Hybrid system failed, shift to P ('17 F sport,65k miles)

yaboyking · December 31, 2023

Hi folks,

I hope someone can give me some help on this one. I went out this afternoon and tried to start the car and I got a message 'Hybrid not working, move gear to P' I did this a number of times but the car wouldn't start. I think the starter Battery is dead.

I do drive the car almost every day, (about 50-100 miles everyday)

Can anyone tell me, is there a specific 12 v Battery I need to replace it or will any do? I know there is a temperature sensor in the Panasonic Battery, what do I do with that?

Will the dealership replace this under warranty? Or will the carstore replace this, ive also got a warranty with them?

Any help would be warmly appreciated. Just my luck for it to happen on new year's eve

PaulWhitt20 · December 31, 2023

Yep, sounds like the 12v Battery is on the way out. Book it into a Lexus dealer to get it replaced. It’s not the sort you can buy off the shelf from Halfords.
There are cases where replacing the Battery has blown the radio so best let Lexus do it.
It won’t be covered under warranty.
Take it for a drive and don’t leave it in neutral with the radio on.
Happy New Year
Paul

westo3 · December 31, 2023

There are quite a few threads about which give details of what Battery to buy and how to fit them without going to the dealers or messing with any electrics. Latest one is in the GS300h forum headed Mysterious Battery

Boeryeoes · December 31, 2023

For completeness sake (and probably not relevant for the topic starter), you also get this error message when you move the shifter to D or R before the hybrid system shows 'Ready' on the dash.

Thackeray · January 1

18 hours ago, yaboyking said:

I do drive the car almost every day, (about 50-100 miles everyday)

Can anyone tell me, is there a specific 12 v battery I need to replace it or will any do? I know there is a temperature sensor in the Panasonic battery, what do I do with that?

I would have thought 50 miles a day was plenty of driving to keep a healthy Battery charged. It's also worth remembering that it isn't necessary to drive the car to charge the Battery. It doesn't have an alternator like a conventional car that might produce more electricity if the engine is spinning faster. Instead the 12v Battery is charged from the hybrid Battery and it only needs to be in the Ready state and the gear selector not in Neutral for the 12v Battery to be charged. It makes no difference whether the engine is running or not.

I was asking the same sorts of questions around three years ago but I can't now find the thread. When I was asking about the temperature sensor, I think it was Colin Barber who said the temperature sensor is under the Battery in the frame (Apologies if I've misremembered this.) So there's nothing to actually connect on this model. But there is a tube for the hydrogen vent that should be reconnected to a new Battery, assuming it has a vent. This is to avoid the remote risk of a build-up of hydrogen in the boot area.

IS300FSPORT · January 1

Driving the car regularly should help it charge but it depends on the age & type of life the Battery has had. If its been discharged regularly i.e left unused for prolonged periods (lockdown didnt favour these low capacity batteries) then driving it wiill only keep it topped up enough to get going, accidentally leaving on interior lights is all it takes for it to cause a problem. They never recover from a discharge unless your regularly maintaining it.

If past 5 years the best option is to replace it for a genuine one just for peace of mind if you plan on keeping the car.

There is no visible sensor on these batteries just a vent tube.

Monitor it with a multimeter if its reading below 10.9v scrap it & just buy a new one.

yaboyking · January 1

20 hours ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

Yep, sounds like the 12v battery is on the way out. Book it into a Lexus dealer to get it replaced. It’s not the sort you can buy off the shelf from Halfords.
There are cases where replacing the battery has blown the radio so best let Lexus do it.
It won’t be covered under warranty.
Take it for a drive and don’t leave it in neutral with the radio on.
Happy New Year
Paul

Can I ask my local lexus specialist to help? My car can't even start? Can I jump start that 12v Battery in the back of another car with another car?

Or can I buy the Battery off Lexus Parts Direct and ask someone to do it?

Any idea how much $ I will be expected to pay?

IS300FSPORT · January 1

19 minutes ago, yaboyking said:

Can I ask my local lexus specialist to help? My car can't even start? Can I jump start that 12v battery in the back of another car with another car?

Or can I buy the battery off Lexus Parts Direct and ask someone to do it?

Any idea how much $ I will be expected to pay?

Where are you located?

To jump start, lift the bonnet under the black plastic fuse cover you will see a red plastic clip/cover thats your positive connection & put the negative jump cable on a metal part.

The 12v Battery is located in the boot behind the left cover, make sure radio & power is OFF before undertaking anywork, you need a 10mm spanner negative cable first then positive if your replacing the Battery. (Dont jump start from the boot)

New Battery approx £150

https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/product/lexus-is-phase-3-auxiliary-12v-starter-battery/

(Ignore the multimeter but thats your connection points to jump start follow the black & red cables)

Boeryeoes · January 1

Please check that you can replace the 12V Battery yourself. The dealer, a Battery specialist, and the road assistant that got me going again all told me that on a Toyota/Lexus hybrid model I could not do it myself.

