The contact owns a 2008 Lexus ES350. The contact stated that the TPMS warning light showed that the tire pressure was low. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer to be repaired. While attempting to reverse out of a parking lot, the vehicle independently accelerated forward at 60 MPH. The contact was able to maneuver the vehicle out of the parking lot to avoid a crash. The vehicle decelerated independently. The contact pulled over and turned off the vehicle. After waiting for a while, the contact drove the vehicle home at slow speeds. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 49,000. The contact deemed the vehicle unsafe to drive and decided to sell it. The vehicle was sold to Carmax instead of to the dealership because they offered more money. But the contact still suffered a significant financial loss so they are requesting a reimbursement for the remainder of the value at which they purchased the vehicle.
2008 Lexus ES350 acceleration problems
39 complaints (15% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 18,887. 17 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 39
- of this car's complaints
- 15%
- typical mileage
- 18,887
- crashes
- 17
- recalls
- 1
Which part fails
- Accelerator pedal10
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Lexus ES350 acceleration problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2008 Lexus ES350 acceleration
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
Vehicle speed control: accelerator pedal
- What is wrong
- Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004-2010 passenger vehicles. The accelerator pedal can get stuck in the wide open position due to its being trapped by an unsecured or incompatible driver's floor mat.
- Risk
- A stuck open accelerator pedal may result in very high vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop the vehicle, which could cause a crash, serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Toyota filed an amended defect report on november 25, 2009, stating that dealers will modify the accelerator pedal and, on certain vehicles, alter the shape of the floor surface under the pedal. These changes address the risk of pedal entrapment due to interference with the floor mat. Redesigned accelerator pedals will become available beginning in april 2010 and dealers will replace any modified pedal with the new pedal if desired. Also, dealers will replace any genuine toyota or lexus all-weather floor mats with redesigned all-weather mats, or repurchase the previous mats from owners who do not want the new ones. Additionally, software modifications will be installed on camry, avalon and lexus es 350, is 350 and is 250 models that will ensure that the brake overrides the accelerator in the event both brake and accelerator pedals are applied. Toyota will begin mailing letters to owners on december 31, 2009. Owners may contact toyota at 1‑800‑331‑4331, lexus at 1‑800‑255‑3987.
Recall number 09V388000 · Recall details
Related investigations
Unwanted acceleration, floor mat
The driver side floor mat will not interfere with the throttle pedal if properly secured using the retaining hooks provided by toyota.however, if the all weather mat is unsecured and moves forward from its intended position it can entrap the throttle pedal at the fully open position after it has been depressed.this can happen regardless of whether or not another mat (carpet) is underneath.when this occurs, some operators react by applying the brake pedal multiple times, depleting the braking system's (vacuum based) power assist.stopping the vehicle with unassisted braking while the throttle is fully open requires significant pedal force, which some operators did not, or were unable to, apply for the required duration.continued driving in this condition results in overheated brakes, which further diminishes the braking effectiveness.some operators attempted to turn the vehicle off by depressing the engine control button, however they were unaware the button had to be depressed for three seconds to stop the engine when the vehicle is in motion; this functionality was not explained adequately in the owner's manual.in odi interviews, owner's reported they were unaware the all weather mat had the potential to interfere with the throttle pedal, advising that this was never properly explained given the significant hazard it represented.owners reported several explanations for why the mat was unsecured, including that the vehicle was delivered in this condition (most common reason), or that they had (unwittingly) installed the mat themselves, or that another party, such as a car wash attendant, had disturbed the mat without the owner's knowledge.one consumer reported that their vehicle was delivered without the retaining devices installed.in a september 26, 2007 letter to the federal safety agency, toyota indicated that they would conduct a safety recall to replace the all weather mat with a redesigned mat.according to toyota, the new mat design will reduce the potential for mat interference with the throttle pedal.the population noted above represents the number of subject matsthat have been sold in the united states.since toyota cannot identify which vehicles may have the subject mats, they will send a letter to all registered owners of the subject vehicles (estimated 750k) advising them of the concern and remedy.a copy of that letter will be posted to the federal safety agency's web site under recall 07e-082; it contains a description of the condition and the actions an operator should take in the event throttle entrapment occurs while driving.the fatality incident noted above occurred in july 2007 and was investigated by the federal safety agency's special crash investigations office.it has not been reported on a vehicle owner questionnaire.the operator reportedly travelled at speeds in excess of 100 MPH for an estimated eight miles on an interstate in california before it struck two other vehicles.one of the struck vehicles and the subject vehicle caught fire.the occupant of the struck vehicle did not evaculate and died at the scene.the subject vehicle driver suffered a broken bone.the california highway patrol is investigating the incident also.odi did not issue an information request letter during this investigation.the toyota reports noted above were reported during preliminary evaluation pe07-016 and are current through april 2007 for my 2007 lexus es350 only.odi does not have field experience data from toyota for camry vehicles.throttle entrapment due to improperly installed floor mats could be a concern in all vehicles.therefore, drivers should always ensure their floor mats are properly and safely installed.this incl
EA07010
What 2008 Lexus ES350 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 lexus es350. While accelerating from a stop light and attempting to avoid a curb on the left, the contact veered to the right and crashed into the driver side of another vehicle. When the contact attempted to steer to the left, the vehicle independently accelerated and rolled over. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained leg injuries and the rear driver side passenger sustained head injuries. Medical attention was required. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 16v340000 (air bags). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 189,000.
