2009 Lexus ES Problems: 7 Known Issues

On the 2007-2012 Lexus ES, the 2007-2012 ES 350 carries a Takata front passenger airbag inflator whose ammonium-nitrate propellant degrades after long exposure to high humidity and temperature cycling. A degraded inflator can over-pressurize and burst its metal housing during a crash, spraying fragments into the cabin. The ES 350 was pulled in over several NHTSA campaigns as the Takata recall expanded by humidity zone: 16V340 (Zone A - Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and U.S. territories), 17V006 (further regional expansion), and 19V741 (the broadened inflator campaign). This is one of the most serious open recalls on used ES 350s, and unremedied cars are still on the road.

On the 2007-2010 Lexus ES, the XV40 ES 350 was the vehicle that opened NHTSA's pedal-entrapment investigation: in March 2007 the agency began a preliminary investigation into the 2007 ES 350 after consumer complaints alleging crashes and injuries, with the accessory all-weather floor mat identified as the likely cause. Toyota first recalled about 55,000 floor mats for 2007-2008 Camry and ES 350 (NHTSA campaign 07E082), then in 2009 issued the far broader floor-mat/pedal-entrapment recall 09V388 covering 2007-2010 ES 350 among other models. The accelerator pedal can be held wide open by an unsecured, stacked, or incompatible driver's floor mat, and the driver cannot free it while the car accelerates.

On the 2007-2017 Lexus ES, the 3.5L 2GR-FE V6 in the ES350 consumes excessive oil between changes, often burning 1 quart every 1,500-2,500 miles. The root cause is typically worn piston rings that allow oil past the ring lands into the combustion chamber. Toyota/Lexus issued a TSB acknowledging the issue and revised the piston ring design in later production runs.

On the 2007-2010 Lexus ES 2GR-FE 3.5L V6, the 2GR-FE V6 seals its front timing chain cover to the block and heads with a formed-in-place sealant (FIPG) rather than a conventional gasket. On early 2007-2009 engines the seal breaks down and weeps oil from the front of the engine, dripping onto the subframe, front control arm bushings, and steering rack, and occasionally onto the exhaust. Toyota largely resolved the problem in production by about the 2010 model year. The repair is notorious because reaching the cover requires dropping the engine, transmission, steering rack, and front subframe - Toyota's own labor estimate runs around 20+ hours for a roughly $20 gasket and sealant, so dealer quotes commonly land between $2,400 and $4,000.

On the 2007-2012 Lexus ES 3.5L 2GR-FE, lexus programs ZLD and ZLZ document cracked and/or sticky dashboard surfaces caused over time by heat, humidity and, in ZLZ, light intensity on covered ES 350 vehicles. ZLD covers certain 2007-2008 vehicles and ZLZ covers certain 2008-2012 vehicles, preserving the page’s 2007-2012 identity. The primary records describe a cosmetic condition; they do not support the page’s “dangerous glare” or “2,000+ complaints” claims.

On the 2007-2012 Lexus ES, lexus technicians and owners report that high-mileage 2007-2012 ES 350s commonly lose refrigerant through a leaking evaporator core buried in the HVAC case behind the dash. The symptom is gradual: air that is cool but not cold, worse in traffic, and a system that cools again briefly after a recharge before fading over weeks or months. Because the evaporator is inside the dash, replacement is a labor-heavy job - a ClubLexus master technician put the repair comfortably over $1,500. The A/C condenser at the front of the car is a separate, cheaper failure point on the same generation, usually punctured by road debris.

On the 2007-2009 Lexus ES 2GR-FE 3.5L V6, the U660E six-speed automatic introduced on the 2007 ES 350 has a well-documented shift flare: on the first upshifts after a cold soak the engine speed rises 300-700 rpm before the gear engages, most commonly on the 3-4 upshift but also reported on 2-3, 4-5, and the 5-4 downshift when transitioning between coast and light throttle. Toyota issued transmission TSBs (including TC007-07) with revised ECM/TCM calibrations. Forum consensus splits the units by build date: earlier units (through roughly 06/2006 production) were generally cured with a valve body and solenoid replacement plus a reflash, while later units often needed more, up to transmission replacement. Left unaddressed, repeated flaring glazes the clutch packs.