2005 Lexus RX330 problems
Owners have filed 210 complaints about the 2005 Lexus RX330 with NHTSA. Exterior lighting accounts for 15.2% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of structure at 15.2%.
Complaints210
Crashes22
Fires3
Injuries10
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Exterior lighting 15.2% · 32
Structure 15.2% · 32
Steering 13.8% · 29
Power train 9.0% · 19
Unknown or other 7.1% · 15
Vehicle speed control 6.7% · 14
Air bags 6.7% · 14
Engine 5.2% · 11
Severity
Of those complaints, 22 describe a crash, 3 describe a fire and 10 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Filings have fallen off, 6 in the last three years against 38 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 80,000 miles.
In owners' own words
Condensation buildup has formed from the interior of the driver/passenger headlights. This is due to a manufacturer design flaw of the headlight seal which allows water to penetrate the headlight housing. Water damage has caused the lowbeam lights to fail. Lexus has quoted over $1400 for replacements, and fails to acknowledge their design flaw. Impacted visibility while driving will lead to an accident. Exterior lighting · reported at 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Lexus RX330. The contact stated that the headlights seized without warning. The failure was persisent. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the entire headlight assembly failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vin was unknown. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000. Exterior lighting · reported at 109,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Lexus RX330. The contact stated that there was condensation on the driver's side headlight. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis where the technician stated that the headlight would have to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 40,000. ..Updated 12-26-13 Exterior lighting · reported at 40,000 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…