CSR
Check a VIN

Look up

About

Lexus · NHTSA safety record

2013 Lexus RX 350

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

59

Complaints

10

Crashes

3

Fires

11

Injuries

1

Deaths

Owners of the 2013 Lexus RX 350 have filed 59 safety complaints with NHTSA between March 2013 and March 2023. The most complained-about system is the brakes, named in 12 of them (20%). The typical failure was reported at 45,500 miles, the median across the 46 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 1 recall covering this vehicle.

Recalls (1)

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE

14V054000 · February 12, 2014

The defect
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2012 and 2013 Toyota Tacoma and Lexus RX350 vehicles and certain model year 2012 Toyota Rav4 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the brake system contains a brake actuator that adjusts the fluid pressure of each wheel cylinder. An electrical component within the actuator may experience an increased resistance resulting in the illumination of various warning lights, including those for the Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) system, Antilock Brake System (ABS), and Traction Control system.
The risk
If this occurs, these systems could become inoperative, reducing the directional control assistance, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Toyota will notify owners, and Toyota and Lexus dealers will update the software for the Skid Control electronic control unit, free of charge. The recall began on March 28, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing · up to 261,114 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 59.

SERVICE BRAKES 12 20%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 11 19%
STRUCTURE 10 17%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 9 15%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 9 15%
AIR BAGS 6 10%
ENGINE 6 10%
STEERING 5 8%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 4 7%
POWER TRAIN 4 7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 3%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 2%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2018 at 12.

2013 2018 2023
2013 to 2023

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

1 death · 2 injured · crash · towed · 63,000 miles

VEHICICLE SHOT FORWARD GAINING SPEED WITH BRAKES FULLY APPLIED WHCH DID NOT ENGAGE THE BRAKE OVERRIDE OF ACCELERATION. RAN THROUGH THE GARAGE DOOR GAINING SPEED THEN COLLIDED WITH THE GARAGE BACK WALL. THERE WAS NO CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. THE ADJACENT KITCHEN WALL COLLAPSED WHICH MOVED THE REFRIGERATOR FORWARD TRAPPING OUR TWO FRIENDS BETWEEN IT AND THE KITCHEN CABINETS ON THE PARALLEL WALL. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY EVEN THOUGH THE BLACK BOX INDICATED THE CAR HIT THE GARAGE WALL AT ABOUT 17 MPH. BLACK BOX SHOWED FULL THROTTLE AND TOTAL APPLICATION OF BRAKES. CAR WAS TOTALLY OUT OF CONTROL AND PRODUCED HORRIFYING RESULTS. ONE OF OUR FRIENDS LAPSED INTO A COMA THAT NIGHT AND WAS TAKEN OFF

NHTSA complaint 11139529, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES

4 injured · crash

THE CAR WAS PARKED ON A FLAT SURFACE ON THE TOP OF A DRIVEWAY THAT GOES DOWNHILL. THE CAR WAS TURNED ON AND WHEN THE PARKING BRAKE WAS RELEASED, THE CAR IMMEDIATELY SHOT DOWN THE HILL LIKE A BULLET AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. THE BRAKES DID NOT STOP OR SLOW DOWN THE CAR. WE WENT THROUGH 3 FENCES BEFORE THE CAR WAS FINALLY STOPPED BY THE THIRD FENCE. THE CAR HAD 4 PASSENGERS IN IT. THE PASSENGERS ON THE RIGHT PASSENGER SIDE, BOTH FRONT AND REAR, SUSTAINED THE MOST INJURIES. NONE OF THE 10 AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. *TR

NHTSA complaint 10644866. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 53,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2013 LEXUS RX350. WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH,THE CONTACT LOST CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND STRUCK A GUARDRAIL. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED PRIOR TO THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED AND TOWED TO A JUNK YARD. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE PASSENGER WAS INJURED AND REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION AT LEESBURG HOSPITAL. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 53,000.

NHTSA complaint 11074510. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

1 injured · crash · towed · 85,191 miles

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2018 I STARTED MY DAY BY FIRST GOING TO THE BANK. I ENTERED THE PARKING LOT OF SUNTRUST BANK ON RACE TRACK ROAD, IN BOWIE MD. UPON ENTERING INTO THE PARKING LOT A CAR EXITING THE BANK OF AMERICA DRIVE THRU SHOULD HAVE STOP FOR ME TO HAVE THE RIGHT AWAY, BUT DID NOT, SO I CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP TO ALLOW THAT CAR GO PASS. I THEN PROCEEDED TO A PARKING SPACE. AS I WAS ENTERING THE PARKING SPACE, WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE, MY LEXUS RX 350 ' 2013 ACCELERATED. I IMMEDIATELY CONTINUED TO PRESS ON THE BRAKES WHICH DID NOT ENGAGE AND WENT STRAIGHT TO THE FLOOR. THE SUV JUMPED ONTO THE SIDEWALK AND PROCEEDED TO THE STEPS, IT THEN CROSSED THE MEDIA AND WHEN STRAIGHT INTO THE

NHTSA complaint 11160508, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE

40,000 miles

The contact owns a 2013 Lexus RX350. The contact stated that after closing the liftgate door and reversing out of the car port, the liftgate door erroneously opened and struck the car port causing damage to the liftgate. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact stated that recently the liftgate lowered independently. The failure occurred several times while placing items into the back of the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 40,000.

NHTSA complaint 11513401. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

46,000 miles

The contact owns a 2013 Lexus RX350. The contact stated that while driving at speeds exceeding 70 MPH, the steering wheel was violently shaking and vibrating. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the failure was no longer covered under an unknown Extended Service Campaign. The local dealer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 46,000. The contact stated that the manufacturer did not want to address the issue due to the vehicle's model year. There was a TSB involving later model years for the same issue, the faulty steering column.

NHTSA complaint 11511160. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
NO PROBLEM AS OF NOW SAW IT ON RECALL IN CONSUMER REPORT

NHTSA complaint 11388122. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

90,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 LEXUS RX 350. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, AN ABNORMAL RATTLING SOUND WAS COMING FROM THE STEERING WHEEL, WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT HAD TAKEN THE VEHICLE TO LEXUS OF TAMPA BAY (5852 N. DALE MABRY HWY, TAMPA, FL 33614) WHERE THE MECHANIC WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE HAD GOTTEN WORSE OVER TIME. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 90,000.

NHTSA complaint 11387882. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

fire · 85,000 miles

MY CAR BLEW UP. THE ENGINE CAUGHT FIRE AS I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. MILE MARKER 372 I95S. I SAW SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE ENGINE AND THEN FIRE STARTED SO I PULLED OVER ON THE LEFT SHOULDER AND THE FIRE BURST INTO FULL FLAMES

NHTSA complaint 11373660. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

129,550 miles

TURNING STEERING WHEEL CAUSING DASH CUTOFF. SEATS AREN'T RESETTING TO ORIGINAL POSITION. BACK HATCH WILL NOT LIFT DEPENDING ON POSITION OF STEERING COLUMN

NHTSA complaint 11353756. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Lexus RX 350

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2019 31 3 —
2018 18 1 —
2017 46 3 1
2016 58 3 —
2015 42 1 —
2012 33 1 —
2011 30 1 —
2010 94 1 1

Other 2013 Lexus models

CT 43 ES 33 GS 350 26 ES350 23 RX Hybrid 12 LS460 9 ES Hybrid 8

Every Lexus on this site — 88 vehicles, 116 recall campaigns and 1 open investigation .

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. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

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.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst