I had new brakes put on my car and a few months later, while I was driving, the brakes completely stopped working. There was no warning and I ended up going through a red light because I couldn't stop. I was lucky to be in a residential area where I could pull over to the side and be towed to the brake shop. They checked it out, and said there was a code that showed a Lexus issue. We took it to the Lexus service at Woodland Hills Lexus. They drove it and nothing happened, but finally with a lot of nagging on my part, they did a diagnostic (charging me $486.74 for this) and found a problem. Based on what my service person told me, there was a letter sent out to Lexus dealerships saying this was a problem, but they weren't doing a recall. How can they be allowed to ignore a brake problem ? I would like to buy another Lexus (I have already had 3), but I am concerned they are not forthcoming about safety issues. I have emailed their headquarters regarding this, but have not heard back.
The worst 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
- Fuel system3
- Transmission3
- Brakes1
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Fuel system3
- Transmission3
- Brakes1
Recalls 1
Forward collision avoidance: crash imminent braking
- What is wrong
- Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Avalon and Avalon Hybrid vehicles manufactured October 19, 2012 to October 27, 2015 and 2013-2015 Lexus ES350 and ES300h vehicles manufactured June 18, 2012 to July 6, 2015. The affected vehicles are equipped with a Pre-Collision System (PCS) as optional equipment. In these vehicles, the PCS may unexpectedly activate and apply the brakes when the radar detects a steel joint or plate in the roadway as an object.
- Risk
- A vehicle that unexpectedly brakes increases the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace certain PCS components, free of charge. The recall began on July 28, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota at 1‑888‑270‑9371. Toyota's numbers for this campaign are F1V and F2E.
Recall number 15V728000 · Recall details
See all 1 recalls for the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid
Defect investigations
Pedestrian alert sounds
the federal safety agency received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, the federal safety agency opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified the federal safety agency he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by the federal safety agency regarding the subject matter of the petition.
DP22005
Technical service bulletins for the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid 191
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- Condition in which a musty odor is present
- The air conditioning dye injection tool kit has been developed to aid in identifying the location of air...
- Paint stains after the removal of Rapgard™. The paint stains may appear to be under the clear coat but are...
- Condition in which a musty odor is present
- Condition in which a musty smell is present
- Vehicles may occasionally be subjected to contamination by airborne iron particles shed from railroad...
- Lexus vehicles are currently protected with RapgardTM protective film designed to protect the horizontal...
- Acid rain results from rainwater or other airborne moisture that become acidic due to industrial chemical...
- The condition known as acid rain is caused by airborne chemicals or particles in the atmosphere, which mix...
- Ti: 19LE05
What 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
On 6/3/2019 at 12 noon, it has sudden runaway acceleration. We had stopped on the curb outside our home and then started driving slowly in EV mode turning into our driveway, and all of a sudden, it accelerated hard by itself, hit another car in the driveway, and then hit the corner of the house after going over some shrubbery. There was no time to hit the brakes; it all happened suddenly. This is clearly unintended runaway acceleration, and this make/model/year needs to be recalled before anyone gets injured or dies. This is serious
Car shakes
This is the third incident of unexpected acceleration and happened on 4/22/2016 at about 1pm. I was in EV mode, driving to park when all of a sudden the car shifted to "gas" and accelerated rapidly. I was able to stomp on the breaks and stopped to car about a foot before hitting a car in front. After my dr appointment at 2pm, I brought the car into the lexus dealer in maplewood, mn and exchanged it for another car. This 300h is totally unsafe and should not be on the road. Third incident in three months.
I was driving about 5mpg while pulling into a parking space. Car was in EV mode. All of a sudden the car accelerated; stepped really hard on the brakes and the car finally stopped about 2-3 inches before the sign. 04/11/2016.
My brand new es300h shows different milauge capacity each time I fill the tank. When I purchased it brand new it showed the driving range of 675 miles with full tank. Since then it has been continuously dropping by 20 to 30 miles each time I fill it up. Now I will be lucky if I can get even 500 miles range. I showed it to two different dealers in dallas, texas area. They both claim that the car is adjusting to my driving style (that indirectly means I am a bad driver). It has been 3.5 months since I purchased it and it is still dropping. Can driving style make that big a difference (nearly 200 miles less than the original range indicated)? I don't think so and I believe that dealers themselves do not know what is going on with my engine/ hybrid system. But they refuse to do anything about this problem.
Compare the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid
Other model years
Questions about the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid
Is the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid reliable?
Owners have filed 6 complaints about the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid, 1.2 times a typical ES Hybrid model year.
What is the most common problem with the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid?
Fuel and propulsion system, with 3 complaints. Next is transmission (3).
How many recalls does the 2015 Lexus ES Hybrid have?
1 recall, covering forward collision avoidance.
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