Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | |||||
| 00105 | 07/15/2005 | 10017113 | Front brake squeal noise. *sc | 10/24/2005 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SERVICE BRAKES | |||
| 10/01/2005 | 1 | ||
| I own a lexus rx400h 2006. on several occasions, the vehicle has lurched forward (i.e. accelerated) before stopping when i applied the brakes at a red light or stop sign. i went to the wilkie lexus dealership in haverford, pa on january 31, 2013. a technician performed a test on the vehicle and reported normal braking performance. i have found similar complaints on nhtsa. based on these similar reports, i believe my vehicle is not an isolated incident. the brake system on this model needs to be investigated. i will also file a formal complaint with lexus. i have been lucky to not hit a pedestrian or vehicle, however, it seems as if it is only a matter of time. others with similar incidences have not been so lucky. *tr | |||
| 10/01/2005 | |||
| I own a lexus rx400h 2006. on several occasions, the vehicle has lurched forward (i.e. accelerated) before stopping when i applied the brakes at a red light or stop sign. i went to the wilkie lexus dealership in haverford, pa on january 31, 2013. a technician performed a test on the vehicle and reported normal braking performance. i have found similar complaints on nhtsa. based on these similar reports, i believe my vehicle is not an isolated incident. the brake system on this model needs to be investigated. i will also file a formal complaint with lexus. i have been lucky to not hit a pedestrian or vehicle, however, it seems as if it is only a matter of time. others with similar incidences have not been so lucky. | |||
| 01/17/2013 | 45000 | 1 | |
| I was driving the lexus rx400h within the city and tried to brake suddenly to avoid a failed car in my lane. i pushed really hard on the brake pedal and continued to step hard on the brake. there was no braking action whatsoever. it appeared as if pressing very hard on the brake just disabled the brake. the car continued to drive like it was on a cruise control and the incident resulted in rear-ending the car in front. *tr | |||
| 01/17/2013 | 45000 | ||
| I was driving the lexus rx400h within the city and tried to brake suddenly to avoid a failed car in my lane. i pushed really hard on the brake pedal and continued to step hard on the brake. there was no braking action whatsoever. it appeared as if pressing very hard on the brake just disabled the brake. the car continued to drive like it was on a cruise control and the incident resulted in rear-ending the car in front. | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC | |||
| 04/20/2010 | 63105 | ||
| Lexus rx400h 2006 - abs - when applying brakes to slow down, if the car is on a bumpy road, the brakes seem to give out and the car lunges forward. this seems to happen as car switches from regenerative braking to regular brakes. i have reported this issue to the dealer several times, and they have yet to find any problem. | |||
| 04/15/2010 | 54800 | ||
| Momentary acceleration during normal braking. problem occurs regularly (but not every time) during normal braking. lexus dealer service writer reports this as normal and expected performance. it appears that normal braking starts with regenerative brakes and then transitions to friction brakes. there is a moment during the transition that braking power is lost and vehicle unexpectedly acclerates. to maintain even deceleration during every braking maneuver the driver must be particularly aware of this potential problem and be prepared to quickly apply siginificant additional pressure to the brake pedal during the transition phase then immediately remove the added pressure to prevent over-braking.. | |||
| 05/23/2009 | 32000 | ||
| I have a 2006, lexus, rx 400 h. a lexus certified used vehicle. the vehicle was new to me last summer. it accelerates slightly when i initiate braking 2 or 3 times out of 20 times. i thought it was normal for a car with regenerative braking. it startles you when it happens but hard pressure on the brake stops the car. you have to pay atttention each time you brake. what is scary is it accelerates a lot in about 1 of 100 times when i brake. at first i thought i was hitting both the gas and the accelerator ... but i am sure i am not. the car will accelerate two car lengths before you can brake it. i thought it was dangerous and brought it to the dealer last year. we went for a test drive and the problem did not occur. the dealership recorded the complaint and told me to keep an eye on it. the 2 car length acceleration problem was worse in the hot months and it did not seem to occur in the winter months. the slight acceleration problem has not changed in frequency. with all this toyota brake stuff, i wonder why i have not heard of this problem in lexus hybrid cars too? | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 40000 | 1 | |
