Lexus Owners' 5 Least Favorite Features on Their Cars
Okay, hate may very well be a strong word, but the things listed here are all known to cause headaches from time to time. While these issues shouldn’t be sending you packing anytime soon, they will eventually make themselves noticed.
1. Awkward cup holders
Somewhere between the early 1990s and 2000s, car manufacturers came to the conclusion that the more cup holders there are, the better it is for everyone. While there is definitely truth in regards to cup holder usability, sometimes they're unnecessary, awkwardly placed or just plain useless. The 2011 IS350 is a notable example, with one cup holder placed in between the driver and passenger seat. If your car is a manual, good luck shifting with anything larger than a can in there!
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2. EnForm Infotainment System
Now don’t get me wrong, while the Enform system is wonderfully intuitive, it does still have quite a few annoying quirks. The system has had its fair share of usability failures, where an update can cause the entire system to brick and leave you without a radio. The navigational mousepad is also riddled with complaints, as it's hard to concentrate on the road while trying to swipe into the correct the icon and section. You can instead use the touchscreen interface and ignore the touchpad. Update failures can be reset by disconnecting the negative terminal on the battery.
The real problem here has more to do with Lexus’ choice in making this a subscription based feature as opposed to a one-off purchase–or even standard option. Especially considering BMW’s iDrive is currently offered as a standard option on all of its models. Long-term purchases seem to be a trend in the Lexus market.
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3. Unlit Temperature Control Buttons
No one likes jumbling their fingers across the center console in hopes of finding the right button. It's terribly distracting and just downright dangerous to do. Unfortunately, this is a common problem seen on the 2010 Lexus RX350s. The least that Lexus could have done is to make a tactile button that we could distinguish without having to look down all the time.
>> Join the conversation on Least Favorite Lexus Features here in the Club Lexus forum.
4. A/C Smell
Surprisingly, it seems Toyota has quite the troubles producing a high heat and humidity resistant air conditioning system. People in moist climates have had a notorious problem where the A/C produces a nasty mildew smell at startup. This smell is due to a design flaw that doesn’t allow the unit to properly dry prior to being turned off. Some people have had luck using an A/C disinfectant spray to get rid of the smell.
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5. Navigation
While the system does work most of the time, the interface definitely isn’t user-friendly. This is a widespread problem that has been seen on many newer and older Lexus models. Drivers have issues with simple things such as saving home addresses or finding the quickest routes. The maps it uses are usually outdated, sending drivers into literal dead zones and dead-ends while wondering what they did wrong. However, Lexus does have updates to fixed this map problem. Sadly, these updates aren’t free and cost either $169 for Gen 2/3 to Gen 7 vehicles and $210 for Gen 8 or 9 vehicles. At this point, it’d be a lot easier and cost effective to buy a dash mount for your phone and Bluetooth it to your radio!
>> Join the conversation on Least Favorite Lexus Features here in the Club Lexus forum.
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