rsdave

Seems like a common topic so I thought I'd share my own story. My car is a 2017 GS 450h but with very low mileage (less than 4000 miles). It appears the previous owner may have allowed the battery to completely discharge on more than one occasion. The factory fitted Panasonic S65D26L AGM battery does not take kindly to allowing it's voltage to drop much below 12v too many times. Doing this too often permanently damages the battery. Unfortunately the Lexus warranty appears to specifically exclude the 12v aux battery, at least here in the UK. Seems like mine has bitten the dust, I was first alerted to this as the car would open up, but would not go into READY mode. You'll also get a myriad of system failure messages on the dash. I already had a CTEK MXS 5.0, a charger specifically designed for AGM batteries so I recharged it. The battery lasted about a week before it was dead again. 😬 I took the battery out of the car. It's actually quite straightforward, all you need is 10mm spanner and undo one nut and two bolts which secure the battery bracket. First make sure that the car is turned OFF. It's probably wise to leave the driver's door open ajar and keep your key with you, don't leave it in the car (in case the alarm goes off when you reconnect the battery, it didn't happen in my case but the Owner's Manual says it's a possibility.) You also need to undo the the two large power cables, starting with the negative one FIRST. You also need to remove the water drain tube (just pops out) and unclip the battery temperature sensor. You can then remove the battery, it has a useful carrying handle which you can use to gently remove it from the car (it's heavy-ish, so be prepared!). With no possibility of parasitic load as it's now off the car, I recharged it again, using the MXS 5.0 in AGM mode. This completed all the way up to Step 7 (which is 100% charged/float stage) but upon disconnecting the charger and allowing the battery to 'rest' (in other words, nothing connected) the battery measured 12.7 volts using my digital volt meter). That is not bad, but still not quite right. The fully charged AGM battery should read just a smidge over 13 volts when fully charged). I then left it to 'rest' overnight, by all accounts the battery should still read around 13 volts, but, unfortunately not, as you can see in the attached photo the voltage dropped overnight to 10.75 volts. That's a 100% sure sign the battery is toast. I suspect a shorted cell which is generally unrepairable. (There are generally six cells of 2 volts each in a car battery which gets you your 12 volts-ish. A shorted cell accounts for the 2 volt drop). I know it's possible to fit an aftermarket battery but with my car being such low mileage and original I opted for a replacement S65D26L. At the moment LexusPartsDirect are doing it on Special Offer for £215.39 inc VAT which is cheaper than my local dealer could do it for, and of course it's delivered right to your door within 72 hours. Lexus GS Phase 4 Auxiliary Battery | 28800-31410 | Lexus Parts Direct It ships in a cardboard box inside another cardboard box, I advise you open it outside, as one of the plastic bags is full of an absorbent material, best described as wood chippings or cat litter, assumedly to absorb any leakage should the package be damaged, but as it was the packaging is super strong and mine arrived undamaged. The battery does come about 90% charged, but before fitting I charged it with the MXS 5.0, again using the AGM specific mode. Once that finished, I allowed it to rest overnight and was pleased to see it measured just over 13 volts in the morning. Fitting was of course reversal of removal, and nothing odd happened during re-connection, a few settings like the auto-fold in mirrors and HUD position were reset to defaults, but everything else was exactly where it was previously. I will probably take the failed battery to Halfords, as apparently they will take and recycle old car batteries even if you're not making a purchase. Local council tips generally take them as well. Hopefully someone will find this guide useful, it should apply to all 2012-2018 GS's, and possibly the previous ones too. Dave.