| We own a 2006 lexus rx 400h and occasionally when the brakes are pressed the car 'jumps' forward. we have taken our vehicle to the lexus dealership several times to report the issue but they always return and tell us nothing it wrong with the vehicles braking system. this event does not occur all the time, we are concerned that if we are required to stop suddenly to avoid an accident, etc. that our vehicle will jump and we will cause an accident. *tr | |||
| 01/10/2010 | 25 | 1 | |
| Brake slippage on 2006 lexus rx400h - i bought this new in 2005 and ever since then, we've seen the same kind of brake slippage that other owners have been reporting. when we're braking to come to a stop, the vehicle will suddenly lunge as if the brakes stopped grabbing or slipped. the car does come to a stop with continued pressure but the sudden feeling of acceleration is most disconcerting. i take it to the dealer for all scheduled maintenance and each time i'm there, i mention the braking issue. and, each time, they tell me that its normal for the types of brakes used in the hybrid technology. *tr | |||
| 02/11/2010 | 76000 | 1 | |
| I own a 2006 lexus rx400h which i believe has exactly the same flaw as recently reported in the prius. several years ago i had a minor accident caused by my car lurching forward during breaking which caused me to hit the car in front of me. when i brought my car into the lexus of watertown dealership where i purchased the vehicle i reported that i thought the issue might be related to the transition between the regenerative braking system and the regular brake. it seemed like the regenerative braking system was turned off slightly before the regular braking system kicked in causing a gap in the braking that was perceived by me to be a lurching forward. of course, what it was a decrease in deceleration that appeared be acceleration. in any event, the dealer said he checked the brakes and could not find anything wrong. i would say from that time until now i had about one or two instances of this lurching per month. i am very used to hybrids and currently own a prius as well, so i know the idiosyncratic nature of the braking system. however, after the recent cascade of reports on problems with the prius i called my dealer again and told them, you should know that the lexus has the same problem, i have had exactly the same problem with my lexus have there been any other reports of problems. i believe i was told no, however, the wording of the answer was guarded. today, i had another lurching event. approaching a stop sign, on a smooth, dry road i lurched forward at approximately 15 mph. if a pedestrian were crossing the street at the time i would have hit them, causing serious injury, hopefully not death. this is a dangerous situation. i contacted my lexus dealer to relay this issue today and say we must do the right thing. they did not respond, so i am moving forward with this formal complaint before more serious harm is done. *tr | |||
| 01/28/2006 | 1 | ||
| Brakes slip on my lexus 400 hybrid suv, 2006 model. this occasional slippage has always been a part of this car since i bought it. i have brought it to the dealers attention and they say they could not find anything wrong. these incidents have continued to happen from 2006 purchase date until the present, 2010. *tr | |||
| 02/07/2010 | 30500 | 1 | |
| I own 2 2006 lexus rx 400 h hybrid suv's. from the first week i complained that the brakes would not always engage when you depressed the brake pedal. the car would lurch forward when the brakes did not engage for 1 or 2 seconds. the lexus dealer has dismissed my complaint each time. now there appears to be a voluntary recall of toyota hybrids and one line of lexus hybrids with the identical problem. but the problem is not just with their new s50 lexus hybrid. it has existed at least as far back as 2006 with my cars. *tr | |||
| 02/01/2010 | 36500 | 1 | |
| I went to the dealership last morning of feb 3 2010 for my regular serivice. i didn't know yet that time about the story behind the break time lag of prius. because that day i told lexus to take a look on my brake as i am having the same problem as the prius. my car is a rx400h 2006 model. not only i'm having the same problem during slow movement(approaching the traffic light) but even on a high speed(60-65). i compalain the problem to lexus 3 years ago and they did some adjustment(i don'y know what exactly is) but still i always have that problem at least once or twice a month. mywife is the one who drives that car a lot, and she told me that she never have that episode on a high speed, but she said she always have that on a 50mph speed on a local strret, which is even worst, as the car in front of you are very close. actualy last feb 3 2010 the lexus gave me a loaner car for that day and it is a hs hybrid car(450 miles) and it's almost new, and i was surprised that it has the same problem when i'm approaching the traffic light. so i told myself, is this normal to a hybrid? my rx400h is now 4 years and i cannot remember i'm having that problem on it's 1st year. i believe the slow speed was started a month ago.(mid jan 2010) and the high speed is probably 3 years now. this message is not a complain, but rather them(toyota) to investigate if everything is still normal. *cn | |||
