2005 Lexus ES problems
The 2005 Lexus ES has 75 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (29%) concerns transmission. Next are cruise control (20%) and air bags (13%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 75 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Transmission 29% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 18 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 12 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 9,000 miles 43 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 27 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 1 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 5 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 5 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 3 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 2 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 43 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 9,000 miles. For transmission specifically, the median reported mileage is about 0 miles (13 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 18 complaints mention a crash; 12 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 92% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 12 model years of the Lexus ES with enough data (44 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
On nov. 6, 2007 I was the last vehicle in a four car pile-up. The honda in front of me was totaled and my 2005 lexus es330 had over $10,000 in damage. My concern is that the air bags did not deploy. With such significant damage I was sure they would have protected me but they did not. I am concerned there may be a problem and I will not be protected in the future.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 lexus es350. While driving at 2 MPH, the vehicle began to rev, suddenly accelerated and hit a cement wall. Both the contact and passenger sustained bruises and there was front end damage. The contact called the dealership but the dealer stated that they would take no responsibility for the failure. The vehicle had not been inspected or repaired at the time of the complaint. Failure mileage was 70,000. Updated 07/26/10. Updated 08/09/10
My new 2005 lexus es330 has a major transmission problem. It hesitates when needing to accelerate. First it delays upon acceleration and then it jerks ahead quickly causing whiplash and I even crashed into my garage because it jerked ahead without me being able to control it. The dealer said to just use better gas and complain to customer service at lexus because there are a lot of complaints. Basically, I was told the computer controls the transmission and there is a problem with it but no recall as of yet.
I was driving slowly up an aisle in a parking lot and spotted a shady place on my left just next to a car already parked. I moved in slowly at 90degree angle to set the car into the parking space with my foot already on the brake. I pressed down the brake further as the car was about to be at the right place. Suddenly, the car accelerated at what seemed full throttle into a brick retaining wall 9-10 feet in front of me. The car backed down in the parking space where it immobilized.
2005 lexus es 330, sever hesitation in the tranmission when entering freeway. Fear of rear end collision or stall when trying to attain highway speed. Lag of 2-3 seconds after stepping on the gas.