While entering my garage, my car suddenly accelerated and smashed into the rear wall destroying a cabinet and refridgerator and went through the wall. I couldn't stop the car as evidenced by brake skid marks on the garage floor. Lexus later inspected the car and claimed they could find no defect. Fortunately my wife and I were only shaken up from the deployment of the airbags. The car was totaled. My home and auto insurance covered part of the damage and lexus has disavowed any responsibility, but they never inspected the damage to our home or the evidence that I was trying to stop the car almost from the instant it entered the garage. I can provide pictures by email, but I can't seem to retrieve them for this document. T
We currently have allstate for insurance and they have this item called the drivewise. This device fits in the obd ii port under the steering column. This device created multiple communications errors within the computers for the car. After reading up on this, it seems that many people are having this issue in many makes/models. The vehicle shifted funny into another gear on its own. The instrument cluster was not working and would not light up. The radio would not work at all and the sunroof was making a funny noise. The speakers were making a crackling sound and the A/C wasn't working. The heated and cooled seats were not working. After bringing the vehicle into the lexus dealer they could see that the vehicle was having multiple communications issues between the computer systems. This device is a safety concern and we will not continue using it. Everything is back to normal now that the device has been removed. Had we not been proactive about this, the device could have caused an accident. Potentially harming someone. This is a very serious concern we have and I feel that someone should do more research on the product.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 lexus es350. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH around a curve, the vehicle erroneously accelerated. The brake pedal was depressed and the vehicle slowed down. The vehicle then resumed normally. The contact mentioned that failure was experienced multiple times. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified and stated that they would send an engineer to inspect the vehicle. The approximate failure mileage was 23,800.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 es 350 lexus. While driving 15 MPH, and approaching a traffic light, the vehicle suddently accelerated excessively and crashed into another vehicle. There was no damage to the vehicle, nor were there any injuries. The contact's vehicle sustained minor damage. He notified the insurance company when the crash occurred. There was no police report. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 43,000.
I had almost finished parking my '08 lexus es 350 in a parking place at a business park when it surged forward very fast. I had not touched the accelerator. I brake hard, but the car went up over a cement divider and crashed into the car parked facing me. I had the car one and half years, and this was the first time it happened. I had it towed to the lexus dealership. An inspector found nothing wrong externally, but the edr showed I had not stepped on the accelerator before the crash, only the brake, and yet it had surged forward. I had taken the car in earlier for the recall, and had removed the mat and had something added to the software. I sold the car back to lexus immediately as I never wanted to step foot in it again. This is a very dangerous car, and something is wrong with the electronics to cause this.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 lexus es350. The contact owns a 2008 lexus es350. While cruising 60 MPH the lexus suddenly accelerated to over 90 MPH. Contact stood on the brake as hard as he could and switched the ignition off, but the car continued revving as high as the motor would go. Finally, the contact was able to get the car into neutral to slow down. However, by then the brakes were red hot. Contact pulled the coil wire to stop the motor from blowing up. After, the contact's terrified wife and children calmed down from the near death experience, the lexus was towed to a lexus dealer. The contact called and wrote the dealer for weeks but only received a response after threatening legal action. Toyota of america then sent a representative to erase the onboard computer data proving even toyota thinks its unintended acceleration is electrical, not mechanical. Updated 01/25/11*lj updated 04/18/11.
Owner of 2008 lexus es received recall notice for issue with sudden acceleration. Car was taken to lexus service dept for repairs. However a month or so later, the car suddenly accelerated getting up to speed of approx 70 MPH in a residential area. Brakes did not stop or slow car down. As a result, two parked cars were hit, and damaged residents yards before running head on into a tree in someone's yard. The driver and passenger were injured.
S10 appropriate handling-letter from regarding toyota complaint *tgw 2008 lexus es350 the consumer stated as his wife turned into a parking space in a parking lot, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and crashed into another vehicle. The consumer stated the recall was performed prior to the crash. *jb updated 09/20/10
Questions about the 2008 Lexus ES350 acceleration
Does the 2008 Lexus ES350 have acceleration problems?
Owners have filed 39 complaints about the acceleration of the 2008 Lexus ES350, 15% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2008 Lexus ES350 acceleration problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 18,887 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2008 Lexus ES350 acceleration?
Yes, 1 recall: 09V388000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Lexus ES350 have the most acceleration problems?
The Lexus ES350 model years with the most acceleration complaints are 2007 (127 complaints), 2008 (39 complaints) and 2009 (24 complaints).
Other 2008 Lexus ES350 problems
Airbags 170Body 12Electrical 9Engine 7Visibility 7Brakes 5Steering 4Driver assistance 2Lights 2Transmission 2Locks 1Seat belts 1Suspension 1Wheels 1
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2008 Lexus ES350?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history