I've seen reports of catastrophic failure on the radio system of people that tried it themselves.

But then there's also people that did do it themselves...

For me it wasn't worth the risk.

yaboyking · January 1

4 hours ago, IS300FSPORT said:

Where are you located?

To jump start, lift the bonnet under the black plastic fuse cover you will see a red plastic clip/cover thats your positive connection & put the negative jump cable on a metal part.

The 12v Battery is located in the boot behind the left cover, make sure radio & power is OFF before undertaking anywork, you need a 10mm spanner negative cable first then positive if your replacing the battery. (Dont jump start from the boot)

New battery approx £150

https://lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/product/lexus-is-phase-3-auxiliary-12v-starter-battery/

(Ignore the multimeter but thats your connection points to jump start follow the black & red cables)

I live in norwich, actually not too far from the dealership, maybe 3-4 miles away? is it not possible to just go to a local lexus specialist instead? I always feel like the dealership is just gnashing their teeth to rip you off and somehow im supposed to just accept it?

NemesisUK · January 1

43 minutes ago, Boeryeoes said:

I've seen reports of catastrophic failure on the radio system of people that tried it themselves.

The handbook details how to replace the 12v Battery yourself but as above is it worth the risk? Get a professional to do it and if the worst should happen they would have to sort it. My preference would be a Lexus dealer, who would have support from Japan should it be needed.

Boeryeoes · January 1

7 minutes ago, NemesisUK said:

The handbook details how to replace the 12v battery yourself but as above is it worth the risk? Get a professional to do it and if the worst should happen they would have to sort it. My preference would be a Lexus dealer, who would have support from Japan should it be needed.

My manual (NL) tells me to let the dealer or qualified repairman replace the Battery. I let a Toyota dealer do it.

IS300FSPORT · January 1

Agree with the majority on here recommend to get it done from a main dealer should your radio fail they should cover it.

Like a few others on here I have done it myself without any ill consequences I have to admit I've removed the 12v Battery upto 2-3x during lockdown to recharge it & later decided to fit a new one due to its age without a single issue.

The main traction (high voltage) Battery is a main dealer job. Thats located under the boot panels usually where you will find a spare wheel, your not touching this.

The 12v Battery can be replaced without any special tools & taking precaution ensure the radio is off car is off & terminals are reconnected correctly to the correct negative & positive posts (stating the obvious) but it is such an easy mistake to make if not paying attention. Do so at your own risk if your on a budget if successful you save around £150 from paying main dealer to do it. Not a complicated job at all.

If you have breakdown cover get them to jump start/tow you to the nearest dealer.

ColinBarber · January 1

3 hours ago, yaboyking said:

I live in norwich, actually not too far from the dealership, maybe 3-4 miles away? is it not possible to just go to a local lexus specialist instead? I always feel like the dealership is just gnashing their teeth to rip you off and somehow im supposed to just accept it?

Normally you can get an independent to do it, or yourself. However, the series III IS with premium audio has a common fault where the audio headunit can fail when disconnecting the Battery and is £2k to fix. I’ve not heard of this issue beyond 2016 models and I’m sure the stereo can be fixed easily if the fault can be diagnosed, but as yet we haven’t seen an easy fix.

takhan · January 3

On 1/1/2024 at 5:20 PM, yaboyking said:

I live in norwich, actually not too far from the dealership, maybe 3-4 miles away? is it not possible to just go to a local lexus specialist instead? I always feel like the dealership is just gnashing their teeth to rip you off and somehow im supposed to just accept it?

I have 2019 with Premier Pack. Lexus Sheffield replaced it yesterday for £184 incl. fitting and VAT. I would suggest to go to dealers.

yaboyking · January 4

Update:

Hello everyone thanks for your suggestions. Decided to go with a local lexus specialist. Local lexus dealer tried charging me 180 for Battery + 80 for fitting!

Local specialist charged 150 including fitting. Touch wood haven't experienced any issues and didn't have to get ripped off by the dealership, contrary to what everyone else suggested on here

ColinBarber · January 4

5 minutes ago, yaboyking said:

Update:

Hello everyone thanks for your suggestions. Decided to go with a local lexus specialist. Local lexus dealer tried charging me 180 for battery + 80 for fitting!

Glad you got it sorted. Not good that your dealer wanted to charge you for fitting, many will do it for free.

5 minutes ago, yaboyking said:

Touch wood haven't experienced any issues and didn't have to get ripped off by the dealership, contrary to what everyone else suggested on here

You won't have any issues going forward, it would be immediate if there were an issue.

The advise here to use an official dealer was because of specific issues with the IS stereo that is known to fail. As I stated, I'm not sure it applies to 2017 models anyway but if you were to have experienced the issue then you would be looking at a £2000 repair bill than an independent would deny any liability for.