buy back because of wind noise. Who in their right mind would buy a car that has been bought back, they even said nothing has been done and their is not a problem

My Lexus field rep recently emailed me and wanted to know how the repair was holding up and I told him it's 100%. I bet you see this TSIB out soon for Jeff's fix. I would not be surprised if they change the production and installation of the part.

I was on the verge of having Lexus buy my car back, now is just awasome...thanks to Jeff.

jmcraney

Here is another example of the problems Lexus has faced over the Wind Noise defect.

I found this on the Internet - it is from:

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FLORIDA NEW MOTOR VEHICLE ARBITRATION BOARD QUARTERLY CASE SUMMARIES January 2008 - March 2008 (1st Quarter)

Quote:
Dennis Bellehumeur Trust v. Toyota Motor Sales USA, Lexus Division, 2007-0723/FTL (Fla. NMVAB February 5, 2008) The Consumers complained of excessive wind noise coming into their 2007 Lexus LS 460 when it was driven at higher speeds. The Consumers testified that the wind noise was “abhorrent,” and depending on the direction of the wind, the noise could be loud when the vehicle was driven at 40 miles per hour. The Manufacturer contended that the alleged defect or condition did not substantially impair the use, value or safety of the vehicle. The Manufacturer‟s witness testified that a “completely quiet car” did not exist, but this was an “extremely quiet car.” The Board found the problem to be a defect or condition that substantially impaired the use and value of the vehicle. Accordingly, the Consumers were awarded a refund.
End Quote

rjm

Thanks for posting that Jim. This just highlights how unresponsive Lexus USA Corporate is to the American consumer. If a defect doesn't affect the "use, value or safety of the vehicle" they will not address the issue. I have filed a complaint with the Arbitration Board on another issue when Lexus USA would not even address or respond to my complaint after it was denied by my local dealer (Sewell Lexus of Ft. Worth). After I filed for arbitration, the local General Manager of all the dealerships in the DFW area intervened on a personal level and settled with me in a very satisfactory manner in order to avoid arbitration. He went out of his way to keep a customer happy and reflects how honorable your local managers can be. On the other hand, Corporate Lexus USA was totally non-responsive in addressing the situation. I'm happy to see that the Customer in Florida won his case. This should be a precedent for others who have the wind-noise problem and cannot get it fixed by Lexus.

garyr

From my experience this seems to be a cultural issue. It very well may be high pitch wind noise does not bother certain regions of people.

I was watching a food channel show about McDonnell's and all over the world for different cultures they have to add spices like ginger to the Asian cultures to their meat and so on for other countries. Seems only an American hamburger only tastes good to Americans.

When I spoke to the field rep before they fixed my car a small Asian fellow was like hiding behind the field rep, I asked who that was and he said he was just hear for training. The shop foreman later told me he was from Japan and wanted to see and hear the expressions of people annoyed with the wind noise. He wet on saying in Japan they don't at all understand why people are complaining about it. He said the Japanese just accept that is how the car is built and move on.

Thank god there are no wind noises on Japanese motorcycles , I own 4 and have been buying them for 38 years. I only even buy Japanese helmets, now they have a terrific wind noise

zzzzdoc

Are there documented cases of any owners here on the board complaining about wind noises with LS600hL's? I can't recall seeing any, but since my car has been quiet, I haven't really spent much time looking into this issue.

Now I wonder if I will get benefit from doing this to my car? My next door neighbor has an LS460 with the wind problem, so my next step is handing him a printout of the fix.

jmcraney

I have become sort of a student of this issue and thus I know in which closets to find the skeletons. The following link seems to be an example (#8 review on that page) of the "wind noise" problem in a 2008 LS600H. Of course we can not be sure but the description seems all too typical. I have also seen other reports of wind noise problems in the LS600. As for your car, from afar, I suspect that it and all LSs will benefit to some degree from fixing the triangle trim. I see reports from owners who say they fixed their cars, even though they didn't think they had a wind noise problem or their problem was slight and after the fix their car was much quieter. And you should keep in mind that the onset can occur at any time - it doesn't have to have it when it is new, it could start after you have had it a while or become worse with time.

http://autos.yahoo.com/lexus_ls_600h-reviews_user/

jmcraney

You will also see several reports of wind noise in the LS600 on the link below:

http://autos.yahoo.com/lexus_ls_600h...rt=11&show=atl

awatkins

Forgive me if the following suggestion has already been made. I've read most of this thread, but not absolutely all of it....

In looking at the back side of my "triangular piece" yesterday I saw a triangular strip of foam tape running around the periphery, and just outside of that on the vertical side of the triangle a black foam gasket. I suspect the designer's intent was that the foam tape stick securely all the way around, thus compressing the black gasket against the metal frame and preventing air flow past that gasket On both of my triangular pieces it was obvious the tape had not adhered on the vertical side.

So here's my suggestion for anyone who has the wind noise problem (rushing sound past the mirror at ~50 mph and higher) and has not already pulled off their triangular piece: push really hard around the periphery of the triangular piece to see if you can get it to stick all the way around. It may just be that when the car was built the piece was not pushed onto the metal surface hard enough to cause the foam tape's adhesion to overcome the expansion force of the black foam gasket. If I had two LS-460's I'd do the experiment myself. :-)

My situation where the tape was engaged over only about half the periphery, combined with the flexibility of the plastic triangular piece, I think perfectly explains why the wind noise problem comes and goes and/or arrives one day after having previously been quiet. All it would take is some temperature shift or some jostling of the triangle to cause a small gap to open.

In any event, once I had the piece off and hence the foam tape was torn up, I simply executed mcraney's suggestion and my problem was solved.

By the way one other tip for people doing the full mcraney fix: for those of you who would like to preserve the skinny locating pin at the forward bottom corner of the triangle: use your putty knife or whatever to separate the foam tape along the vertical and slanted sides of the triangle. Then, pull the forward corner straight away from the car, rather than continuing to pull on the top corner: this pulls the locating pin away without bending it. Once the forward corner is about 1/4" from the car, the pin is in the clear and you can simply pull the rest of the piece away any way you want.

jmcraney

Here is another "Wind Noise Buyback" that sold on ebay last month. More evidence that this imaginary problem has been a real problem for Lexus. This one is a 2007 LS460L VIN JTHGL46F875003331

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...664888#history

If you don't want to chase the link, here is a part of description:

Begin Quote:
XTERIOR: The lovely OBSIDIAN (Darth Vader Black) paint does well to accentuate the sleek body shape and has no major scratches or dings. The 380 horsepower V8 engine The 18" aluminum alloy wheels are wrapped in Bridgestone tires, both of which are in spectacular condition. There's even a full-size spare tire. Thanks to the integrated fog lamps and xenon HID automatic headlamps with adaptive front lighting system, you'll have no trouble seeing where you're going and making sure other cars see you too. Another great feature is the electrochromic power folding heated exterior mirrors which also tilt down when you put the car in reverse. This is the L model so it is extra roomy inside! The exterior glass even has UV reduction technology. Your new Lexus also has the remainder of its 4 year/50,000 mile basic warranty and 6 year/70,000 mile factory power train warranty! This car was a courtesy manufacturer buy back by Lexus. Lexus kindly bought the car back from the customer for a wind noise. Since that time Lexus has replaces a seal around the door and fixed the problem. The car still carries the full factory warranty. If you need anymore information about what this means we would be happy to explain it do you (561-714-3679). This car represents an incredible deal for someone who understands what it is.
End Quote

PatsSoxfan

Amazing stuff jm! If only the masses knew how easy it is to fix this problem with your fix. By the way, replacing the seal around the door DOES NOT really fix the problem.