Dreaded Vsc And Warranty Issues

[ninjainthenight]

hi guys, im new to forum and new to lexus and already have problems.. I bought a 2006 is220d SE-l with 84000miles. After 92 days and only 1,000 miles, it gave a check VSC error. took it to kwik fit because a friend works there and its just round the corner and it looked like it was the big rubber pipe in the engine (dont know what its called!!) but it had burst and seemed to be the reason for no power.

anyway, it was fixed very quickly but "check VSC" remained. ran through a general auto computer and tried to reset. No joy.

ran through toyota computer and reset. no joy. error comes out at CAT1...

my friend said he didnt want to order the cat as its £850 + VAT and he has been told by a local independant lexus place that the cat was redesigned and therefore you cannot simply replace the part alone because it just wont fit but you have to change the whole system which is a cat, a "service cat" EGR valves and few other bits.. this comes to £2000 for parts. He will fit it cheap but the problem doesnt stop here..

Lexus originally said that the cat was covered for 6 years or 100,000 miles and as the car is less that this on both counts i can just book it in and they would do it for free.. Bonzer. BUT THEN they called back and said they would not do it because "its had previous work done" i asked them to tell me what the work is and when they got back to me they said "a modified cat and valves were fitted in September 2008".. so i said, if its covered and you did the work what is the problem? and they said the only thing i can do is as follows

1) pay for the repairs and they will try and claim it back from TME under warranty (very expensive im assuming)

2) get it fixed elsewhere cheaper but they wont be able to apply for warranty money (expensive anyway)

Now I know the dealer is liable for the repairs technically but as expected he is saying just speak to Lexus and doesnt want anything to do with it. The car has been parked up since 11th April and it going in next friday for a diagnostic and quote but i cant get the work done until at least the 12th May as i have given the dealer until 11th may to agree to fix before i sue him...

seems VSC is common, but has anyone heard of Lexus refusing work on a part they told me outright was covered under their warranty because "they already fixed it once"?

and has anyone had any experience with their CAT and having to replace the entire system rather than just the cat itself due to this redesign?

sorry this is such a bumper first post, ive been going round in circles for weeks!!

[shekabon]

hey, sorry to be off topic here, iv also got check vsc on mine but everything seems to be fine. Just wanted to know if check vsc is just one problem or can it mean a variety of things ??? thanks

[valley boy]

hi guys, im new to forum and new to lexus and already have problems.. I bought a 2006 is220d SE-l with 84000miles. After 92 days and only 1,000 miles, it gave a check VSC error. took it to kwik fit because a friend works there and its just round the corner and it looked like it was the big rubber pipe in the engine (dont know what its called!!) but it had burst and seemed to be the reason for no power.

anyway, it was fixed very quickly but "check VSC" remained. ran through a general auto computer and tried to reset. No joy.

ran through toyota computer and reset. no joy. error comes out at CAT1...

my friend said he didnt want to order the cat as its £850 + VAT and he has been told by a local independant lexus place that the cat was redesigned and therefore you cannot simply replace the part alone because it just wont fit but you have to change the whole system which is a cat, a "service cat" EGR valves and few other bits.. this comes to £2000 for parts. He will fit it cheap but the problem doesnt stop here..

Lexus originally said that the cat was covered for 6 years or 100,000 miles and as the car is less that this on both counts i can just book it in and they would do it for free.. Bonzer. BUT THEN they called back and said they would not do it because "its had previous work done" i asked them to tell me what the work is and when they got back to me they said "a modified cat and valves were fitted in September 2008".. so i said, if its covered and you did the work what is the problem? and they said the only thing i can do is as follows

1) pay for the repairs and they will try and claim it back from TME under warranty (very expensive im assuming)

2) get it fixed elsewhere cheaper but they wont be able to apply for warranty money (expensive anyway)

Now I know the dealer is liable for the repairs technically but as expected he is saying just speak to Lexus and doesnt want anything to do with it. The car has been parked up since 11th April and it going in next friday for a diagnostic and quote but i cant get the work done until at least the 12th May as i have given the dealer until 11th may to agree to fix before i sue him...

seems VSC is common, but has anyone heard of Lexus refusing work on a part they told me outright was covered under their warranty because "they already fixed it once"?

and has anyone had any experience with their CAT and having to replace the entire system rather than just the cat itself due to this redesign?

sorry this is such a bumper first post, ive been going round in circles for weeks!!

