Hi all, new joiner is here.
I am purchasing a Lexus RX450h 2017 and when I was "inspecting" it I noticed the issue with the rear center cup holder. It seems not fully closing and seems loose on the right (passenger) side, not even. Basically it feels broken. I noticed there are 2 spings on the sides and the right one is de-attached from the holder, making it flimsy. I asked the dealership where I am buying the car to fix it (it's mercedes benz one), but they said they wouldn't fix it because the car is on warranty so Lexus would have to fix it (bs but anyway). So I started to research if warranty covers it, but haven't found anything.
But then I started recalling that I saw cup holder issues in the service histories of some other RXs I was looking at and I opened the history of the vehicle I am buying and noticed this:
10k miles - |~CUSTOMER STATES REAR SEAT CUP HOLDER IS LOOSE AND NOT CLOSING ~|~ ~|~ORDERED CUP HOLDER
15k miles - CUSTOMER STATES REAR CENTER CUP HOLDER IS BROKEN SOP HERE ~|~CUP HOLDER HINGE IS BROKEN CAUSING IT NOT TO WORK ~|~REPLACED THE 2ND ROW CUP HOLDER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEATS.

So the cup holder was replaced at least once and apparently it didn't help.
I became curious and asked by bf's father to check his RX 350 2017 and.. found exactly the same issue with the cup holder and same right side is loose.
The I thought ok maybe there is some design feature I am missing. I opened the manual and it does seem like it's not a feature, but a bug.

Is it some manufacturer defect? Has anyone had the same issue with their rear center cup holders?

 

sigh mods....... why move this to the H forum ??
its a vehicle issue, not a drive-line issue.... the armrest is the same from a 350 to 450....

i can check mine, it has never been used

 

Not sure how to move it, couldn't find... is it possible?

 

Appears it was moved by the moderator

 

Same issue here no doubt. I took it apart and ‘fixed’ it as best as I could.

 

Is it easy to take it apart?

I found out that previous owner got the fix covered by warranty.
I will try to do the same.

But apparently those cup holders get broken somehow even without extensive usage, so not sure how long it will last.

 

It looks pretty fragile, and it is unfortunately located low enough that an accidental kick is not hard to imagine.

 

I do not think it's a usage thing, Otherwise it wouldn't be in the exactly the same spot and exactly the same issue in 2 cars.

 

Where is the rear cup holder? The only rear cup holders my 19 has are the two bottle holders in the door and I have two in the flip down center console that are very sturdy. The back of the center console has two ac vents, the dial, a cigarette charger, and the useless Toyota patent cubby that could maybe hold a little baggy of tissues.

 

In 17 it's

 

I checked my cupholders and it doesn't appear my '16 RX has that issue.

That said, it should still be under the basic factory warranty so you would have to go through a Lexus dealer to fix it. The warranty is comprehensive (aside from wear-and-tear items such as the brakes, fluids, etc) so you shouldn't have to worry about it not being covered.

 

Yes it is easy to take apart, I think just a couple of screws. Once I pulled it out I saw the plastic area broken around the inner screw on the right side.

 

Ahh yeah same sup holders that my 19 has. I conditioned my seats today and cleaned them out. The kids have barely ever used them to be honest though.

 

My rear cup holder is broken on my 2016. No one ever sits back there. Two dealers refused to fix it under warranty. The mechanism is a total piece of crap & Lexus wants over $200 to replace it with the same garbage system! This will probably be my last Lexus. I’m NOT impressed with their service.

 

I called Lexus Corporate to ask if this is a known defect. They said they are not aware of it. I asked if this will be fixed by warranty, they said they don't know, ask dealership. Wondering if they do not know about their warranty coverage, then who knows at all??

I am trying to figure out the way how it would be recognized as a known defect.

I think we should start calling Lexus at least so they would have the issue registered from number of people.


What is the other way to get it recognized as a defect and fix under warranty? Although I agree it seems like the mechanism itself is defective since mine was fixed by previous owner at least once almost right after purchasing a new vehicle and back seats look not used at all. But that would mean that ideally they would have to take the issue broader than just the cup holder.