Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government
holds on this vehicle.
Owners have filed 46 safety complaints
about the 2011 Lexus ES with the US government. Of those, 6 describe a crash, 4 people were injured and no death is recorded. No recall campaign has been matched to this year, make and model.
The most complained-about system is the air bags,
named in 27 complaints, 59% of the total.
The typical failure was reported at 47,000 miles,
the median across the 18
complaints that gave
an odometer reading.
Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files
· Covers October 2011 to July 2026 · How this is counted
What is on file
46 complaints on file
46
Complaints
6
Describe a crash
0
Mention fire
4
People injured
0
Deaths
A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a
finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts
them.
No recall campaign was matched to this year, make and model. That is not
the same as a clean vehicle: recalls are issued against production
ranges, and the only reliable check is your own VIN.
Which system owners named
Complaints naming each system
AIR BAGS 27 · 59%
27 59%
STRUCTURE 6 · 13%
6 13%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 5 · 11%
5 11%
SERVICE BRAKES 3 · 7%
3 7%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 3 · 7%
3 7%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 · 7%
3 7%
STEERING 2 · 4%
2 4%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 2 · 4%
2 4%
ENGINE 1 · 2%
1 2%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 1 · 2%
1 2%
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 1 · 2%
1 2%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 · 2%
1 2%
01223
One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 46.
When the complaints arrived
By the year NHTSA received them
By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures
happened. They peaked in 2017 at 20.
This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure
happened. The range runs from 2011 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program
NHTSA has not crash tested the 2011 Lexus ES. Its New Car Assessment Program
tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach
motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so
an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It
is not a low score.
What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a
different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people
inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke
during ordinary use.
In owners’ own words
Quoted from the complaint file
Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the
people who filed them, not findings of fault.
AIR BAGS
1 injured · crash · towed · 170,000 miles
The contact owned a 2011 Lexus 350. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, her vehicle collided with another vehicle that ran a red light at 50 MPH on the front passenger side door. The impact caused the vehicle to careen off the roadway and collide with a billboard support beam where it came to stop. No air bags were deployed. A police report was filed, and injuries were reported. The contact was transported to an area hospital by emergency services and treated for ocular facial pain, diplopia gaze, and a possible brain aneurysm, resulting in post-concussion syndrome. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss. …
NHTSA complaint 11553879, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
1 injured · crash · towed
The contact owned a 2011 Lexus ES 350. The contact stated that while driving at 40 MPH, another vehicle crossed over into oncoming traffic, resulting in a head-on collision with the contact's vehicle. The air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss by the contact insurance provider. A police report was filed, and injuries were reported. The contact's wife was transported to an area hospital by EMT and treated for injuries to her right shoulder, left hip, left femur, and left foot, requiring surgery on her shoulder, hip, and femur. The contact also stated that it was required that a stint be placed in his wife's …
NHTSA complaint 11586401, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
1 injured · crash
AT ABOUT 2:00 PM ON DEC 26, 2011, WHILE PARKING IN A PUBLIC COVERED GARAGE, I TURNED INTO THE PARKING SPACE, POSITIONED MY CAR, AND WAS ABOUT TO TURN OFF THE ENGINE WHEN THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD, HITTING THE CONCRETE WALL IN FRONT OF ME. THE PASSENGER IN MY CAR, MY 21 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER, ALSO A LICENSED DRIVER, FELT THE CAR LURCH AND ACCELERATE FORWARD. SINCE I HAD REACHED A GOOD PARKING POSITION, I AM CERTAIN THAT I HAD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE AND WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE. THE INJURY TO MY FOOT, FROM ALL INDICATIONS, SHOWS THAT MY FOOT WAS ON THE BREAK. I HAD IT X-RAYED ON DEC 27 AT A PATIENT FIRST MEDICAL FACILITY AND ALSO WAS SEEN ON DEC 28, BY MY FAMILY PHYSICIAN. HE EXAMINED …
NHTSA complaint 10441934, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1 injured
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A OWNS A 2011 LEXUS ES350. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DRIVER EXITED THE VEHICLE AND FORGOT TO SHUT THE IGNITION OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS EQUIPPED WITH A PUSH TO START AND STOP FEATURE. THE ENGINE CONTINUED TO RUN UNTIL A CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR SOUNDED. THE DRIVER SUFFERED CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING AND AS A RESULT, WAS TAKEN TO A HOSPITAL TO TREAT THE CONDITION. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO HAVE THE FAILURE DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.
NHTSA complaint 10458009. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I AM GETTING A PARASITIC ELECTRICAL DRAW OF 12% OVERNIGHT. ON A NEW INTERSTATE BATTERY. I HAVE CHECKED LIGHTING AND ALLSTATE MILEWISE MONITOR AND NEITHER APPEAR TO BE THE SOURCE. IS THERE A COMMON ISSUE ON A 2011 ES350?
NHTSA complaint 11752883. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
137,912 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Lexus ES 350. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed fluid leaking from the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 137,912.
NHTSA complaint 11681439. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
STRUCTURE:BODY
We purchased this vehicle in mid 2018. In October of 2018 Lexus issued a customer support process ZLZ which covered our vehicle for problems with the dashboard. At that time, we had no deterioration of our dashboard so we did not respond. The Lexus program expired in 2021. In the last two years, our dashboard has deteriorated quite substantially becoming sticky and more importantly, becoming very reflective. This condition is a serious safety issue for day and night driving as light reflects up on the windshield and obscures vision out of the windshield. We took the vehicle to Lexus San Diego in August of 2024 and they declined to address the repair as a defect and offered to replace the …
NHTSA complaint 11624496, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I started my vehicle and drove about 1/2 mile when the car started acting like it was running out of gas. I pulled over and got about 1gallon of gas in a gas can and put it in the vehicle. I turned the car back on and drove about 2 blocks when the vehicle started jumping like it was going to run out of gas again. The vehicle then shut down while I was driving it. I made it to the side of the road and put the vehicle in park and turned off the ignition with the push start button. I tried to start the vehicle again with the push start button and the vehicle would just try to start but just crank and not turn on. This ended up being a fault fuel pump. After some research I was able to find out …
NHTSA complaint 11607669, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
65,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Lexus ES350. The contact stated that the passenger’s side air bag warning light was flashing constantly. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the Occupant Classification Sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred, and the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the Occupant Classification Sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The contact had researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags). The …
NHTSA complaint 11584675, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's
lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How
many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by
the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.
Complaints: NHTSA's ODI
complaint file, published October 2, 2026. One
complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.
Recalls: NHTSA's recall
campaign API, no campaign on file for this vehicle.
Investigations: NHTSA's ODI
investigation file, published October 2, 2026.
A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by
us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that
sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.
G
Compiled and maintained by guarledes Independent developer and analyst