| 12/11/2009 | 35000 | ||
| My lexus rx400 h hybrid vehicle is experiecing smilar problem regarding the break like toyota prius . when bumpy , down hill and ice road, the brake will experience temporary disable and the car will move forward.when braking on uneven or slippery surfaces, the braking system gets confused and braking power is lost momentarily. | |||
| 01/30/2010 | 50200 | 1 | |
| 2006 lexus rx 400 at slow speeds steps on brake and nothing happens for about 2 - 3 seconds. this has not caused an accidents as i have allow enough space for brakes to respond. this does not happen with any pattern and is difficult to predict when it will happen. *tr | |||
| 11/17/2006 | 50 | 1 | |
| I have been complaining of this same problem (my brakes fail also when going over rough roads) since i bought my 2006 lexus rx400h. they have been telling me its normal and deny its even a problem. eb. 4: nhtsa today announced it is opening a formal investigation of the toyota prius hybrid model year 2010 to look into allegations of momentary loss of braking capability while traveling over an uneven road surface, pothole or bump. the agency received 124 reports from consumers, including four alleging that crashes occurred. investigators have spoken with consumers and conducted pre-investigatory field work. | |||
| 04/03/2006 | 1 | ||
| The vehicle actually accelerates or lunges forward when i step on brake and am braking over uneven part of the road. *tr | |||
| 12/10/2007 | 32000 | 1 | |
| The regenerative brakes on my lexus rx 400h will stop working during normal braking operation causing the operator to have to apply more pressure to the break pedal to compensate for the loss of regenerative breaking. this is an intermittent problem and you never know when you will have to make a braking adjustment. this problem first started in december, 2007. i purchased the car in april, 2005. i do not feel that an operator of a vehicle should have to make sudden adjustments in their breaking action to compensate for the disengagement of a portion of the breaking system, especially when you never know if it is going to happen. i have taken this back to the lexus dealer on several occasions and they tell me that they believe the car is working normal, even when the problem is intermittent. *tr | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | |||
| 03/01/2011 | 72000 | ||
| Unexpected vehicle acceleration - lack of adequate braking during disengagement of hybrid regenerative braking. | |||
| 01/01/2010 | 1000 | ||
| I have experienced the exact braking problem in my 2006 lexus rx400h as described in recent car guys column. while coasting to a stop with foot lightly on brake pedal, if i suddenly step harder on brake, it seems to disengage for a second before the brake takes hold again. my guess, same as the car guys, is that there is a slight delay in switching from regenerative braking to regular friction braking. it is disconcerting, but something i can live with as i am a cautious driver -- leave plenty of following distance, etc. this has happened occasionaly, at various times, so incident date is fictitious just to get through this form. | |||
| 07/12/2009 | 52000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2006 lexus rx400h. the contact stated when driving at speeds of at least 40 mph on a bumpy road surface, the braking system becomes faulty causing unpredictable stopping distances. the contact took the vehicle to a dealer to have a diagnostic test performed and the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. the contact was concerned that the vehicle could potentially cause a crash due to the faulty brakes. there were no repairs made to the vehicle. the failure mileage was 52,000. | |||
| 04/15/2010 | 54800 | ||
| Momentary acceleration during normal braking. problem occurs regularly (but not every time) during normal braking. lexus dealer service writer reports this as normal and expected performance. it appears that normal braking starts with regenerative brakes and then transitions to friction brakes. there is a moment during the transition that braking power is lost and vehicle unexpectedly acclerates. to maintain even deceleration during every braking maneuver the driver must be particularly aware of this potential problem and be prepared to quickly apply siginificant additional pressure to the brake pedal during the transition phase then immediately remove the added pressure to prevent over-braking.. | |||
| 05/23/2009 | 32000 | ||
