Lexus Visibility/Wiper

Lexus is recalling about 267,718 vehicles over a problem with the visibility/wiper. Inoperative wipers could reduce driver visibility and increase the risk of a vehicle crash.

Campaign
13V030000
Manufacturer
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing
Reported
30 January 2013
Vehicles
267,718
Built between
Aug 2005 – Oct 2011
Models
5
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
29 October 2013
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between August 2005 and October 2011. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2006-2012 Lexus IS 250Built August 2005 to October 2011
  • 2010-2012 Lexus IS 250CBuilt April 2009 to October 2011
  • 2006-2012 Lexus IS 350Built August 2005 to October 2011
  • 2010-2012 Lexus IS 350CBuilt April 2009 to October 2011
  • 2008-2011 Lexus IS FBuilt December 2007 to July 2011

What the defect is

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2012 Lexus IS250 and IS350 vehicles manufactured August 23, 2005, through October 5, 2011; 2010-2012 Lexus IS250C and IS350C vehicles manufactured April 10, 2009, through October 6, 2011; and 2008-2011 Lexus IS-F vehicles manufactured December 14, 2007, through July 10, 2011. The nuts that fasten the wiper arms may be insufficiently torqued such that if the wiper arms are restricted by an external load, such as a buildup of heavy snow, one or both of the wipers may become inoperative.

What could happen

Inoperative wipers could reduce driver visibility and increase the risk of a vehicle crash.

What gets fixed

Toyota will notify owners, and Lexus dealers will install new wiper arm nuts, free of charge. An interim letter was mailed to owners on April 4, 2013.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtAugust 2005 to October 2011
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA30 January 2013
  3. Owners notified29 October 2013

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 30 January 2013.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

Official source

Recalling manufacturer
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing
Recall initiated by
MFR

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand