We have owned several Lexus vehicles over the years and the reliability has been second to none. My current SUV (ford) needs to be replaced and have decided on a 26 GX550 because of Toyotas longevity and reliability record. My vehicle should be arriving soon and I question if I should now wait till later this year or possibly next because I have not seen ONE thing that indicates that the engine issues have been resolved other than a different bearing.
GX 550 V35A Engine Recall Possibly Expanded? (5 Viewers)
- Thread starter Spearone
- Start date
If you can wait to be safe, why not. At best, issues have been resolved. At worst, Lexus is the same as any other manufacturer.
Still waiting for an actual engine failure to pop up….
Still waiting for an actual engine failure to pop up….
- Thread starter
- #23
Well based on my research, unless you are in a “gotta have it now” position, I would wait. If they are gonna recall more of the 2024 GX’s and possibly expand the recall to include some 2025’s, I’m guessing they will likely do it by the end of 2026. Toyota is under the microscope right now and under extreme pressure to fix this engine once and for all. If they have to expand this recall again (especially the GX’s) it will send shock waves across the industry and their customer base.
Exactly - I have heard ZERO actual issues - more hype than actual issue.
Getting anxious for something that has not happened and may not happen is silly....
The only mentions these supposed changes for 2027 that I can find are this thread, a downvoted Reddit post citing a trash ai video.
I appreciate your passion for research, you'll get the car you deserve.
- Thread starter
- #26
Just for clarification, I didn’t join this forum with the intent to disparage the GX or anyone who owns one. If my posts have come across that way I apologize. By joining this forum, my intent was solely to gain information from actual owners, specifically owners who have experienced quality issues of any kind with their GX 550. Since joining I have learned about the rough idle, the transmission calibration issue, and the hood flutter, so mission accomplished.
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At the end of the day you have to decide what you believe in and what your expectations are. Is an AI generated video that explains how individual bearing caps are better than the cradle, and how Toyota is switching to that design in 2027 believable? Does FB posted photo showing a Tundra on a tow truck prove that 2026 engine had main bearing failure? If yes then it’s likely you will never buy a car with v35 engine. Regardless if Toyota recalls more trucks or not the echo chamber won’t stop. Stuff like “2027 Tundras are blowing up” will come up by the one of 2026.
One thing that is undeniably true is this - selling cars with defective engines is a bad business. Financially, it is better not to sell a truck than to sell it and be on the hook for an engine replacement in couple of years. Is Toyota bad business? Maybe. Then again, consumer report just put Toyota back at the first place in reliability for 2025 mainly because how much Tundra reliability improved from 2022
One thing that is undeniably true is this - selling cars with defective engines is a bad business. Financially, it is better not to sell a truck than to sell it and be on the hook for an engine replacement in couple of years. Is Toyota bad business? Maybe. Then again, consumer report just put Toyota back at the first place in reliability for 2025 mainly because how much Tundra reliability improved from 2022
- Thread starter
- #28
Well there is no doubt there was an issue in those early 2024 engines because Toyota recalled them. Has Toyota definitively said what changes they made to the engines produced after the recall? Was it just making sure there were no metal shavings in the engines? Did the Tahara plant make the same mistakes the Alabama plant made as to the debris left in the engines? Is that why they added some 2024 GX 550’s to the recall? If Toyota has officially released the reason they added the early 2024 GX’s I am not aware of it. If that info is out there I would love to hear it.
IMO, Toyota’s lack of transparency has fueled all of these online rumors and speculation. Unless or until they fix the V35A issues for good, inform the public as to exactly what caused the issues, and what steps they took to fix them, this PR disaster will likely continue to grow.
IMO, Toyota’s lack of transparency has fueled all of these online rumors and speculation. Unless or until they fix the V35A issues for good, inform the public as to exactly what caused the issues, and what steps they took to fix them, this PR disaster will likely continue to grow.
You might want to create a separate for sale thread, so you can get some visibility to what you’re selling.
My 2 cents.. have a 2025 and love it. Great car. Less problems than most other new cars and nothing needing the dealer etc. buy one. It’ll be awesome, and if it’s not, Lexus will make it right. No need to wait.
No argument here. One thing though is that this is nothing new. I don't recall a manufacturer (for sure not Toyota) ever being very public about technical details of a problem, even less so about improvements made etc. I am afraid official NHTSA doc is best you ever gonna get. In that doc Toyota says
To me this reads as 1. they improved manufacturing process, and 2. improved main bearings. They are fairly certain that those that were produced with improved bearing are trouble free. Those that were produced with old bearings are still being investigated. Of course no one will ever tell you which engine was produced with what bearing. My guess would be that everything that is produced after that recall has the improved bearings. I would actually be surprised if the replacements engines that they started putting in the mid of 2024 had old, "weak" bearing, but who knows.
I don't know where this whole thing about Tahara engines being trouble free came from. The official investigation doc for the first recall clearly stats both plant and recalls both Tundras and LX600s...
Come on now - why would you join a board to argue with strangers - or worse try to reminisce with strangers….
It’s all good - we’re all trying to figure these things out and there are many versions of the issue out there. Some more BS than others.
- Thread starter
- #33
I have not argued with anyone. I joined to gain information and hear what actual owners had to say about a vehicle that I really want to buy. Isn’t that one of primary reasons for an online forum? If the information I glean here helps me to decide to buy a GX then great. If the information here gives me legitimate reason not to buy that’s ok too. I think info from actual owners is far more reliable than agenda driven sources like YouTube etc.
I was being sarcastic. Agree the YouTube agenda is not worth much
- Thread starter
- #35
10/4
You are already hesitant and looking for assurances not publicly available or that can’t be provided here. IMO you should not get a GX. You are already too worried about its reliability and will not be able to enjoy it. If you like the design look at the Land Cruiser but because of your hesitation/worries I would question if a GX is right for you.
- Thread starter
- #37
You are correct about the assurances. If I never get the info from Toyota that makes reasonably certain the engine is solid in the GX 550……I’ll just keep my 2021 Tundra TRD Off Road. I’ll be very disappointed if that happens as I really wanted a GX.
I’m kinda in the same boat. I had put a deposit on a GX last month and then found this site looking for ideas on aftermarket products and accessories. Seems like a great group of people here with a lot of knowledge on the GX’s. While searching this site I discovered the bearing issues and further investigated other sites for additional information. I have been on the fence whether to proceed or wait until later this year. As of now I am leaning towards moving forward with the purchase. We have had multiple Lexus vehicles over the years and really have never had any issues with the brand. I would like to think Toyota wouldn’t build vehicles if they knew the engines are defective as this could damage the brand with loyal customers.
Thankfully my 2024 has had no engine problems and no recall notices after 30k miles; On the other hand, I bought the extended warranty from lexus at the time of purchase for up to 100k miles.
- Thread starter
- #40
Yep, we both find ourselves between a rock and a hard spot. Regardless of which way you go on buying a GX 550, at least you know most of the positives and negatives going in. I agree, I find it very difficult to believe Toyota would deliberately sell vehicles with an engine they knew would need to be replaced under warranty. Your overall risk of a failure is relatively low based on what we know now. Therefore purchasing now is certainly not a bad decision. It’s the “what we don’t know now” that has convinced me to wait another 10 to 12 months in hopes that more of these unknowns may become knowns.
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