[valley boy]

Looks like I have a similar issue. Took the car to my local Toyota Service Centre and they said the cat had failed and gave me two fault codes - P2002 and C1207. They went to order the part but after discussions with Lexus Cardiff they advised me to take it there as there be more involved than simply replacing the cat. The car should now be in Lexus Cardiff and I am waiting for their diagnosis. I have a warrany direct warranty but the cat is specifically excluded but if Lexus do provide a 6 year warranty on this I will hopefully be OK. I have had the 5th injector recall so I don't know if this will have any effect as in your case.

I can't say I am impressed that such a fundamental component fails so soon (my mileage is approx 44k).

What is your latest situation?

[andy07841]

Hi this is only my personal experiance, but i would avoid the 220d...

i have had a load of problems when i once owned one, lexus make great cars but the diesel car is crap,here is just a few of the problems i had to deal with..

1.new turbo

2.new egr valve (replaced 5 times)

3.new cat converter

4.new 5th injecter

5.new common rail

6.new gear linkage

7.new steering rack

8.new brakes (done 4 times)

I won't go on anymore as some people do have good lexus diesels on here, but the one i had was utter ******* and would never buy a lexus diesel again

the only thing i can reccomend is to get one which has a full dealer service history and is covered by a good comprehensive warranty ( because you will need it at some point) DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND GET RID OF THE DIESEL VERSION AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE,THESE CARS ARE A ABSOLOUTE NIGHTMARE THE PETROL VERSIONS ARE FAR BETTER AND GIVE JUST AS GOOD FUEL ECONOMY

[sobiabano]

Hello all,

also new to lexus, i never thought jap cars had these problems, untill now.

I Got the vsc light on recently along with trac control and engine light but car still drives ok. Got error code p2002 and p1021+p1021+. Have had a chat with local lexus garage who told me it was the 5th injector, but its never had its 5th injector recall. figured they would just take it in and replace. Its a 55 2005 220d, Iam waiting for someone to call me back and let me know if it can be done, initially was told it wouldnt be covered because the car was a cad D damage, yet it seems to fall in the warranty period as it was registered december 2012, it only has 71k miles on it! will keep you posted.

Has anyone actually been able to repair thier shoddy work, especially since its one of their first diesels i would have thought they would want to keep lexus owners on side... doesnt look like it so far.

thanks

[Martin 2112]

Hi,

I have had the is220d since august 2006 wich has been recalled a number of times i.e 5th injector,gear linkage, stalling problems and brakes. Last week i got in to drive the car and i found that it was struggling to pull away.Then when it did pick its feet up (at about 3000 revs) it went flat at about 6000 revs.No warning lights came on. I have a mate who used to work for Lexus/Toyota Carlisle who has his own garage now.He cleaned the EGR valve and the airflow meter but this had no effect.2 days later the VSC and engine management light came on. It is now booked into Lexus Carlisle for a diagnostics report. Has anyone had this problem sorted by Lexus even though the car is out of warranty? (its only done 38000miles)

[Martin 2112]

Hi,

I have had the is220d since august 2006 which has been recalled a number of times i.e 5th injector,gear linkage, stalling problems and brakes. Last week i got in to drive the car and i found that it was struggling to pull away.Then when it did pick its feet up (at about 3000 revs) it went flat at about 6000 revs.No warning lights came on. I have a mate who used to work for Lexus/Toyota Carlisle who has his own garage now.He cleaned the EGR valve and the airflow meter but this had no effect.2 days later the VSC and engine management light came on. It is now booked into Lexus Carlisle for a diagnostics report. Has anyone had this problem sorted by Lexus even though the car is out of warranty? (its only done 38000miles)

