Pretty sure this isn't normal and I know it's really hard to see in a photo. But can anyone else see the ground between the bumper and weatherstripping? If I push the bumper in, it feels like it "clicks" into place. But after driving a bit, it pops back out to where it was.

*UPDATE* Just FYI, I fixed this myself because my dealership is pathetic and said it's "normal". There were small tabs that were bent flat, probably from being bumped by another vehicle while in transit. Wish I took pics but I can no longer pull the bumper back because it is now installed CORRECTLY!

 

Did you buy your RX new, or was it previously owned?

The bumpers on modern vehicles are attached to the rest of vehicle with multiple clips that are designed to snap off/break when the bumper has sustained even minor impact. When the clips do snap/break, that is what prevents or, at least, reduces damage to the sheet metal beyond the bumper.

When a bumper appears to be slightly out of alignment and when it can be, as you described, pushed back into place but subsequently it pops back out of position, that can be an indication that one or more of the mounting clips has been broken.

If your RX was previously owned before you bought it, that bumper could have been subject to minor impact and not been properly repaired. Even if you bought the vehicle new, there could have been damage in transport or it could have even sustained minor impact in the dealer's lot or, after you bought it, in a parking lot.

If one of the mounting clips is broken, replacement clips only cost a a few dollars, but the bumper cover does need to be removed and reinstalled to replace the clips, and that does involve more significant labor cost.

If you do discover that one or more of the clips is broken, you should also have the foam-like shock abosrber behind the bumper cover inspected because, if that is damaged, it might not be able to do its job in the future, which is, like with the break away clips, to prevent or minimize damage to the sheet metal beyond the bumper that might otherwise result from minor impact to the bumper.

 

For sure not normal and I would have Lexus take a look.

 

What model is this....It looks nothing like a 2016/17 RX350. There should be no gap at all, and the rubber molding goes over the painted section, but on the picture it looks like it's going close to a plastic trim piece.

 

It's a 2017 FSport. Had 12 miles when I picked it up, so it better not have been in an accident!! There's also a rattle coming from the rear every time I close the driver door. The wipers also make a lot of noise and look a little loose at the end of their travel. Did we get a lemon???

 

Well we both have F sports. This does not look like mine...at least from the angles of the pictures.

FYI, on mine I had a rattle in the bumper area when I got it. The metal piece underneath the bumper was not attached properly to the frame from the factory!

They attached it properly, adding the three bolts it was missing and everything was fine. However, I did not have the gap as seen in your pictures.

The wipers tend to make noise, squeaks a lot. That goes away in time.

 

Tried to take from the same angle....

 

Thanks!! Calling service dept today to take it in.

 

Someone back into your car?

 

Like I said, it only had 12 miles on it so that better not have happened! Although there's no way I could prove anything.

 

I would be willing to bet that it is likely that there is damage to one or more of the clips that I talked about in my other post. I've seen several examples of bumpers that are slightly out of alignment, that can be pushed back into proper alignment, and that pop back out of alignment shortly thereafter, and the cause has always been a broken mounting clip. If all of the clips are intact, the bumper should not be popping back out of proper alignment.

That doesn't necessarily mean that the car was in an "accident". It could well have been tapped while in transport. If the bumper cover was slightly scuffed, the dealer could have sent it to their shop and been able to buff out any scuffing, and they may not have bothered even to inspect the bumper closely enough to see if it was properly aligned or, even if they did inspect it, they may have decided that the alignment was "close enough" and decided not to incur the expense to remove and reinstall the bumper to replace any damaged clips.

 

Just got off the phone with the dealership. They're claiming ALL RXs on their lot are like that!? We'll see about that when I get there. Another thing, the service writer is claiming that the customizable features in the OWNERS MANUAL are not available on the cars in Hawaii!?? So why is it in the owners manual?? Who can I contact about these issues, since the dealership will not help? I'm also on an island so going to another dealership is not an option.

 

Contact Lexus USA or new car sales manager. I don't know why they wouldn't be available in Hawaii. If for some bizarre reason they are not available, I wouldn't sweat it too much. There are not that many things that make a big difference. I didn't bother changing anything, the only thing I considered was the color of the car. I find having it white gives me the contrast I like....to each their own.

 

Lexus USA was no help at all, so I fixed the darn thing myself! Some tabs were slightly bent flat. I'm thinking the back bumper was tapped by another car somewhere in transit. Such an easy fix but it's pretty sad that the dealership couldn't figure it out, or jist didn't want to!

 

I find the dealership so poor these days...not only Lexus. With only one dealer for you to work with, writing to a Lexus executive doesn't seem worth it. I did that in Canada and my dealership treats me so much differently now, good way....no more "sorry we couldn't find anything wrong with it"

I don't know who your Lexus USA person is but I did post it in the Vibration thread or the Hesitation thread.

Glad you got it fixed...yea!