| I have a 2006, lexus, rx 400 h. a lexus certified used vehicle. the vehicle was new to me last summer. it accelerates slightly when i initiate braking 2 or 3 times out of 20 times. i thought it was normal for a car with regenerative braking. it startles you when it happens but hard pressure on the brake stops the car. you have to pay atttention each time you brake. what is scary is it accelerates a lot in about 1 of 100 times when i brake. at first i thought i was hitting both the gas and the accelerator ... but i am sure i am not. the car will accelerate two car lengths before you can brake it. i thought it was dangerous and brought it to the dealer last year. we went for a test drive and the problem did not occur. the dealership recorded the complaint and told me to keep an eye on it. the 2 car length acceleration problem was worse in the hot months and it did not seem to occur in the winter months. the slight acceleration problem has not changed in frequency. with all this toyota brake stuff, i wonder why i have not heard of this problem in lexus hybrid cars too? | |||
| 04/15/2007 | 50000 | 1 | |
| Lexus rx400h, accelerated while brakes were applied causing an accident. also the vehicle's brakes were such that the there was a slight delay that had to compensated for or you would pass intersections or turns. the vehicle still accelerates at times when brakes are applied. *tr | |||
| 01/01/1901 | 1 | ||
| S10 appropriate handling re toyota recall for prius brake issue, owner of a 2006 lexus 400h concerned with braking problem experience w/vehicle. *tgw the consumer stated the vehicle would continue to accelerate when the brakes were applied. the incident would occur when driving at higher speeds and then slowing down to stop. *jb | |||
| 11/23/2007 | 1 | ||
| I was approaching a light intersection at 50mph. when light changed to red i tried to apply brakes about 1,000ft from intersection. car did not slow down and brakes appeared not to be working. i veered into median to avoid stopped traffic in front of me and then entered intersection clipping the back of another vehicle. lexus dealer reported no defect with brakes. this vehicle had been stored in a florida garage and it was the 1st time it had been driven in several months. this has not happened again to this vehicle to my knowledge. *tr | |||
| 01/12/2010 | 21000 | 12 | |
| Re: lexus rx400h not on any recall list by toyota. have had multiple incidents of braking/acceleration problems. toyota won't do anything except say bring it in for a test drive. it has already been test driven several times and the problem does not duplicate. it is rare, but it is dangerous. toyota just shrugs it off. i know what the car does, i've driven it for nearly 3 yrs with approx. 12 incidents of the problem. can you help? *tr | |||
| 10/01/2006 | 11000 | 1 | |
| When braking, if a pothole or bump in the road is hit or when either the temperatures are really cold (on occasion) or the hybrid battery charge is close to full, the car's regenerative braking stops and there is a delay in the friction brakes being applied by the system. when this occurs, the car seemingly jerk forward for a second. dealer stated that there is nothing wrong with the brakes. this behavior has recurred over the last 4 years/60,000 miles. no fix from lexus. had to learn to expect this behavior and drive accordingly (on occasion having to emergency brake with abs activated). *tr | |||
| 04/16/2009 | 20000 | 1 | |
| Lexus rx400h has a brake issue. instead of stopping it sometime accelerates and continuous braking leads it to stop. the hybrid technology forces many of us to change all four company fitted all four tires just in 2 years. very disappointed by paying premium for premium brand but not getting premium quality! *tr | |||
| 12/28/2005 | 1 | ||
| Ever since i purchased the car in late 2005, my 2006 lexus rx 400h hybrid suv will lose braking effort when going over a bump. i have press harder on the brake pedal to maintain braking force to stop the car when this happens. this happens every time you go over a certain type of bump when the brakes are being applied. there is no light or warning sound associated with the loss of braking effort. if it possible to safely remove your foot from the brake pedal or a second, and then re-apply the brakes, the brakes are restored to normal operation. vigilance is required in increasing brake pedal pressure when this happens to avoid a crash. i have to complained to several lexus dealers and to lexus central customer service about this issue. i was told the company never received any complaints about the problem and/or was never able to reproduce the problem in my car. *tr | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 40000 | 1 | |
