2010 Lexus GX 460 Engine Stall, Lag and Hesitation Failures

In the spring of 2010 Lexus (a division of Toyota) introduced an update to its popular GX 470 model vehicle.  Known as the Lexus GX 460, the SUV immediately began to experience problems.  In April 2010, the company, based in Toyota City, Japan, halted production and sales of the SUV after Consumer Reports issued a “don’t buy” recommendation, saying the GX 460 may be prone to rolling over in emergency driving conditions.  Shortly after the issuance of the "don't buy" recommendation, Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s largest automaker, recalled about 13,000 of the vehicles.  Of the 13,000 GX 460s that were to be repaired under the recall, 9,400 were in the U.S. and the rest in other countries including Russia, Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Canada.  Unfortunately for Lexus and Toyota, the problems with the 2010 GX460 did not end there.

Now, Lexus GX 460 owners are reporting new, perhaps more dangerous, problems.  The new problem with the Lexus GX 460 involves stalling or hesitating of the GX's engine when accelerating from a stop or near stop.  The failure presents in both D and S modes of the GX 460's automatic transmission.  To observe the stall / lag / hesitation: owners need do little more than come to a near or complete stop then try to accelerate.  On acceleration, the GX 460's engine loses all power for up to five seconds.  This maneuver is typical when slowing or stopping for a left / right hand turn, then accelerating for an opening in traffic or when accelerating from a complete stop at a stop sign or stop light.  Lexus mechanics and technicians are able to routinely reproduce this significant safety issue yet they are unable to repair it.  According to Lexus service advisers and technicians, the lag / stall / hesitation is apparently related to the sensitivity (oversensitivity) of the GX 460's engine knock sensor.

To address this serious safety issue, Lexus claims to be working on an engine software update.  Currently, the update is not yet available and Lexus refuses to commit to a specific date when it will be available.  Instead, despite Lexus' knowledge of the GX 460 stall / lag / hesitation problem, surprisingly, Lexus is not issuing any Technical Service Bulletins (TSB's) to it mechanics, no warnings to the government, NHTSA or any current GX 460 owners.  Rather, Lexus claims the affected GX 460's are still "safe to drive."  As if it would make any difference, Lexus suggests to owners of the affected GX 460s that they "switch to Chevron premium fuel."

Our Product Liability / Personal Injury / Trial Attorneys at The Lance Firm are currently investigating these LEXUS GX 460 engine lag / hesitation / stall failure complaints. If you or someone you know has suffered a personal injury in an accident, crash, or wreck involving a LEXUS GX 460 stall, lag or hesitation, contact us today, Dustin Lance or another one of our product liability trial lawyers at our law firm will discuss your options, legal rights and remedies.