Update :- Took the car into Lexus Carlisle yesterday for the diagnostic report and it came back with 2 code errors, 1 to do with the Cat but i'm not sure about the other.The engine is getting rebuilt from scratch including a new cylinder block,Cat system,EGR,Air flow metre etc,etc.Lexus have said they'll cover the cost (although i have to pay for the coolant which i certainly wont contest). The car has full service history (not all with Lexus, which they were'nt suited about)Which is a must otherwise i would have ended up with a bill between £5000 & £6000.Iam over the moon with Lexus and will not be going anywhere else for my next car.

[javadude]

I've always been very impressed with the customer service at Lexus Reading.

[bonzo111]

What a disappointment! I just bought 2006 IS22d with 85400 covered. Car looked like never used and all I done was 60 miles maybe and VSC is to check, engine management and traction icon is on. As I see it's to do with Cat and ECU

My question is as I read few post about this now:

Would Lexus fix it out of warranty for free as it is a common problem?

[Gaz31]

Did you buy it private or from a garage? If from a garage take it back. I doubt Lexus would cover it but it's worth a try. You would need full Lexus service history to stand any chance. The car will need a scan to find out the real reason

[bonzo111]

Hi Thank you for reply. I booked diagnostic, MOT and service with Lexus next week as I am away now. They told me to not panic now as they may fix it if I am qualified. They said that head gasket may go off or dpf and they would do it up to 110k miles. So sounds promising. I have part history from Lexus and 3 stamps from trader.

[Kev B]

Hi Thank you for reply. I booked diagnostic, MOT and service with Lexus next week as I am away now. They told me to not panic now as they may fix it if I am qualified. They said that head gasket may go off or dpf and they would do it up to 110k miles. So sounds promising. I have part history from Lexus and 3 stamps from trader.

Hi.

How did you get on with the Lexus dealer in the end?

I am interested in knowing about the ECU issue as I can't understand how a software update would help and also want to know what their views are on warranty when the service book has independent stamps present.

[bonzo111]

Hi Kev

Answer is yes you can have independent stamps and there was nothing said about software. I asked and they said there is no need for any change.

Long story though. I will start from beginning... I bought car and I thought was bit slow, comparing to my old Alfa 159 1.9 JTDM diesel Lexus is slow. I was surprised to drive such a mule and it has 2.2 engine. So on Saturday I decided to clean EGR, clogged. Few days later I had P2002. Then I went to Lexus to buy extended warranty. I know, bit cheeky. They looked into my service book and approved me to have warranty for 495£. But I had to do service with Lexus as they need to be sure car is ok. What they do though on service for 149£ is just oil change!

I came back to them few days later with error of curse. Then Lexus Leeds told me that there is something wrong with my service history because they called last service station from my book and apparently that place just stamped book because they were mates or family with previous owner. But Garage admitted car was serviced there but without invoice. So they declined my repair through warranty because I came 2 days after since I signed up for warranty, I had existing fault and I didn't have service with them yet.

Final now. I had to buy EGR myself now, Lexus guy cancelled my warranty without my permission. He said I can sign up again but I need to do service at Lexus first then sign up warranty again but I would not be able to claim that EGR again. I am very disappointed because many people here get that repair for free as it is a common fault and I brought printout from this forum that is happening but no I didn't get it for free. They said my car in March is 8 years old and all of you getting free repairs were under 7.

I wrote letter to Lexus, will see

[Kev B]

Sounds like a real nightmare!

When they cancelled the warranty, did they refund you the fee?

Also, how did they manage to get a garage to admit that the book had been stamped without having had work done? That sounds pretty strange to me to say the least. I think you should contact the garage that stamped the book yourself to hear what they have to say about it.

Also, if you book your car in for a service with any main dealer, the majority of them, most of the time, hook up a computer to see if there are any codes pending, DTC's recorded or deleted and how many KM's/hours ago it/they were processed so they will always have "in house" notes on every vehicle regardless of them telling you about it or not.

The 220d is a very sluggish car even when it's running right.

P2002 is almost always DPF.

I can't remember the exact code which relates to the EGR but it I do remember that it will have "A" Flow contained within the code description as opposed to "Below Efficiency" which is always with the P2002 code.

Did the Dealer state why they think the EGR Valve is the problem?

I personally think it's the DPF from what I have gathered so far.

[bonzo111]

ECU Fault Log - Fault log report generated by Torque for Android

=================================================

Vehicle VIN: Not present

Vehicle Manufacturer: Unknown

Vehicle Calibration ID: 35335400

Current Fault Log

------------------

P2002: Particulate Trap Efficiency Below Threshold bank1

Pending Fault Log

------------------

ECU reports no pending faults

Historic Fault Log

------------------

ECU reports no historic faults

Other discovered fault codes

(possibly pending, current or manufacturer specific)

----------------------------------------------------

ECU reports no other fault codes logged

End of report.

[bonzo111]

I didn't pay yet. They cancelled this before direct debit. They called previous service garage to ask for service invoice. Anyway i cant ask for much but I think they could sort me out as a gesture of good will. Instead I looked like idiot going there and back 2 weeks. I will do Lexus service for 149£ and I will take warranty again like they wanted to have piece of mind.

[Kev B]

I take it the information that you have provided is from an Android Phone with a ALDL Cable/Bluetooth Connector?

[Kev B]

They will not cover you for the DPF or the EGR I don't think, you already stated that they will not cover you for faults already present at the time of the service or at the time of taking out the warranty.

Maybe they don't want to show a good will gesture because they think that the stamps are fake and that you might have something to do with it. It's really hard to say and when warranty is involved, the industry always tries to wriggle out of honoring their side.

I would personally find a independent specialist to take the car to and just forget about having the service from them as they have already told you that they are not going to help you, but, at the end of the day it's your decision to make.

[bonzo111]

Correct Android. I showed them proof of purchase and I didn't do anything wrong with stamps. Personally I don't want to go there again. What's your experience with DPF? Is there any software for is 220?

[Kev B]

There is no software or delete of tables available for the IS220d as the ECU is pathetic in comparison to most of the ECU's in other vehicles on the market.

I have found and have been told by knowledgeable professionals that the problem with the DPF System on the IS220d lies within the Base Map for the Advanced Timing which is heavily retarded on the IS220d which, I have been told, coupled with such huge ratios on the Gear Box lead to the car not producing the right types of speed for the Self Regeneration Protocol to activate consistently.

Add to this the fact that Soot can be removed by combustion at the time of a regeneration but partially still trapped within the DPF in the form of Ash which can not be removed, you are left with a ticking clock which is on borrowed time.

I had some serious DPF problems some time back and luckily I have a highly inquisitive nature and firm understanding on most things that I start to look into so I managed to keep looking and finally found a solution which was "DPF Rejuvenation". It is a system that was invented in Japan and more or less wipes out the Ash content as well as completely obliterating the Soot contents present.

Quite a lot of members on here have had it done and the quicker you have it done the better the result.

I will check my history and post the link up in a minute or so.

[bonzo111]

Thanks Kev I will look into this. I always get my hands dirty with something to do with car and not first time I can surprise mechanics when they push me something. I had dpf removed from my alfa 159 and I know what you mean. Was your car more responsive since you used your DPF solution?

[Kev B]

Responsive is an understatement!

Since the moment I had it done, it drove and still drives like a completely different car even though it has been over a year and half since I had it done.

Don't get the DPF removed as I noticed on the VOSSA site that it is now illegal and any DPF that looks like it has been tampered with is an automatic failure.

Here you go:

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/78065-lexus-is-diesel-particulate-filter-dpf-problem-solution/