Lexus cars and trucks

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2009/09/68500008/1
recap of September’s recall/warning

Amazon.com Part Finder: http://snurl.com/LexusPA

Does anyone have recommendations on how to "fix", or even live with, some of
the weird irritants in a RX-350?  Examples:

1.  The wasted cupholder to the left of the steering wheel (in previous
models, it was a small drawer for storing parking stubs/change/etc).

2.  The absolute disaster in the center console with accessory outlet
access.  I have a USB extension cable, a cellfone charger cable, and a DC
accessory cable extender installed, but that severely disrupts use of the
console for storing anything else.

3.  The door pocket water bottle holder causing the swing out door to get
jammed in the "out" position.

4.  The two side pockets on the trunk floor.  One is about 2 inches deep and
the other is shallow with a weird shaped bottom.  If these two bottom liners
are lifted, you can see that there is ample space available below to make
the pockets into useful storage space.

5. Can the legaleeze warning stickers in multiple languages be removed from
the flip down visors, without damaging the fabric?

6. Has anyone tried fitting a full sized spare into the trunk?

–Wayne

"Dozens of owners of the latest, third generation Toyota Prius hybrid
have filled complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, alleging that they have experienced brake failures,
according to TheDetroitBureau.com."

http://www.freep.com/article/20091228/BUSINESS01/91228016/Brake-failu…

“It was a sensation of losing control,” reports 39-year-old Robert
Becker, when he recalls what happened when he tried to slow down at an
intersection near his home on the west side of Manhattan.  All was
going smoothly until he hit a pothole and suddenly, “the brakes seemed
to release.”  The human resources executive adds that, “it scared the
hell out of me.  I wasn’t sure I could stop in time.

He did – barely – but since then, Becker has had the problem repeat
itself regularly.  And so have a number of other owners of the Gen-3
2010 Prius, according to complaints filed with the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, as well as comments posted on owner
chat sites like PriusChat.com.

Full article at:
http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2009/12/is-toyota%E2%80%99s-image-abo…

"In a first, Toyota led the U.S. auto industry in recalled vehicles
this year, thanks to its largest safety-related problem since it began
selling vehicles in the United States.

The Japanese automaker has struggled with the fallout from the recall
of 4.3 million Toyota and Lexus models for unintended acceleration
linked to fatal crashes."

In contrast, Ford recalled 21,993 in 2009. An all time low excluding
the legacy of the well known brake switch problem. That’s less than a
small company like Mitsubishi!

Full article:
http://www.freep.com/article/20091230/BUSINESS01/912300358/1332/Toyot…

I have a 2004 LS 430.  The car’s Bluetooth system
doesn’t allow telephone numbers to be manually
entered for outgoing calls when the car is moving.
The number buttons on the screen "gray out."

I note that there’s a way to override the navigation
system so as to allow destination addresses to be
input while the car is in motion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysXzM9t7erQ

Is there a similar override/workaround/hack that will
allow telephone numbers to be punched in and an outgoing
call made while the car is moving?

Geoff

–
"The libido is life’s fuel gauge."
— Sam Sacks, _Commentary_, Jan. 2010

With approximately 560 hp and 480Nm of torque, the V10 will enable the GS-F to stand toe-to-toe with the 556 hp Cadillac CTS-V, the 518 hp Mercedes E63 AMG, and the 555 hp 2011 BMW M5.
Read More: http://www.worldcarfans.com/109123023752/new-lexus-gs-f-to-receive-lf…

———————————–
Lexus NewsHub: Latest auto news sourced from websites, portals and blogs
http://www.carshops247.co.uk/news/Lexus.html

Posted: Nov. 26, 2009
Toyota has a lot riding on fixes for recalled vehicles
Changes won’t be cheap, but they may protect firm’s image

BY GREG GARDNER
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

Toyota Motor Corp.’s willingness to go beyond replacing floor mats
will raise the cost of its largest-ever recall, but it may contain any
damage in the marketplace, industry experts said Wednesday.

Beginning in January, dealers will cut nearly an inch off the lower
edge of the gas pedal and adjust the width, a company spokesman said.
Replacement pedals are to be available starting in April.

That may not cost much in the short term. But on some of the vehicles
being recalled — 2005 through 2010 model-year Toyota Avalons and 2007
through 2010 Camrys and Lexus ES350s — the automaker will reconfigure
the floor surface beneath the pedal to create more space between the
pedal and the floor. Those three models, along with the Lexus IS250
and IS350, also are to be outfitted with a new brake override system.

Those fixes will add up, but Toyota did not reveal a cost.

"If you have to dig into the vehicle like in the powertrain or under
the dash, the cost is high, even if the part cost is low," said David
Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has found that on
most recalls, only 72% of affected owners bring their vehicles in for
prescribed repairs. That means Toyota dealers can expect to see 2.7
million of the 3.8 million vehicles recalled. That’s more than
Toyota’s total U.S. sales in the prerecession year of 2007.

"It’s going to be a lengthy process," said Aaron Bragman, an analyst
with IHS Global Insight in Troy. "But they have to do something."
A serious problem

At least a dozen fatalities have occurred when Toyota or Lexus
vehicles have surged unexpectedly and drivers supposedly could not
stop them by stomping hard on the brake.

Last month, the family of a 77-year-old Flint woman, Guadalupe
Alberto, sued Toyota in Genesee County Circuit Court. Alberto died in
April 2008 after her 2005 Camry is said to have accelerated from 25 to
80 m.p.h. and hit two trees. She died from the impact.

Lawyers charged that Alberto lost control because of a malfunctioning
electronic throttle control.
Toyota’s solutions

Toyota initially advised owners to remove driver’s-side floor mats,
which it said caused the acceleration when they became trapped between
drivers’ feet and the gas pedal.

Cutting the gas pedal is meant to reduce the risk that the floor mat
will become pinched, but Toyota plans more sophisticated repairs to
recalled Camrys, Avalons and Lexus ES350s, IS350s and IS250s. It will
install a brake override system meant to ensure that the engine will
lose power if the brake and the accelerator are applied
simultaneously.

That upgrade will become standard on all Toyota and Lexus models by
the end of next year, the company said.
Uncertain outcome

It’s unclear whether these steps will contain or reduce Toyota’s legal
exposure from lawsuits already filed.

"It helps in that it looks like they’re trying to do something," said
Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor specializing in
product liability law. "In the end, it comes down to: When did the
company know about the issue and did it take action voluntarily?"

As for the impact on sales, it’s too early to know. "Baby boomers will
be forgiving, but if it has any impact, it may be among Generation Y
buyers who haven’t yet formed any brand loyalty," Bragman, of Global
Insight, said.

Contact GREG GARDNER: 313-222-8762 or ggard…@freepress.com

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091126/BUSINESS01/9…

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