bml376

Hi everyone, yesterday I took my 2018 NX300h to the dealer for routine service. The car has 65k miles and has been running fine, absolutely no issues. I was shocked when the dealer contacted me that during their inspection, they saw that the transmission was leaking. Furthermore they said that there is no fix other than to replace the transmission.

Has anyone else encountered this? I searched, but have not been able to find any details on this, other than isolated cases about transmissions needing to be replaced on ES or RX models. Maybe I was just unlucky?

I've own previous models such as RX and currently have a 2023 GX as well. This really is leaving a bad feeling to me about the reliability of Toyota/Lexus vehicles now. I've also owned German cars (VW, Mercedes and Porsche) and never encountered a case where a transmission needed to be replaced, granted German cars had their own issues, which is why I went back to a brand I thought was more reliable. Attached is a photo my service advisor sent:

Any thoughts or comments would be greatly appreciated!

Sorry for the typo in the title it should be NX300h.

850R

The transmission is still under warranty. On the NX300h, the transmission is considered part of the hybrid drive system which has a 8 year/100,000 mileage warranty. If the dealer won't fix it under warranty, contact Lexus Corporate for assistance.

bml376

Thank you! I will ask about this tomorrow and contact Lexus Corporate if needed.

bml376

I called Lexus corporate and asked about the hybrid warranty coverage. Unfortunately, the transmission is not covered anymore under the hybrid system warranty. They pointed me to https://www.lexus.com/warranty.

Unfortunately, I am 8 months outside of the powertrain warranty.

This single experience has soured my so far perfect experience with Lexus/Toyota. When it is time for a new vehicle, Lexus/Toyota will no longer be a default no brainer for me in terms of having a reliable vehicle that "just works" every time.

Biojoe

Keep us posted. I thought 6/100k was bumper to bumper. If my 2021 nx300h goes even within 10 yrs, I’ll post it everywhere, and send corporate Lexus a parting letter & never buy another “so called” reliable vehicle and never buy another Lexus !! My family, friends, neighbors, etc will know too!!! This is rediculous BS from such a “high cost, we’ll known, so-called reliable vehicle/company”!!! Trust me, if we can afford a Lexus we sure can afford “those other high mileage vehicles” that have a great track record

bml376

Here is an update. So I just got my car back with a new hybrid transaxle installed. As I previously reported, after calling Lexus corporate, the hybrid transaxle is not considered part of the "hybrid" system and hence is not covered by the 10 year/100k mile warranty. It is part of the powertrain, and I was 8 months out of that warranty. Needless to say, after hearing this, I was bummed. However, given how critical the transmission is to a car, I was ready to suck up the quoted $7400 repair, this is cheaper than a new car and currently, there really aren't any new cars I really want (short of exotic sports cars, but that is different)

However, without me asking, my service advisor spoke to his management and Lexus corporate on my behalf and worked something out. The deal would be that I get the new hybrid transaxle at zero cost, but I would pay for the labor to replace it. So in the end, this brought the cost down to $2500. I felt this was more than fair, given the situation. But ideally this never should have happened with a 2018 Lexus with 65k miles. Maybe I was just "unlucky". Evidently the entire service center was shocked as well so this tells me that what I experienced is likely an isolated case.

In the end, I was told by my advisor the following helped them make their case:

1. I have had multiple Lexus vehicles (2 RX's, current NX and my 2023 GX)
2. All serviced at the same dealer service center

Although this was not an ideal experience, it has renewed my faith in the Lexus brand, and dealer service centers; and made me realize that things like dealer/service center loyalty do count for something.

Me being skeptical of everything asked "how was it possible to get a new NX hybrid transaxle overnight?" Here is something to ask, if this happens to anyone else. Evidently, if a brand new transaxle is not available, they will use a refurbished one, so ask and try to insist on a new one if that is what you want. In my case, it was a brand new unit, simply because in my area (SF Bay Area) this has not happened to anyone before. So I asked "why would you happen to just have a new NX hybrid transaxle?", this is where I learned that regional warehouses, at least for Lexus, have all the major components to rebuild at least 1 of all mainstream models, this is for emergency cases, accidents etc.

I hope this doesn't happen to anyone else, but if it does, hopefully this helps.

For anyone curious this was all at Lexus Stevens Creek. I will continue to have them service my Lexus vehicles.

850R

Great to hear things got worked out for a reasonable price. A good dealer is really important to have. They are light gold in these circumstances.

BTW, on True Delta's Auto Reliability website the Generation 4.0 RAV4, which is what the NX is based off, very good reliability. It is safe to assume your issue with the Hybrid Transaxle was most likely an isolated incident.