2001 Lexus LS430 problems
Owners have filed 62 complaints with NHTSA about the 2001 Lexus LS430. Body & structure is the most reported problem area, at 23% of complaints. Next are latches & locks (15%) and cruise control (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 62 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Body & structure 23% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 14 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 23 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 61,000 miles 45 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 | 3 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 9 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 10 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 8 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 5 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 4 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 2 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 1 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 45 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 61,000 miles. For body & structure specifically, the median reported mileage is about 60,000 miles (12 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 14 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 23 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 98% 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 2001 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 5 model years of the Lexus LS430 with enough data (16 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.
Air bag--in a car accident on 4/21/02--whole front end of my vehicle was damaged & the driverside door of the other car---the airbag did not deploy on impact
Dt*: the contact stated while backing out of a parking space, the vehicle suddenly lurched backwards while brake pressure was applied. The engine roared loudly. The vehicle was placed in park and lurched forward 5 feet striking a concrete pillar. A bystander intervened and turned off the ignition. Although there was a crash, the police were not contacted. The passenger sustained minor injuries after striking the dash. Both occupants of the vehicle were wearing seat belts.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 lexus ls430. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle jerked from side to side. The vehicle spun to the left and struck the guard rail, in addition to the guard rail on the other side of the street. The contact was injured and a police report was filed. The vehicle was deemed as destroyed by the insurance company. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and they stated that the passenger side front ball joint caused the failure. The current and failure mileages were 59,000.
Approached an intersection with a red light while driving approximately 40MPH. When I pressed my brakes from about a block away, my 2001 lexus ls430 suddenly surged. I had two feet on the brake and also tried to put the car in neutral, then park. The car did not slow down. Was going approximately 50MPH when I rear-ended someone because my car would not stop. My car was totaled, both driver and passenger airbags deployed. I was using the floor mat that came with the vehicle and it was fastened.
Rear door latch failed and the door no longer closes. Dealer said the plastic latch deteriorated and needs to be replaced with a new one but there is no service bulletin on it. Looks like a safety issue why the door latch is made from plastic and the door can actually open while in motion.