2008 Lexus IS 350 Airbags Problems

THERE HAS BEEN AN INTERMITTENT AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT ON MY VEHICLE. WHEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR SERVICE, UNFORTUNATELY THE LIGHT WENT OUT, AND NO CODE WAS CAPTURED. IT WAS RETURNED TO THE DEALER RECENTLY, AND A FAULT CODE WAS RECOGNIZED; A POSSIBLE KNEE AIRBAG ISSUE. WHEN TALKING WITH THE SERVICE WRITER, THEIR TECHNICIANS HAD MENTIONED IT WAS MOST LIKELY A SHORT IN A WIRING HARNESS AT A COST OF $3500 TO REPLACE. I WAS TOLD ALL OF THE AIRBAGS MAY BE INOPERATIVE WITH THE WARNING LIGHT ON, BUT THE DEALERSHIP WAS NOT SURE. A NUMBER OF ONLINE LEXUS BLOGS TALK ABOUT SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCES AND STRUGGLING WHY A FAULTY (DEFECTIVE) WIRING HARNESS THAT DISABLES ALL AIRBAGS IS NOT A SAFETY RECALL. IT SHOULDN'T HAVE TO BE A FATAL CRASH DUE TO INOPERATIVE AIRBAGS TO WARRANT A RECALL.

NHTSA ID

11174298

Incident

Feb 4, 2019

Mileage

77,000 mi

AFTER HITTING A HARD BUMP, THE VEHICLE THREW A B1866 CODE INDICATING AN OPEN CIRCUIT ON THE FRONT PASSENGER KNEE AIRBAG. THE CONNECTOR HAS BECOME LOOSE AND AFTER READING OTHER COMPLAINTS ONLINE IT SEEMS TO HAPPEN FREQUENTLY WITH THIS CONNECTOR OR ON THE DRIVER SIDE KNEE AIRBAG CONNECTOR.

NHTSA ID

11166718

Incident

Jan 11, 2019

Mileage

153,000 mi

TAKATA RECALL. AFTER LETTING THE LEXUS DEALERSHIP DO THE RECALL ON MY AIRBAGS, I RECEIVED A AIRBAG LIGHT SHORTLY AFTER AND LET THEM KNOW I DIDN'T HAVE THE ISSUE UNTIL AFTER THEY SERVICED THE AIRBAG. THE ISSUE IS STATED THAT THEY MADE THE HARNESS TOO SHORT IN MY YEAR CAR AND LEXUS IS NOT TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR ERROR WHICH IS PUTTING MY LIFE AND MY CHILD'S LIFE IN DANGER IF WE WERE TO GET IN A ACCIDENT WITH MY CAR. THE AIRBAGS ARE DISABLED DUE TO THIS FAULTY HARNESS. WHEN CONTACTING CORPORATE THEY ONLY OFFERED TO HELP WITH $500 OF THE COST WHILE THE DEALERSHIP WANTS $3500 TO FIX. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO PAY FOR A ISSUE THAT LEXUS KNOWS WAS THERE MISTAKE. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED IMMEDIATELY!

NHTSA ID

11084671

Incident

Jun 2, 2017

Mileage

170,000 mi

ON NOVEMBER 8, 2017, I WAS INVOLVED IN A TRAFFIC ACCIDENT IN SANTA MONICA, CA AS I WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN FROM AN ALLEY ONTO A TWO-LANE RESIDENTIAL STREET. THE OTHER VEHICLE STRUCK ME ON THE LEFT FRONT CORNER OF MY CAR. WHILE THE AIRBAGS OF THE OTHER CAR WERE DEPLOYED , NONE OF MY AIRBAGS WERE DEPLOYED. FURTHER, MY SHOULDER BELT FAILED TO PROPERLY RESTRAIN ME AND THE TOP OF MY HEAD STRUCK THE LEFT 'A-PILLAR'. SOON AFTER THE ACCIDENT, I REQUESTED THAT LEXUS DOWNLOAD MY CAR'S EDR( AKA "BLACK BOX" ). THE INJURY TO THE TOP OF MY HEAD DID NOT TURN OUT TO BE SERIOUS. HOWEVER, ABOUT 2-3 WEEKS FOLLOWING THE ACCIDENT, I STARTED HAVING PAIN IN MY LOWER RIGHT ABDOMEN. THIS WAS SOON THEREAFTER DIAGNOSED AS A RIGHT SIDE INGUINAL HERNIA. ABOUT THIS SAME TIME, I RECEIVED A DOWNLOAD OF THE RAW DATA FROM MY CAR'S EDR. I WAS ABLE TO COMPUTE THAT I EXPERIENCED A 20 G FORCE TOWARDS THE LEFT FRONT CORNER OF MY VEHICLE. MY CONCLUSION IS THAT MY BODY WAS FORCED UPWARDS AND TORQUED TO THE LEFT DURING THE ACCIDENT WITH A FORCE EQUAL TO 20 TIMES MY BODY WEIGHT. I CONCLUDE THAT THIS CAUSED THE INJURY LEADING TO THE HERNIA. WHEN I FIRST CONTACTED LEXUS LAST NOVEMBER, I INDICATED THAT I BELIEVED THERE WAS A "SAFETY GAP" IN MY VEHICLE. WHILE I ACCEPT THAT THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY, I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT THE SHOULDER BELT SHOULD HAVE PRECLUDED MY HEAD HITTING THE "A-PILLAR' AND THE INJURY TO MY LOWER RIGHT ABDOMEN. AFTER MUCH DELAY, I FINALLY RECEIVED A RESPONSE FROM TOYOTA ON FEBRUARY 8, 2018. IN A BRIEF, DISMISSIVE ONE-PAGE LETTER, THEIR RESPONSE WAS THAT MY CAR PERFORMED PROPERLY DURING THE ACCIDENT. IN THIS LETTER, THEY FAILED TO EVEN MENTION THE FAILURE OF MY SHOULDER BELT TO PROPERLY RESTRAIN ME. BASED ON EARLIER CONVERSATIONS VIA PHONE WITH LEXUS, I HAD BEEN EXPECTING A REPORT PREPARED BY LEXUS SAFETY ENGINEERS. IN CONCLUSION, I WILL NOT PURCHASE ANOTHER LEXUS VEHICLE.

NHTSA ID

11075460

Incident

Nov 8, 2017

Mileage

50,000 mi

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 LEXUS IS 350. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V340000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE PARTS TO DO THE REPAIR WERE UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ID

10945755

Incident

Jan 10, 2017

TAKATA RECALL I WOULD LIKE TO REGISTER A COMPLAINT ABOUT THE LENGTH OF TIME FOR ME TO BE NOTIFIED THAT MY CAR IS AFFECTED BY THIS RECALL ( AUGUST 2016) AND THE FACT THAT THERE IS NO TIME LINE FOR A FIX. THE RECOMMENDED WORK AROUND IS TO NOT HAVE SOMEONE IN THE PASSENGERS SEAT. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A RIDICULOUS OPTION.

NHTSA ID

10896224

Incident

Aug 16, 2016

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 LEXUS IS 350. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V340000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ID

10893464

Incident

Jul 1, 2016

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 LEXUS IS 350. UPON ATTEMPTING TO PULL INTO A PARKING SPACE, THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO GET THE STEERING WHEEL TO UNLOCK. THE VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF AND WOULD NOT RESTART. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER FOR FURTHER INSPECTION AND DIAGNOSIS. THE CONTACT ALSO RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V340000 (AIR BAGS). THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE WHEN THE PARTS WOULD BECOME AVAILABLE FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS NOT AVAILABLE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ID

10875230

Incident

Jun 19, 2016

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 LEXUS IS 350. WHILE PARKED, THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS INVALID. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,700.

NHTSA ID

10780137

Incident

Sep 22, 2015

Mileage

45,700 mi

DASHBOARD HAS DEVELOPED A STICKY, SHINY APPEARANCE. DEALERSHIP HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THESE MODELS HAVE THIS PROBLEM BUT WILL NOT COVER UNDER WARRANTY. THE SHINY APPEARANCE MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO SEE OUT THE WINDSHIELD IN STRONG SUNLIGHT. I FEEL THIS IS VERY UNSAFE. WILL THE AIRBAG DEPLOY PROPERLY WITH A STICKY SURFACE? *TR

NHTSA ID

10608231

Incident

Jun 2, 2014

Mileage

56,000 mi