Lexus Is220D Low Rpm Power, Can It Be That Bad?

[Bklexus]

Hi all

I know there are quite a few posts on this subject but i have a few specific questions.

I recently bought a is220d se-l. 118k miles on the clock. Noticed at low rpms (anything under 2500) there was barley any acceleration, felt like someone was pushing the car. Then all of a sudden after 2500 rpm the turbo kicks in full blast giving me whiplash :-). So i took it to a friends garage, in my mind thinking its probably a sticky turbo waste gate. The mechanic recons the dpf is blocked. So instead of waste £600 to £1000 on his hunch i gutted the dpf to see if it would work.

It made no difference. Apart from causing a massive amount of white smoke :-( i then had to look into stopping this smoke. There where emulator options but i thought a remap would be a better idea as it will stop the smoke and possible solve the low rpm power issue. So just got it back from the mappers, and smokes gone, also turbo comes in alot smoother now. But between 1000 and 1500 rpm there is nothing what so ever, without exaduration it feels like the acceleration on a milk float.

Now i been reading up on this forum and everyone seems to recon its normal, but i cant imagine going into lexus ready to spend the best part of £30k on a new car and after a test drive the sales person says "yeah thats normal, just need to give it some revs before you lift the clutch?! Ive driven bmw and golf diesels and even pulling away in 2nd gear from a stand still you get a little judder and after 2 secs your on your way. I know they are different cars but i just cant imagine it can be normal for it to be this slow?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Bklexus]

Forgot to mention its a 2006

[ahmedali44]

I got same car had it cleaned @ it's fine Rather having it gutted could have cleaned dpf and got egr cleaned for around 400 @ saw difference it's a mot failure if they find out u gutted.

[ahmedali44]

Mine is 2006 is220d se-l 91745 miles

[Bklexus]

I gutted it my self. No visual changes so should be ok. Map was only £250 so its ok. But do you not get this low rev lack of power issue?

[ahmedali44]

No never had that the issue, I do take it on motorway at least once a week and give it a good thrashing maybe cleaned egr when bought car or maybe always used shell v power,that's why dpf and egr are kept clean, trying to sell it as don't do many miles in 1 month done maybe 200 miles that is all local mileage, once sold will get is250 or bmw 320i /325I business edition seen few same price as is250 advance or se l.

at least u sorted issue out urself saved urself money if I was to keep car would have done what u done u should use shell v power diesel

[Bklexus]

Yeah i only use shell vpower. But i guess previous owners didnt

[Verbout]

List of things to check......

Vacuum leak, map clogged, egr clogged, maf requires cleaning.

[Bklexus]

I cleaned the maf with some carb cleaner. Going to clean egr today and have a look for boost leaks. Could the turbo be faulty? If so are there any visual checks i can do to check if its faulty as i dont want to replace things for no reason.

On the plus side i love the car in every other aspect. The turning circle on these are amazing! Maybe because im used to my old mk2 mr2. And loving the spec and sound system.

[Verbout]

dont forget to clean the MAP, the easiest of all the jobs.

[Bklexus]

Hi all, just an update. I took the egr off, it was clogged like hell! So i cleaned it (used 2 cans of valvlene egr and turbo cleaner) and now the car is running perfect!! No more smoke, no more lag, no more stress :-).

[Tim909]

If you have very low power below but at 2000rpm it goes normally this is a blocked EGR valve as long as you have warning lights. It has be removed and cleaned thoroughly, it been hinted to in this thread, the carbon build up prevents the valves seating correctly and you lose boost pressure. the EGR needs to be stripped and the spring retainer and spring removed and the black seal so the cleaning agent does not attack it. To clean I soaked in petrol for an hour to soften up the carbon gave it a good clean. To clean the valve seats and valve mating seat I attached a Dewalt to the end of the spool and pulled as I spun, then cleaned again until all the carbon had gone. If you do not do this process you risk it not working, the slightest gap causes this problem. 

[John smythe]

Tim909 - isn’t it easier just to blank it off. Must admit the thought of all that carbon entering the system is quite scary. I blanked mine and no warning lights. Just my opinion.

[eleuterio.ramalho]

Had the same problem on my Lexus IS220d, or similar problem.
DPF completely clogged - solution: Cleaning by a specialized company
EGR valve open_ solution: good cleaning.
the car has improved its performance, on hills at slow speed, where I needed 2nd gear, now I do it in 3rd gear starting at 1200 rpm.
Improved performance at low rpm, but it will always be slow, as it weighs 1730kg, the turbo must have a somewhat high inertia, its entry is noted at 2000-2500 rpm.
you have to live with this pattern, not force the car too much, not be embarrassed by others passing you by. that won't happen easily on the freeway