GS Technology It does seem that the press at the time gave the GS towards the end of it's life a bit of a knock in terms of the tech being 'outdated'. Generally they call out the CVT-E box for being 'noisy' and the lack of Android Auto or Apple Car Play. I'm simply not bothered about any of those things to be honest, the "mouse" or "remote touch interface" improves with use as your brain adapts to using it. It's also a good tip to experiment with the sensitivity setting to get one that suits you better. I'm sure all the motoring journalists simply used the stock setting and then criticised it. Same with the audio, it can be improved greatly with a bit of experimentation. First thing to do is turn off all the fake enhancement settings, particularly the one that does a stereo to 5.1 upmix, it really mucks up the stereo soundstage and is best turned off. If the motoring press had actually taken the time to read the sales brochure, they would have discovered the GS actually had some ground breaking tech, particular in the field of safety. These things are generally hidden from the driver, but as you read about them in the manual, you realise that beyond it's handsome looks, the GS is actually quite a clever machine. Here are my personal favourite highlights: The Hybrid system as a whole, with an emphasis on the 450h of enhancing performance as well as economy. 5 driving modes: EV, Normal, Eco, Sport, Sport S+ AVS (Adaptive Variable Suspension) Lexus Safety System + - Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) - Pre-Crash Safety system (PCS) [with pedestrian detection!] <-- this is the one that you experienced Robert 🙂 - Lane Keep Assist (LKA) - Sway Warning - Traffic Signal Recognition (TSR) - Automatic High Beam system Blind Spot Monitor (BSM) (Warning lights in mirrors) and Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) 3 Eye LED headlamps with AHS (Adaptive High-beam System) Front seats with variable cushion length and calf support [the extending front cushions give it a very luxurious feel] 3-zone automatic A/C (driver, passenger and rear) with Nanoe ion generator, rear heater [the Nanoe ion generator fascinates me...] illuminated control panel in rear armrest with A/C switches 17-speaker Mark Levinson premium sound system [sounds very good after tweaking some of the settings, Dolby Digital music DVD's play in true discreet 5.1] (there was a time when you were lucky to get ONE speaker in car, let alone 17!) Lexus Premium Navigation with a 12.3" multimedia screen [at time of launch this was the biggest screen in any car on the market] Colour Head-Up Display (HUD) [not that many cars have this option these days, and I personally find it super useful] Automatic and easy trunk closer (Powered boot operation) [common on hatchbacks, perhaps not so common on saloons with boots] Dave.

Haha, don't worry I have suitable attire for the Lexus 🙂 Despite how I look in the photo I am actually 46 years young this year. I've always been a Ford fanatic at heart, having had Escort XR3is, RS Turbos, Scorpios, etc. back in the day. I used to go to a lot of shows, so therefore the RS was a bit of a 'garage queen'. I think Covid unfortunately killed the enthusiasm for it (not being able to go to shows) and it just sat there. When I finally drove it again, I realised that the love had gone and I found the suspension just a tad to hard for long journeys. And I realised how much I prefer the automatic transmission over manual. Due to the 4x4 system, the fuel tank size was inadequate and that's without even mentioning the very poor fuel economy. Then Ford announced they were shelving the RS brand, which meant there's nothing really left in their current lineup which appeals. End of an era really. With Lexus's announcement in relation to the 'Relax' warranty this is pretty much the cherry on the cake for me and I have no regrets switching. And I wouldn't hesitate to say how much more exclusive/rarer this 450h is. How many Nitrous Blue RS's do you see out and about? Although slightly off-topic this is not the first time I've dipped my toe in Toyota/Lexus land. Here's an old friend I had in the past. About 2004 I think. I really loved this car!

Hi Robert, It's quite funny as your actual car was on my shortlist when I was looking to buy in March, it was at Tunbridge Wells which is very local to me. I never actually got to view it as Ben at Lexus Hedge End responded almost instantly and I went for this one. Dave.

Hi, new member here and I recently purchased this Lexus GS 450h Premier saloon finished in Sonic Titanium with black leather interior. It has the sunroof/moonroof and 19" diamond cut wheel options. I got it from a Lexus dealer as an Approved Used car, best thing of all just 3647 miles from new and one owner. It's so quiet and smooth, even over rough surfaces, not surprising coming from my previous car which was a Mk.3 Ford Focus RS. The list of gadgets and safety features this GS has is almost endless, I'm still getting my head around the User Manual which is 600 odd pages and the infotainment manual a further 300 pages! One of my favourite features is the Mark Levinson surround sound audio system with 17 speakers and 835 watts - plays music DVD's in 5.1 surround as well Cheers, Dave.