| I own a 2006 lexus rx-400h, and i have experienced braking problems while driving this vehicle for the past 1-2 years that has become progressively worse. the problem generally occurs at speeds between about 25-45 mph, and involves a sudden decrease in braking deceleration with constant brake pressure, making it necessary to quickly apply more pressure to bring the car to a stop. from my own observations, as well as from technicians at the dealership, this problem appears to be related to the hybrid regenerative braking system, which seems to abruptly stop regenerative braking without compensating with additional friction braking. after finally having this phenomenon confirmed by the dealership after over well over a year of experiencing it, i am being told by the dealership that lexus engineers are calling this normal and expected behavior of the car. i am filing this complaint because i feel that, while it may be normal or expected to lexus, it presents a serious a danger to myself and other drivers when the vehicle does not respond to braking in a predictable manner. i have on several occasions been startled by occurrences of this problem when approaching a stop sign or cross walk, and consider myself fortunate that i've been able to react in time to avoid hitting the vehicle in front of me, or a pedestrian. this problem has become severe enough that it can be fairly easily reproduced in the first few minutes of test driving. *tr | |||
| 01/01/2010 | 55000 | 1 | |
| I have 2006 lexus rx 400h and have the same problem with my brake as prius has. when i slow down a car and my car hits a rough patch of surface, or pothole, the brake seems to release and i experience 'brake surging'. several instance i almost hit a pedestrian because the car surged forward at an intersection. i brought the issue to the lexus dealer but they said they could not replicate the problem during their examination. help! *tr | |||
| 02/03/2009 | 60130 | 1 | |
| I have a 2006rx 400h, with 60k miles, and an extended warranty. i broke down 2 weeks ago on a 2 lane highway, without brakes, loud warning sounds, and failure lights all over the dash. my choices at that time were to stop in the middle of the road, center divider did not exist but instead was a concrete barrier, and right hand shoulder eased off to the river. since it was not commute time, traffic was light and i was able to slow down and pull off at the old mare island base in vallejo. my car was towed to freeman lexus, santa rosa, where i bought my car and have had all servicing done. i was informed that the computer needed to be replaced and would take a week or so to get. the job was done on wed. feb 11. i went to the dealership to pick it up and was on my way to sf to teach a class, when less than 30 miles from the dealership, on highway 101, in the middle of commute traffic, failure alarms and lights sounded and brakes did not work. i was shocked and tried to quickly get my car over to the slow/right hand lane and tried to slow down. i finally, 2 miles later, found an exit ramp and brought the car to a stop after a long approach to the ramp. i was stopped between the lane and the shoulder. called the dealer again to let them know of the failure. they now have the car towed back at freeman lexus. if this computer was replaced, how could this failure happen again. additionally, i had to reach out to all my students to cancel the class at the last minute. this is a catastrophic failure and both times could have ended in injury, serious collision, to others or myself. while i have always been delighted with this vehicle and lexus products and service, i do not know what i could be told regarding the repair of this car, that would make me feel safe. i feel like with these 2 failures, two potentially serious situations were averted. how can i be sure that this won't happen again with terrible or deadly consequences? *tr | |||
| 05/05/2007 | 9000 | 1 | |
| Vehicle was normally maintained and lightly driven. one year of age of the vehicle, when driven on level dry surfaces, the braking of the vehicle became erratic and remains erratic. in everyday use the vehicle will tend to overbrake or underbrake depending upon the mechanical loading of the hybrid drive. the onboard firmware is not properly accounting for integrating the stopping power of the brakes and the hybrid drive. this causes driver confusion and in some cases hazardous failure to brake conditions when the hybrid drive unexpectedly and erratically ceases it's contribution to the braking force of the vehicle. i.e. if the driver does not immediately compensate, the vehicle will lunge forward at low speed and within a few feet of pedestrians and other stopped vehicles in traffic. the dealership states that nothing can be done and that erratic/loss of braking is normal for this model. there are no recalls or sbs posted to upgrade the firmware, braking/hybrid drive systems. lexus rx400h, 2006 model. *tr | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - ANTILOCK | |||
| 06/25/2007 | 3500 | 2 | |
| Brakes failed on two occasions within a week. brake failure lasted for about 10 seconds and then brakes returned. during that time the dashboard warning lights lit up and a loud buzzer went off. was able to stop the with great difficulty. fortunately neither incident required an emergency stop. *ak | |||